Research Opportunities

The Physics Department has a diverse research program that continues a long tradition of cutting-edge investigations into fundamental and applied physical phenomena. Undergraduates and graduate students regularly work alongside research faculty, their staff and Ph.D. students, gaining access to the latest instrumentation and theoretical tools.

The current faculty's research program can be divided into four broad areas (relevant faculty are listed after each heading):

Experimental Condensed Matter

Gregory S. Boutis: Nuclear Magnetic Resonance methodology, hardware development and applications in ordered and disordered solids; biophysics; many-body physics 
Mim Lal Nakarmi: Development of semiconductor materials for photonic applications 
Karl Sandeman: Phase transition materials for energy-related functionalities including solid-state cooling 
Kai Shum: Photonic processes in inorganic materials
Sophia Suarez: High-pressure NMR investigations of ion and mass transport in electrolytes

Theoretical Condensed Matter 

Nicolas Giovambattista: Soft condensed matter (liquids, nanoparticle systems and glasses) including nano-scale confinement and solvent-induced interactions 
Viraht Sahni: Atomic, Molecular, and Condensed Matter Theory, employing methods within time-dependent and time-independent Schrödinger, Density Functional and Quantal Density Functional theories.

Environmental Science 

Micha Tomkiewicz: Environmental studies program, electrochemistry, physics and chemistry of solid-liquid interfaces, solar energy conversion

Materials modelling 

Karl Sandeman: DFT modelling of magnetic materials 
Ray Tung: Semiconductor interfaces