Physics and Astronomy Department

Prof. Janice Hudgings in lab

In the lab with Professor Janice Hudgings

Prof. Kaley McCluskey class

In class with Professor Kaley McCluskey

A student points at a computer screen

Analyzing observational data from the Table Mountain Observatory in Estella Lab with Prof. Philip Choi

Professor David Tanenbaum with the scanning electron microscope

Professor David Tanenbaum with the scanning electron microscope

In the lab with Professor Dwight Whitaker

In the lab with Professor Dwight Whitaker

Explore the fundamental behavior of matter, energy, space, and time, in the context of a friendly department, collaborative classrooms, and hands-on research experiences.

The Department of Physics and Astronomy offers tracks in physics, astrophysics, and astronomy. More informally, some students tailor the physics track to have an engineering focus. In all tracks, students receive a B.A. in physics. You can also minor in either physics or astronomy.

 

Department

Department Community

We believe that an inclusive and diverse community is essential to doing good science. We strive to be a welcoming and safe community, in which all voices are heard, fostering the growth of new ideas. Our department community values collaboration, celebrates our diverse identities, and values having fun learning together.

Visit our Physics Community page to learn more about our student orgs, peer mentoring, learning communities, department events and more.

Research Experiences

Students have the opportunity to work with our physics and astronomy faculty on research, co-author journal articles and present their work at major scientific conferences. Our professors have expertise in sustainable energy, fluid dynamics, biophysics, galaxy mergers, adaptive optics, quantum information theory, cosmology, particle physics, electron and ion scattering, and more.