Reto Trappitsch

Assistant Research Professor of Physics

Departments/Programs

Physics

Degrees

University of Chicago, Ph.D.
University of Berne, M.S.
University of Berne, B.S.

Expertise

- Experimental Astrophysics
- Cosmic ray Interactions with Interplanetary and Interstellar Matter
- Cosmochemistry

Profile

My research focuses on understanding element and isotope formation and evolution in the Milky Way due to stellar nucleosynthesis, i.e., to elucidate how the atoms we are made of formed from the hydrogen and helium that was made in the Big Bang. My lab analyzes presolar grains, which are bona fide stardust grains that formed in the outflows of dying stars, in order to better understand how stars form new elements and isotopes. This approach can also be described as experimental astrophysics. In combination with astronomical observations of stars and stellar nucleosynthesis / galactic chemical evolution models, our measurements help in deciphering this complex topic.

Courses Taught

PHYS

112a

On the Origin of the Elements in the Milky Way

Scholarship

Füri, Evelyn and Zimmermann, Laurent and Deloule, Etienne and Trappitsch, Reto. "Cosmic ray effects on the isotope composition of hydrogen and noble gases in lunar samples: Insights from Apollo 12018." Earth and Planetary Science Letters 550. 15 (2021): 116550.

M. Lugaro, B. Cseh, B. Világos, A. I. Karakas, P. Ventura, F. Dell'Agli, R. Trappitsch, M. Hampel, V. D'Orazi, C. B. Pereira, G. Tagliente, G. M. Szabó, M. Pignatari, U. Battino, A. Tattersall, M. Ek, M. Schönbächler, J. Hron, L. R. Nittler. "Origin of large meteoritic SiC stardust grains in metal-rich AGB stars." The Astrophysical Journal 898. 2 (2021): 96.

P. R. Heck, J. Greer, J. Boesenberg, A. Bouvier, M. W. Caffee, W. Cassata, C. Corrigan, A. M. Davis, D. Davis, M. Fries, M. Hankey, P. Jenniskens, P. Schmitt-Kopplin, S. Sheu, R. Trappitsch, et al.. "The fall, recovery, classification, and initial characterization of the Hamburg, Michigan H4 chondrite." Meteoritics & Planetary Science 55. 11 (2021): 2341-2359.

Savina, Michael R. and Trappitsch, Reto. "Resonance Ionization Mass Spectrometry (RIMS): Fundamentals and Applications Including Secondary Neutral Mass Spectrometry." Photoionization and Photo-Induced Processes in Mass Spectrometry. Ed. Zimmermann, Ralph and Hanley, Luke. Weinheim: Wiley-VCH, 2021