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At the University of Richmond physics department, we have long believed that in addition to the outstanding teaching and opportunities for undergraduate research, one of our major strengths is the sense of community and dedication to each other that our students have as part of the departmental culture.  This was recently demonstrated when our department’s chapter of the Society of Physics Students (SPS) was selected as an “outstanding” chapter by the national SPS.

The “outstanding” designation is a notable accomplishment – less than 10% of the SPS chapters are so honored, an overall average of around one per state.  As stated in the award letter

“The selection as an outstanding SPS chapter is based on an assessment of the depth and breadth of SPS activities conducted by your chapter presnted in your report in areas such as physics research, public science outreach, physics tutoring programs, hosting and representation at physics meetings, providing social interaction for chapter members, and participation in SPS regional and national level programs.”

The research, social, and outreach activities of the chapter were discussed in a report to the national SPS prepared by chapter President Alexis Achey, along with Vice President Molly Luginbohl, Treasurer JP Wheeler, Secretary Kristen Gell, and Historian Liz Bisaha.  Among the research activities noted were five students who received fellowships to travel to present their research at the Division of Nuclear Physics fall meeting, and two students who traveled to Paris to work with collaborators over the summer.  Social highlights included a stargazing night, liquid nitrogen ice cream party, movie nights, a “deconstruction night” where old equipment was disassembled, recruitment posters, and custom T-shirts.  The outreach activities were centered around physics students’ pivotal role in the Richmond Physics Olympics, a competition for high school students.

This year is not the first time Richmond SPS has been so-honored, having previously received the outstanding chapter award in the 20056-2006 and 2006-2007 school years.

Special welcome to new UR students in the class of 2017!  Also, welcome back to all of our returning students!  For those of you interested in a first physics course, here’s a quick rundown of what you need to know.

Prospective physics majors and engineers typically start with Physics 131 in the fall and 132 in the spring.  (Physics 131 is mostly about mechanics; Physics 132 is mostly electricity and magnetism.)  This fall there are four sections of physics 131, and one section of physics 132 available.    Physics 131 requires Calc. 1 (Math 211) as a prerequisite, or co-requisite (taken at the same time).  Physics 132 requires Calc. 2 (Math 212) as a pre- or co-requisite.  It’s very important for physics majors and engineers to finish 131 and 132 during the first year, so they can take physics 301 in fall of sophomore year.  Physics 301 is only offered in the fall, and is a prerequisite for all of our upper level courses; missing 301 can mean basically falling a full year behind, making it very difficult (though not impossible) to complete the major.

Pre-med students and other science majors also take Physics 131 and 132, and these courses fulfill the science requirement for non-science majors, so even if you’re not sure what you’re majoring in, keep these courses in mind.

Students with strong high school physics backgrounds can skip Physics 131 and start right away with Physics 132.  In exceptional cases, very strong students can even skip Physics 132 and go straight into our sophomore level courses.  Usually, this is determined by AP tests; receiving actual course credit on your transcript for physics 131 or 132 is determined by official university policy, requiring a 4 or 5 on the Physics C Mechanics or E&M AP test, respectively.  However, the question of what course you should take is really separate from the question of AP credit; if you can demonstrate that you know the physics, we are happy to let you skip a course, whether or not you have taken a particular AP exam.  (This especially applies to international students who don’t have easy access to AP exams.)   If you have a strong physics background but didn’t take the right AP exam, email us or talk to one of the physics faculty when you arrive.  In general, we want you in the physics course that’s right for you, and check marks on official pieces of paper aren’t a big deal to us.

For students who aren’t planning to major in a science, we offer Physics 125, a survey of conceptual physics.  This course fulfills the general-education science requirement, but it does not fulfill prerequisites for more advanced science courses.

Finally, I’ll point out that there’s one physics-related first-year seminar this fall:

The Five (or Ten) Best (Physics) Experiments Ever!: This course will examine the people and stories behind some of the key experiments in physics.  We will focus on experiments which have radically altered our views of the world or universe around us or which have radically altered our civilization by the technology they enabled. Inspired by and loosely based on the text “The Ten Most Beautiful Experiments” by George Johnson the course will explore great physics experiments from history as well as some of the more amazing experiments underway.

