In his habilitation thesis "Neutrino detection at nuclear reactors", Christian Buck presented his contributions to the neutrino oscillation experiments Double Chooz and STEREO, for which among other things he developed, characterised and contributed metal-loaded liquid scintillators. He is also involved in the CONUS experiment with the aim of detecting reactor neutrinos via coherent neutrino-nucleus scattering. Christian Buck presented the research results at the MPIK Gentner Colloquium in December 2023.
The topic of his concluding non-disciplinary lecture held in front of the habilitation conference was "The bumblebee paradox: secrets of insect flight". It was about the myth, which has been widespread for almost a century, that bumblebees cannot actually fly from a physical point of view. This statement was based on highly simplified calculations from the 1930s, which assumed rigid wings similar to those of aeroplanes. However, the combination of curved wings, flapping movements, wing rotations and hindwings gives insects additional lift and even allows them to transport comparatively heavy loads in flight. These findings from bionics are also of great interest for the development of aircraft such as Micro Air Vehicles (MAV).
The MPIK congratulates PD Dr Christian Buck and wishes him continued success in research and teaching.
