About the Department

Content of the page:

• What is Physics about?
• Focus and goals for our students.
• Faculty and their areas of expertise.
• Department Documents
  • Mission statement,
  • Department, college and university committees,
  • Our constitution,
  • Department bylaws,
  • Graduate Handbook.

What is Physics about?

Wherever you look, and whatever object you use, you see and feel physics at work! Physics describes phenomena as diverse as the evolution of the cosmos, the motion of planets and stars, the behavior of gases, liquids, polymers and solids, down to the world of molecules, atoms, nuclei and elementary particles. Physics is thus devoted to the study of all forms of matter and energy and their interactions.

Understanding the basic concepts in physics helps to make sense of the occurrences we observe in the world in which we live. Studying physics has also a practical value as it aims at developing critical thinking and acquiring tools to address scientific and technological problems encountered in industry or in fundamental research. These goals are reached in the department through

teaching and research involving active student participation.

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Focus and goal for our students:

As a major in our Department, you will learn mathematical and computational, experimental and instrumental skills that will serve you well in any occupation you choose. Our master's program offers many professional opportunities from high school and community college teachers, to the involvement in high-tech companies or the pursuit of a doctoral degree. A significant percentage of our students find their way to major doctoral programs. You will also have various opportunities to participate in the active research of our faculty during your undergraduate and graduate years at the department.

The primary focus of our department is to form and train students through teaching and participation in research so as to become knowledgeable physicists capable of investing their talents into the life of our society. This goal is achieved in two ways. On the one hand we offer a wide variety of courses at all levels allowing students to receive an academically strong physics education. On the other hand we involve students early on in the active research of our faculty, thereby training them to apply their knowledge to concrete scientific problems. The department offers small classes that allow frequent student-faculty interactions. The participation in research projects is also done in close collaboration with the faculty. For graduate students, that involvement culminates in a research-based Master's thesis. In addition, it is not uncommon to find students as co-authors of scientific papers (see the publication list of the department).

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Faculty and their areas of expertise:

Our approximately 15 full-time faculty members represent a broad range of experimental and theoretical expertise: Astronomy, Astrophysics, Atomic and Molecular Physics, Computational Physics, Condensed Matter Physics and Materials Sciences, Elementary Particle Physics, Few Body Physics, Field Theory, Nuclear Physics and Nuclear Astrophysics, Optics, and Physics Education. The research done in some of these fields results in the writing of scientific articles and the development of new classes and laboratory activities. Students have access to these resources and can expand their knowledge beyond the education offered through traditional classes. To find out about the research done at the department, look at the research page or the profile pages of our faculty as well as the Applied Physics, Computational Physics and General Physics pages.

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Department Documents:

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