Like all first-year seminars, this course is open to all first-year students, not just science majors. But I thought I’d mention it, because someone who’s read this far down into this post might be particularly interested in a topic like this.

with a Facebook page and a Twitter feed.

We’ll be posting announcements of public observing nights in both places, so if you want to know when things are going on at the telescope, follow us on Twitter and/or sign up to get notifications on Facebook. (If I’m not mistaken, to do the latter you want to go to the Facebook page and check the “Get Notifications” line under the Like button.)

Tell your friends!

 

Richmond physics professor Matt Trawick has just been awarded a grant from the National Science Foundation in support of his ongoing research in developing new atomic force microscopy techniques.  The three-year, $140,201 grant will allow Trawick and his students to develop new techniques to correct common imaging artifacts, making nanometer-scale surface measurements more accurate.

Three University of Richmond students and their professor have recently published an article in the journal Review of Scientific Instruments.  Their article describes a new technique they invented for correcting certain kinds of imaging and measurement errors that are common in scanning probe microscopy.  The students, Nathan Follin ’13, Keefer Taylor ’13, and Chris Musalo ’12, all worked with physics professor Matt Trawick to both develop the new technique and test it on Richmond’s state-of-the-art atomic force microscope.  They expect their technique will find wide-scale use in nanotechnology, where accurate measurement and imaging of nanometer-scale features is routinely required.

This fall Richmond physics professor Con Beausang had his Department of Energy grant renewed for a further three years. This award, funded by the National Nuclear Security Administration funds Dr. Beausang’s non-classified research into nuclear stewardship science. In addition to providing travel and equipment funding the award provides salary support for a postdoctoral fellow and graduate student as well as summer stipends for Richmond undergraduates to enable them to participate in experiments and study nuclear physics under Dr. Beausang’s guidance.

Two University of Richmond physics majors, Liam Murray and Keegan Sherman, will be presenting posters about their research from last summer at the fall meeting of the Division of Nuclear Physics of the American Physical Society. The meeting will be held in Newport Beach, CA and their work will be part of the Conference Experience for Undergraduates (CEU) held each year as this meeting to highlight undergraduate contributions to nuclear physics. Liam and Keegan both received funding for the trip from CEU and from the University. They worked last summer with Jerry Gilfoyle whose research is focused on the underlying quark and gluon structure of atomic nuclei and how the color force that binds quarks creates the world of nuclear physics. Here are links to Liam’s and Keegan’s abstracts describing their work.

We in the UR physics department are looking forward to welcoming the new members of the Class of 2016 in the fall. Here’s some information you might find helpful as you think about registering for fall courses.

If anything’s not clear, or if you have any questions about which course is for you, ask us!

Physics majors typically start with Physics 131 in the fall and either 132 or 134 in the spring.  There are four sections of physics 131 available this fall.  Physics 131 is mostly about mechanics but has some other topics as well.  It requires either that you’ve had some calculus or that you take Calc. 1 at the same time.

Pre-med students and students in other science majors also take Physics 131, and the course fulfills the science requirement for non-science majors, so even if you’re not sure what you’re majoring in, keep this course in mind.

Students with strong high school physics backgrounds can skip Physics 131 and start right away with Physics 132.  There is one section of this course offered in the fall. University policy says that you need a 4 or 5 on the Physics C Mechanics, or departmental permission, to skip Physics 131.  If you have a strong physics background but didn’t take the right AP exam, email us or talk to one of the physics faculty when you arrive in town to see if you should be in 132.  (This applies especially to international students, who aren’t part of the US AP system.)

If you think you might want to major in physics (even if you’re not sure), and you’re eligible to skip 131, we strongly urge you to sign up for Physics 132 in the fall.  Finishing the introductory physics sequence early will give you a lot more scheduling flexibility in future semesters (and remember that even if you end up majoring in another science, you may still need to take this course).

