Re-Ionization: When and How?
Scientific Rationale
The epoch of re-ionization is a fascinating time in the history of the Universe because of the many uncertainties which plague our understanding of when and how it occurred. Although much progress has been made in the recent years, we still know very little about the ionizing sources, reflecting our poor knowledge of the Universe at redshifts beyond 6-7.
In Italy, many astronomers are active in attacking this issue, from both the theoretical and observational point of view. We think that the time is ripe to get together and discuss which steps can be taken in the next 5-10 years, that is, before new powerful instruments like JWST and E-ELT become available, to improve our understanding of the mechanisms which led to the re-ionization of the IGM and of when such phenomenon started and was completed.
Program
The program foresees review talks on the state of the art, followed by discussion sessions on the main issues, such as the IMF of the first galaxies, the ionizing emission of the high z galaxies, GRBs and the first stars, and what we can learn from deep surveys, mm astronomy, strong lensing and QSO absorption spectra. Participants are encouraged to contribute to the discussions informally showing their latest results: please refer to the discussion leaders.
Reviewers: Andrea Ferrara, Laura Pentericci, Eros Vanzella
Discussion leaders: Stefano Cristiani, Adriano Fontana, Simona Gallerani, Francesco Haardt, Massimo Meneghetti, Ruben Salvaterra, Raffaella Schneider
