Department of Physics & Astronomy
Presidents Day Event!
Teaching by Inquiry Workshop for Teachers and First College Experience for High School Students
More info...
Research Highlights
First Silicon Modules for the PHENIX VTX
The nuclear group is helping to build a new detector (VTX) to upgrade the PHENIX experiment at RHIC. We recently passed a major milestone: the first silicon modules (sensor + readout electronics) came off the production line. Five done, over two-hundred to go! The current schedule is to install the VTX during summer 2010. The detector will enable us to separately measure charm and beauty production to help study the properties of the quark-gluon plasma.
Talks / Events
more...Welcome to the Department of Physics & Astronomy
Physics and astronomy explores the behavior and structure of matter and energy at all levels to help describe our world and the universe. Physics has been helped us contemplate the origins of the universe and develop new products and technologies that meet human needs. The fundamental laws of physics find application in almost every branch of science, engineering and technology.
The Department has active research programs in Astronomy/Astrophysics, Condensed Matter Physics, High-energy Physics, and Nuclear Physics. Our high-energy physics, particle astrophysics and nuclear physics groups are involved in experiments which recreate the conditions of the early universe and help explain how it has evolved. In providing instruction in classical and modern physics, we cover such areas as mechanics, electricity and magnetism, thermodynamics and statistical mechanics, introductory modern physics, and quantum mechanics.
