Presentation

The Department of Physics and Astronomy (DIFA) was established in 2012 following the merging of the two separate Departments of Physics and Astromomy of the University of Bologna. 

Modern headquarters are located in  Viale Berti Pichat (6/2 and 8) where Administration and Management offices are located, along with several laboratories, while Astrophysics section is located in the new branch at Navile.

These buildings have been added to the historical locations in Via Irnerio 46 (Physics) and Torre della Specola (Astronomy).

DIFA is a big structure integrated with almost 500 researchers achieving a level of excellence in Research and Teaching thanks to the sharing of personnel, projects and goals with National Research Agencies.

DIFA area hosts researchers, laboratories and infrastructures of 

• Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare (Bologna's branch of INFN), 
• INFN's Centro nazionale tecnologie informatiche (CNAF),  
• Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia (Bologna's branch of INGV),
• Centro Mediterraneo dei Cambiamenti Climatici (Bologna's branch of CMCC).

In addition, at the new Navile headquarters, Astrophysics section of DIFA shares the location with two structures of Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica (INAF: Osservatorio di Astrofisica e Scienza dello Spazio di Bologna and OAS, Istituto di Radioastronomia - IRA) and with Headquarters of Cerenkov Telescope Array (CTA) observatory , establishing one of Europe's main research centres in Astrophysics and Cosmology.