Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics

Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics ( PI) is based in Waterloo ( Ontario) in Canada. It is an independent research institute that focuses on the fundamentals of theoretical physics. In addition, it organizes every summer an aligned on physics summer camp for students.

The PI was founded in 1999 by Mike Lazaridis, co-founder and co-CEO of Research In Motion ( maker of BlackBerry ) initiated. He presented in 2000 for $ 100 million private funds. The aim was to Canada in a research institute similar to the Institute for Advanced Study at Princeton or the Kavli Institute for Theoretical Physics building in Santa Barbara, with a relatively small staff and many visiting scientists.

The Director of the Institute since 2008, Neil Turok. One of the researchers working there include Lee Smolin, Freddy Cachazo, Davide Gaiotto. Among the scholars included, inter alia, Stephen Hawking, Nima Arkani - Hamed, Gerardus ' t Hooft and Leonard Susskind.