On particles, strings and cosmologySummer brings international students to Quantum Universe

21 August 2025

Photo: UHH/Ullmann

This year's summer school on "Particles, Strings and Cosmology" brought together participants from all over the world in Hamburg.

Photo: UHH/Ullmann

Insights to particle physics with a focus on the Higgs boson, as well as Physics beyond the Standard Model and Machine Learning were on the schedule of the summer school.

Photo: UHH/Ullmann

In front of the iconic St. Michaelis Kirche in Hamburg during one of the walking tours

This July, the Hamburg International Summer School “Particles, Strings and Cosmology” brought 27 students from 11 different countries to Hamburg. In two weeks’ time, they had the opportunity to get to know the University of Hamburg’s Cluster of Excellence Quantum Universe and the Campus Bahrenfeld.

The Summer School started with lectures on Particle Physics by Elisabetta Gallo and Katharina Behr, followed by inputs and exercises on machine learning by Gregor Kasieczka. The students also gained insights into string theory from Timo Weigand and cosmology from Alexander Westphal.

Two guided tours at the research centre DESY gave the students the opportunity to get to know the research and facilities on campus. The program helped the students to plunge into topics that they had partially dealt with before in their institutes at home, but not in such an intense and extended way. For many of them it was the first experience in an international school, for some of them even the first time outside their own country. Besides the lectures and exercises, the school also comprised social events and opportunities for networking within the group. Among the social highlights were two walking tours downtown Hamburg with insights to city’s history including its colonial past, as well as surprise movie screenings and a science film quiz.

This being the 5th edition of the summer school "Particles, Strings and Cosmology", participants benefitted from a well-established program and tried-and-tested formats from the cluster of excellence Quantum Universe. The students’ commitment and curiosity have contributed greatly to making this summer school a productive and enjoyable event for everyone involved!

The summer school “Particles, Strings and Cosmology” is part of the Hamburg International Summer Schools, a set of schools the University of Hamburg offers every year.