Advice on Becoming a Particle Phenomenologist

[prkls]

I just started my masters in "subatomic physics". The first year is the standard grad courses (electrodynamics, quantum and classical physics, statistical physics, maths etc.). The second year is going to be the one where I'll be choosing to become a theorist or experimentalist and write my thesis.

I am interested in particle phenomenology so i guess i should go more into theoretical courses than experimental ones, right? Can someone in the field give me some advice?

Which 4 courses of these would some one need most to get into particle phenomenology? The courses are: qft 1 and 2, detector instrumentation 1 and 2, particle physics, nuclear physics, general relativity, astroparticle physics and cosmology, accelerator physics. Sorry for the long question and thanks for any answers in advance

 

[CrysPhys]

You should prepare a list of candidate advisors for your thesis. Find out which ones will have openings. Then ask them for their recommendations.

 

[Vanadium 50]

You should be nice. You will want a lot of help from your peers. It's easier to get help if you also give help.

 

[vanhees71]

I just started my masters in "subatomic physics". The first year is the standard grad courses (electrodynamics, quantum and classical physics, statistical physics, maths etc.). The second year is going to be the one where I'll be choosing to become a theorist or experimentalist and write my thesis.

I am interested in particle phenomenology so i guess i should go more into theoretical courses than experimental ones, right? Can someone in the field give me some advice?

Which 4 courses of these would some one need most to get into particle phenomenology? The courses are: qft 1 and 2, detector instrumentation 1 and 2, particle physics, nuclear physics, general relativity, astroparticle physics and cosmology, accelerator physics. Sorry for the long question and thanks for any answers in advance

If you are more inclined towards theory, for sure you need QFT, QFT, and QFT. So QFT 1+2 is a must, I'd say. Then I'd study particle physics and maybe nuclear physics. The other courses I'd choose just by what interests you most.

 

[Timo]

Phenomenology is indeed considered as theory if you make a theory/experiment divide. Purely based on the course names: QFT 1, QFT 2 and particle physics sound like no-brainers there.

Nuclear physics and particle astrophysics sound like solid choices, depending on whether your interest is the Standard Model or physics beyond the Standard Model, respectively. The detector and accelerator courses sound great in theory, because in the end it is the experiment that counts. But my impression is that in practice the phenomenologists get away with very basic understanding of the experiments.

General relativity is in a bit special: It doesn't help you for particle phenomenology (or pretty much any field of physics), except maybe for a better understanding of special relativity. But it is one of the two theories in physics that change your perception of reality. Maybe even more than QM, because it is not so weird. So if you want to take that course just out of interest in physics, I think it is a very good pick.