Students with very strong physics backgrounds (a 4 or a 5 on the Physics C: Electricity & Magnetism AP exam) are eligible to skip both semesters of the introductory sequence.  If you’re in that category, and you think you might want to study physics, the best courses for you are Physics 205 (Modern Physics) and/or Physics 301 (Mathematical Methods).  Once again, if you didn’t take the appropriate AP exam but think you might have the right background for this option, ask us.

For students who aren’t planning to major in a science, we offer Physics 125, a survey of conceptual physics.  This course fulfills the general-education science requirement, but it does not fulfill prerequisites for more advanced science courses.

Finally, I’ll point out that there’s one physics-related first-year seminar this fall:

Space is Big. This course will examine three occasions in the history of Western thought when the conception of the size of the Universe underwent large expansions: 1) The transition from an Earth-centered to Sun-centered view of the Universe, which led to an enormous increase in estimates of distances to stars, and hence in the scale of the known Universe; 2) The gradual understanding, in the early 20th century, of an expanding Universe filled with billions of galaxies; and 3) Contemporary ideas of the multiverse, according to which our observed environment is only a tiny fraction of all that exists. The most extreme and controversial versions of the multiverse hypothesis propose that the very laws of physics vary throughout the Universe, and that our observed patch may be quite atypical. In the course of examining the amount of space in the Universe, we will examine ideas about the nature of space, which also underwent major shifts during each of these periods.

Like all first-year seminars, this course is open to all first-year students, not just science majors. But I thought I’d mention it, because someone who’s read this far down into this post might be particularly interested in a topic like this.

The University of Richmond Board of Trustees met today, and among other less important business they voted to promote  Ovidiu Lipan to the rank of associate professor of physics and to grant him tenure. Please give Ovidiu your heartiest congratulations when you see him.

It's time for incoming first-year students to register for classes for the fall semester.  We in the physics department are looking forward to meeting you all in the fall.

Here's some information about the physics courses available for new students.  If anything here isn't clear, or if you have any questions about which course is for you, ask us!

Physics majors typically start with Physics 131 in the fall and either 132 or 134 in the spring.  There are four sections of physics 131 available this fall.  Physics 131 is mostly about mechanics but has some other topics as well.  It requires either that you've had some calculus or that you take Calc. 1 at the same time.

Pre-med students and students in other science majors also take Physics 131, and the course fulfills the science requirement for non-science majors, so even if you're not sure what you're majoring in, keep this course in mind.

Students with strong high school physics backgrounds can skip Physics 131 and start right away with Physics 132.  There is one section of this course offered in the fall. University policy says that you need a 4 or 5 on the Physics C Mechanics, or departmental permission, to skip Physics 131.  If you have a strong physics background but didn't take the right AP exam, email us or talk to one of the physics faculty when you arrive in town to see if you should be in 132.  (This applies especially to international students, who aren't part of the US AP system.)

If you think you might want to major in physics (even if you're not sure), and you're eligible to skip 131, we strongly urge you to sign up for Physics 132 in the fall.  Finishing the introductory physics sequence early will give you a lot more scheduling flexibility in future semesters (and remember that even if you end up majoring in another science, you may still need to take this course).

Students with very strong physics backgrounds (a 4 or a 5 on the Physics C: Electricity & Magnetism AP exam) are eligible to skip both semesters of the introductory sequence.  If you're in that category, and you think you might want to study physics, the best courses for you are Physics 205 (Modern Physics) and/or Physics 301 (Mathematical Methods).  Once again, if you didn't take the appropriate AP exam but think you might have the right background for this option, ask us.

For students who aren't planning to major in a science, we offer Physics 125, a survey of conceptual physics.  This course fulfills the general-education science requirement, but it does not fulfill prerequisites for more advanced science courses.

