Research Areas

Materials Science

The materials physics group is interested in the experimental investigation of electrical, magnetic and optical properties of solids, with special attention paid to those materials which have application in device technology.

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Zamkov research
Dave research

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Theoretical Physics

Much of the Department's research effort centers around unifying interest in computational physics. Members of this group are interested in the application of the methods of computational physics to a wide variety of research areas, including:

  • Materials Physics

  • Astrophysics

  • Rayleigh-Benard Convection; Lattice Boltzmann Methods

    Materials Physics

Astrophysics

Our research in astronomy and astrophysics has two main tracks: planetary and stellar.

In planetary astronomy our primary research interest is in the shape and spin properties of small bodies throughout our Solar System. We use both new observations and archival data from cutting-edge sky surveys to trace the changes in brightness across several wavelength ranges for these objects to learn about their shape, rotation rates and surfaces.

Our stellar astrophysics group focuses on studying the formation of our Milky Way Galaxy, using positions, velocities, and chemical compositions of stars. We also perform observational studies of variable stars to determine their distances and to better understand the physical processes that cause them to pulsate.

Layden_research
brightness variations of an RR Lyrae star
This animation shows rotation of an elongated asteroid

Updated: 12/17/2024 03:08PM