The aim of the focus program is to discuss phenomenological applications of gauge/gravity duality to topics in QCD, particle physics, and nuclear physics. Special focus will be on recent developments on connections between dense strongly-coupled quark and nuclear matter systems and applications of holography to heavy ion experiments and neutron stars.

Incoming experimental results from high density heavy-ion collisions, neutron stars, and their mergers, have lead to a recent surge of interest in QCD at finite density. In particular, there has been lots of recent activity on applying gauge/gravity duality in this field. This focus program aims at bringing together the scientist in the string theory and QCD communities working in this topics from different points of view. At the same time, we aim at increasing the scientific activity in this rapidly growing field in the high energy physics community of Korea, which has strong background in applications of gauge/gravity duality in QCD.

The focus program will take place at the APCTP headquarters (5th floor, Seminar Room 512) in the Pohang University of Science and Technology campus in the city of Pohang, South Korea. It is funded jointly by the APCTP and the National Research Foundation of Korea.