Finally, I’ll point out that there’s one physics-related first-year seminar this year:

Space is Big. This course will examine three occasions in the history of Western thought when the conception of the size of the Universe underwent large expansions: 1) The transition from an Earth-centered to Sun-centered view of the Universe, which led to an enormous increase in estimates of distances to stars, and hence in the scale of the known Universe; 2) The gradual understanding, in the early 20th century, of an expanding Universe filled with billions of galaxies; and 3) Contemporary ideas of the multiverse, according to which our observed environment is only a tiny fraction of all that exists. The most extreme and controversial versions of the multiverse hypothesis propose that the very laws of physics vary throughout the Universe, and that our observed patch may be quite atypical. In the course of examining the amount of space in the Universe, we will examine ideas about the nature of space, which also underwent major shifts during each of these periods.

Like all first-year seminars, this course is open to all first-year students, not just science majors. But I thought I’d mention it, because someone who’s read this far down into this post might be particularly interested in a topic like this.

Congratulations to all newly admitted prospective UR students!  Every year we are excited to meet the new group of admitted students interested in physics and and engineering.  We hope that exploring this blog and our website will give you a good feel for what the physics department is all about.  If you would like to know more, feel free to leave a comment here, or contact us directly.  And of course, please drop by and say hello if you are able to visit campus in person.

If you are visiting campus, we would be happy to let you sit in on a physics class!  To set up a classroom visit, please contact our department admin, Mary Ann Stewart.  During the fall, classroom visits are arranged centrally by the UR admissions office; they don’t do it during the spring, presumably to avoid unmanageably large numbers during that busy time.  But as usual, the physics department doesn’t play by the rules; we’re small enough that we can welcome visitors anytime if you contact us directly.

Looking forward to meeting you!

Congratulations to Junior physics major Sarah Scheurich for being chosen as first runner-up for the Clare Boothe Luce Scholarship!  The scholarship is funded by the Henry Luce Foundation and is named for Clare Booth Luce, a playwright, journalist, ambassador, and U.S. congresswoman.  In recognition for her achievement in science and mathematics Sarah will receive a  scholarship towards the remainder of her Richmond education.

Last weekend was the Richmond Physics Olympics.  Fifteen teams of high school students competed in various fun events, building towers, floating boats, and throwing bags of sand off the third floor balcony into the science building atrium.  Many thanks to the University of Richmond students who volunteered to help out with this event.  Several of our students also had some fun with a video camera, proving that our students can goof off just as hard as they work.

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UPDATE: We had to change it yet again! I’m sorry for all the confusion. The following should be really truly final.

We have had to move the meeting time of PHYS 132. It will meet on Tuesdays and Thursdays, from 9:00-11:45.

I’m sorry for the last-minute change. If you need to talk to me about scheduling issues, let me know.

UPDATE: We had to make a number of changes to the fall schedule. The most important one for current and prospective physics majors is that we’re moving computational physics from fall to spring. In addition, instructors for some courses got shuffled around, and math methods moved from Tuesday-Thursday to Monday-Wednesday. Details below. Changes are marked in bold italics.

Here is our current plan for the schedule of physics courses for next fall. It may change, but probably not dramatically. Instructors’ names are listed in parentheses.

• PHYS 125: Elements of Physics. MWF 9:00-11:00 (Serej).
• PHYS 131: General Physics w/ Calc. I. Four sections:
  • MWF 9-11 (Nebel).
  • TTh 1:30-4:15 (Nebel).
  • MWF 1:30-3:30 (Lipan).
  • TTh 9-11:45 (Gilfoyle).
• PHYS 132: General Physics w/ Calc. II. MWF 1:30-3:30 (Serej).
• PHYS 205: Modern Physics. MWF 10:30-11:20 (Bunn).
• PHYS 215: Cancelled for fall. Moved to spring.
• PHYS 301: Mathematical Methods in Physics. MW 1:30-2:45 (Fetea).
• PHYS 309: Quantum Mechanics I. TTh 3-4:15 (Lipan).
• PHYS 397/398/497/498: Junior and Senior Seminar. W 4:30-5:30 (Beausang).
• IQS (Physics portion taught by Dr. Fetea).
• First-year seminar: “Space is Big.” MWF 3-3:50 (Bunn).

