Graduate Programs
The Physics, Applied Physics and Astronomy Department offers a four-year PhD degree in physics. The PhD is awarded for original investigation leading to a significant advance of knowledge in a specialized area.
The department also offers a two-year master's degree in physics, generally based upon a research thesis. The department's goal is for students, upon completing their degrees, to be able to choose between working as a physicist or continuing in a PhD program.
Physics is also a participating department in the Materials Science and Engineering PhD Program. Additional information is available in the materials science and engineering section of the Bulletin.
The department offers relatively small classes in the core curriculum of graduate physics. Elective graduate courses include solid state physics, condensed matter physics/materials science, and more specialized seminars such as electronic thin film science. Applicants from smaller colleges have been successful in the two-year program that includes integrated undergraduate-graduate quantum mechanics, electricity and magnetism and special topics courses. The department encourages early assimilation of students into research groups.
Graduate assistantships are available for full-time PhD graduate students. Generally, new students begin with teaching assistantships, though a number of research assistantships are also available. National Science Foundation (NSF) fellowships are available as well.
Funding for the fall semester for graduate applicants is considered beginning Feb. 15 and continues until positions are filled. Throughout the spring semester, the department welcomes applications and campus visits.
Current physics teaching assistantships include a stipend for nine months and a tuition waiver. There may also be additional summer support.
Admission
Normally, an applicant for graduate study must have a bachelor’s degree and a record that indicates a proficient level of scholarship. Specialization in physics or related fields at the undergraduate level is desirable but not essential for admission. Graduate Record Examination scores for the general and subject tests are helpful in evaluating applicants. Potential applicants are encouraged to contact the director of graduate programs in the department for further information or for answers to specific questions about admission procedures.
Doctor of Philosophy in Physics
This degree will prepare graduates to lead efforts in industry or academia in the areas of condensed matter physics, applied physics and materials physics. The PhD is awarded for original investigation leading to a significant advance of knowledge in a specialized area. Courses and seminars provide necessary background in the basic principles, methods and theories of physics. Initial research emphasis will be in the energy sciences, biophysics and information sciences, with the intent to leverage significant research infrastructure investment recently established under the Small Scale Systems Integration and Packaging Center at °®¶¹´«Ã½.
In the course of their training, students are expected to demonstrate, by appropriate examinations, a breadth of knowledge in physics and in-depth competence in a specialized area of physics. At the earliest date consistent with their general progress, students select a research topic and begin their research. The requirements for the doctoral degree include a total of at least 24 credits of course study (six to eight courses) and at least 24 additional credits of dissertation work. The specific course requirements will be determined in consultation with the student's guidance committee (a committee consisting of three physics faculty members, one of whom is the student’s principal advisor). These course requirements must be approved by the graduate program committee and will normally include those expected for the master's degree in physics.
Most of the basic graduate courses in a student’s program should be taken during the first year of residence. Proficiency in solid state physics, quantum mechanics, electrodynamics, statistical thermodynamics and communication skills will be attained through classroom study, research and teaching. Students will enroll full-time and complete the degree in four to five years. Typically, this will involve two semesters of first-year graduate courses and a teaching assistantship in introductory physics courses. All graduate students in physics attend and participate in seminars presented by fellow students, faculty and visiting scientists, and attend professional meetings. The second year in the program may be seen as transitional, including elective courses and potentially a second year of a teaching assistantship, with a growing focus on a research problem. By the end of the second year, the preliminary examination, including a presentation of a proposed dissertation topic, is completed. Dissertation research, writing a dissertation and a public defense complete the degree requirements. The time it takes to earn a degree for a well-prepared student will be four years; an average time to degree between four and five years is to be expected.
Master of Science in Physics
This program is for students seeking careers in applied physics or in research and development in industrial laboratories. It is also intended for technical personnel in industry who wish to attain a higher level of understanding of the physical principles on which modern technology is based.
The MS degree requires the completion, with at least a B average, of 30 credits of graduate work and satisfactory performance on a comprehensive examination or the completion and defense of an acceptable thesis. The courses are normally selected from the required courses (shown below) and other graduate courses offered by the department. A number of courses within the Physics Department have been designed with an emphasis in applied physics. A student’s selection of courses must have the prior approval of the graduate committee.
Under the examination option, the candidate must pass a comprehensive examination prepared by the graduate committee, covering the basic principles of physics and applied physics and the student’s special area of interest.
Under the thesis option, no more than six credit hours of PHYS 599 may be counted toward the 30-credit requirement for the degree. After submission of the thesis, the candidate must pass an oral examination on the material pertaining to the research area.
The following courses are normally required as part of the 30-credit requirement:
- PHYS 521 Analytical Dynamics
- PHYS 522 Electrodynamics I
- PHYS 524 Quantum Mechanics I
- PHYS 527 Graduate Laboratory
(This requirement may be waived if a comparable course is included in previous coursework.)
The following courses have been designed with an emphasis in applied physics. PHYS 511, 514, 563 or 572 may be substituted for PHYS 521 and/or 524 listed above.
- PHYS 511 Statistical Thermodynamics
- PHYS 514 Applied Mathematical Physics
- PHYS 563 Coherent Optics
- PHYS 565 Laser Physics and Quantum Electronics
- PHYS 567 Integrated Optics and Electro-Optics
- PHYS 569 Non-Linear Optics
- PHYS 572 Introduction to Solid State Physics
- PHYS 573-574 Applied Solid State Physics and Devices I and II
- PHYS 581 Contemporary Topics in Applied Physics
Because of the breadth of the field of applied physics, each student’s coursework is carefully planned to tailor the program to meet the individual’s particular interests and needs. All students, on entering the program, meet with the director of graduate programs to plan their curriculum, and the department’s graduate committee oversees students’ progress.