Mission Statement

The Lorentz Center is an international center that coordinates and hosts workshops in the sciences, based on the philosophy that science thrives on interaction between creative researchers. Lorentz Center workshops focus on new collaborations and interactions between scientists from different countries and fields, and with varying seniority.

The Lorentz Center concept

In order to allow both junior and senior researchers to catch up with the rapid international developments and to establish new contacts and collaboration, Lorentz Center workshops bring together junior and senior researchers in a stimulating environment with personal working space for all participants as well as normal meeting facilities. Groups of up to 55 or up to 25 participants are accommodated in two dedicated locations: Lorentz@Oort and Lorentz@Snellius. Through a combination of informal talks, working sessions and discussions, participants are able to assess the status of a field and its future, and to collaborate, establish new international contacts, and spot upcoming talent.

Workshops can be proposed and organised by any researcher from any country. Workshops organised by researchers from different scientific backgrounds and nationalities are encouraged. Proposals for workshops are reviewed by the Scientific Advisory Boards. Currently, the advisory boards within the natural sciences are astronomy, informatics, life sciences, mathematics, and physics. The Center is also open to proposals from outside these fields in the framework of computational science or in our collaboration with Netherlands Institute of Advanced Studies in the Humanities and Social Sciences (NIAS; see below). Submission procedures are aimed at rapid evaluation.

Surrounded by excellence

The Lorentz Center is located in Leiden University's Oort and Snellius buildings, which also host the Instituut-Lorentz for theoretical physics, the Kamerlingh Onnes Laboratory (Physics), the Leiden Observatory (Astromomy), the Mathematics Department and the Leiden Institute of Advanced Computer Science. The Chemistry / biochemistry and Biology departments are located in adjacent buildings, or nearby, as is Leiden University Medical Center. All Dutch universities and research institutes can easily be reached by public transport; the universities in Amsterdam, Utrecht, Delft and Rotterdam are within an hour by train. Schiphol International Airport is only 15 minutes by train.

Collaboration with NIAS

In collaboration with the social sciences and humanities institute NIAS located nearby, the Lorentz Center welcomes proposals for interdisciplinary workshops that bring together one or more disciplines of the Lorentz Center with those of the NIAS. Proposals for these workshops are reviewed by the NIAS-Lorentz Center Advisory Board. For more information about this program see: NIAS-Lorentz Collaboration.

Support

The Lorentz Center is supported by
Leiden University,
Ministerie van OCW, the Dutch Ministry of Education, Culture and Science
FOM, the Dutch Physics Funding Foundation "Fundamenteel Onderzoek der Materie",
NWO, Dutch Research Council.

The Lorentz Fonds regularly supports workshops in Physics