Let me know if you have questions about physics courses.

 CLARIFICATION: When I said that electronics is one of the ways of satisfying the experimental requirement, I should have been clearer.  The physics major requires Intermediate Lab, and one more experimental thing.  Electronics and research are the two ways to get that extra thing.  You still need Intermediate Lab.

Registration for spring semester’s not far off.  Here’s some potentially useful information for physics majors and minors.

First, here are the upper-level physics courses we expect to offer.  (There are the usual bunch of intro courses too.)

• PHYS 216 (Electronics): MWF 1:30-3:30, Matt Trawick.
• PHYS 221 (Intermediate Lab): TTh 1:30-4:15, Jerry Gilfoyle.
• PHYS 303 (Classical Mechanics): TTh 10:30-11:45, Ovidiu Lipan.
• PHYS 306 (Electricity & Magnetism II): MWF 10:30-11:20, Ted Bunn.
• Junior-Senior seminar, W 4:30-5:30, Ted Bunn.

A couple of other items to note as you prepare to register:

• Electronics will almost certainly not be offered during the following (2011-2012) academic year. Electronics is one of only two ways to satisfy the physics major’s experimental requirement, the other being research for credit with a faculty member.  (See clarification above: this is the post-intermediate-lab experimental requirement.  Intermediate lab is required too.)
• E&M II will almost certainly not pass your way again any time soon.
• The 2011-2012 schedule is not fixed yet, but we’re pretty certain to offer Modern, Math Methods, Computational, Stat. Mech., Intermediate Lab, and a new Systems Biology course.  Quantum 1 is also very likely, and with luck one more advanced course to be named later.

As always, if you have questions or concerns, ask me.

It's time for incoming first-year students to register for classes for the fall semester.  We in the physics department are looking forward to meeting you all in the fall.

Here's some information about the physics courses available for new students.  If anything here isn't clear, or if you have any questions about which course is for you, ask us!

Physics majors typically start with Physics 131 in the fall and either 132 or 134 in the spring.  There are four sections of physics 131 available this fall.  Physics 131 is mostly about mechanics but has some other topics as well.  It requires either that you've had some calculus or that you take Calc. 1 at the same time.

Pre-med students and students in some other science majors also take this same sequence of courses, and the course fulfills the science requirement for non-science majors, so even if you're not sure what you're majoring in, keep this course in mind.

Students with strong high school physics backgrounds can skip Physics 131 and start right away with Physics 132.  There is one section of this course offered in the fall. University policy says that you need a 4 or 5 on the Physics C Mechanics AP test, or departmental permission, to get credit for Physics 131. If you got a 4 or 5 on the Physics B AP test, then you’re eligible for credit for physics 127-128.  This in principle allows you to go straight into physics 132, but if you’re thinking about a physics major we usually recommend taking 131 in this situation.

If you have a strong physics background but didn't take the right AP exam, email us or talk to one of the physics faculty when you arrive in town to see if you should be in 132.  This applies especially to international students, who aren't part of the US AP system.

If you think you might want to major in physics (even if you're not sure), and you're eligible to skip 131, we strongly urge you to sign up for Physics 132 in the fall.  Finishing the introductory physics sequence early will give you a lot more scheduling flexibility in future semesters (and remember that even if you end up majoring in another science or going pre-med, you may still need to take this course).

Students with very strong physics backgrounds (a 4 or a 5 on the Physics C: Electricity & Magnetism AP exam) are eligible to skip both semesters of the introductory sequence.  If you're in that category, and you think you might want to study physics, the best courses for you are Physics 205 (Modern Physics) and/or Physics 301 (Mathematical Methods).  Once again, if you didn't take the appropriate AP exam but think you might have the right background for this option, ask us.

For students who aren't planning to major in a science, we offer Physics 125, a survey of conceptual physics.  This course fulfills the general-education science requirement, but it does not fulfill prerequisites for more advanced science courses.  (Also, it’s full at the moment.)