Department of Physics
http://www.utdallas.edu/physics
Faculty
Professors: Roy C. Chaney , Austin J. Cunningham, Gregory D. Earle,
Ervin J. Fenyves, Robert Glosser, Roderick A. Heelis, Robert Hilborn, John H.
Hoffman, Joseph M. Izen, Xinchou Lou, Wolfgang A. Rindler, Myron Salamon, Brian
A. Tinsley, B. Hobson Wildenthal, Anvar A. Zakhidov
Associate Professors: Phillip Anderson, Yuri Gartstein
Assistant Professors: Mustapha Ishak-Boushaki, Anton Malko
Senior Lecturers: Paul MacAlevey, Beatrice Rasmussen
Affiliated Faculty: Cyrus D. Cantrell (Engineering), John P. Ferraris
(Chemistry), Matt Goeckner (Engineering), Wenchuang Hu (Engineering), Stephen
Levene (Biology), Larry Overzet (Engineering), Dean Sherry (Chemistry),
Duck-Joo Yang (Chemistry), Mary Urquhart (Science/Mathematics Education)
Objectives
The goal of the Graduate Program in
Physics is to develop individual creativity and expertise in the fields of
physics. In pursuit of this objective, study in the program is strongly focused
on research. Students are encouraged to begin participating in ongoing research
activities from the beginning of their graduate studies. The research
experience culminates with the doctoral dissertation, the essential element of
the Ph.D. program that prepares students for careers in academia, government
laboratories, or industry.
A Master of Science degree is
offered to those seeking to acquire or maintain technical mastery of both
fundamentals and current applications.
A Master of Science degree in
Applied Physics is offered for students wishing to emphasize applications
encountered in industrial and high technology environments.
Admission Requirements
The
University’s general admission requirements are discussed here.
The Graduate Physics Program seeks
students who have a B.S. degree in Physics or closely related subjects from an
accredited university or college, and who have superior skills in quantitative
and deductive analysis. Decisions on admission are made on an individual basis.
However, as a guide, a combined score on the verbal and quantitative parts of
the GRE of 1200, with at least 700 on the quantitative part, is advisable based
on past experience with student success in the program.
For graduate work it is assumed that
the student has an undergraduate background that includes the following courses
at the level indicated by texts referred to: mechanics at the level of Symon,
Mechanics; electromagnetism at the level of Reitz and Milford, Foundations of
Electromagnetic Theory; thermodynamics at the level of Kittel, Thermal Physics;
quantum mechanics at the level of Griffiths, Introduction to Quantum Mechanics
(chapters 1-4), some upper-division course(s) in modern physics, and
atomic physics. Students who lack this foundation may be required to take one
or more undergraduate courses to complete their preparation for graduate work.
Financial
Support
A limited number of assistantships
are awarded to those students displaying the most promise in teaching or
research. Specific decisions regarding TA awards are made on an individual
basis. Students who wish to be considered for financial support are encouraged
to submit completed applications by February 1st for admission in
the fall semester. Admission for the
spring term is possible, but opportunities for financial support in such cases
are extremely limited. Teaching
assistantship awardees are required to complete 12 graduate physics courses
(not including research courses) during the first 24 months in residence. Continuation of support requires achievement
of a minimum GPA of 3.3, and a satisfactory record in teaching or research
assignments.
Financial support is preferentially
provided to students in the MS/PhD track, and is generally not available for
students in the Applied Masters program.
Specializations
The central principle in the
structure of the graduate program is that a student’s progress and ultimate
success is best served by early and varied research experiences coupled with
individually tailored course sequences.
Current areas of research
specialization in the physics program are: Atmospheric and Space
Physics; Astrophysics/Cosmology/Relativity; Condensed Matter
Physics/Materials Science; and High Energy Physics. Further details on the current research topics
in these areas are provided below.
Astrophysics,
Cosmology and Relativity
This research group studies
fundamental problems in theoretical astrophysics, contemporary cosmology, and
relativity. These research efforts typically involve analytical, numerical, and
cosmological-data related projects. The group is instrumental in organizing the
biennial Texas Symposia on Relativistic Astrophysics, beginning in Dallas in
1963 and recurring regularly all over the world since then. Current areas of
research include: gravitational lensing (lenses) and its applications to
cosmology; the acceleration of the expansion of the universe (cosmological
constant, dark energy); fitting cosmological models to observational data (e.g.
CMB, lensing, supernovae); dark matter; the structure of the big bang; the role
of inflation; computer algebra systems applied to general relativity and
cosmology; space-time junction conditions and wormholes; cosmological models of
wider generality than the classical homogeneous models and their possible observational
signatures. More specific information is available at: http://www.utdallas.edu/~mishak/relativitycosmology.html.
Atmospheric
And Space Physics
Research in Atmospheric and Space
Physics encompasses both theory and experiment, with emphasis on aeronomy,
ionospheric physics, planetary atmospheres, atmospheric electricity and its
effects on weather and climate, and space instrumentation. Much of the research
occurs in the William B. Hanson Center for Space Sciences, which includes
laboratory facilities for instrument design, fabrication, and testing. Faculty
and students participate in ongoing satellite missions sponsored by NASA and DoD, and suborbital sounding rockets. Most students
participate in analysis of large data sets from previous missions, and from
ground-based optical and radar instruments at locations ranging from Greenland
to South America. Particular areas of interest include large and small scale
dynamics and electrodynamics, numerical modeling of the thermosphere and
ionosphere, characteristics of the near earth plasma environment, the effects
of solar variability on atmospheric electricity, cloud microphysics and
tropospheric dynamics, plasma instabilities and irregularities, and development
and testing of innovative space flight instrumentation. Computer facilities
include a network of dedicated workstations and access to supercomputers. For
further details see http://www.utdallas.edu/research/spacesciences.
High
Energy Physics And Elementary Particles
The UTD High Energy Physics Group
collaborates on the Atlas experiment at the CERN Large Hadron Collider (LHC)
and the BaBar experiment, at the PEP-II asymmetric b factory located at the
Stanford Linear Accelerator Center (SLAC). Atlas will search for the Higgs
boson, believed to be responsible for electroweak symmetry breaking, for new
physics beyond the standard model such as supersymmetric partners to known
particles, and for new hadrons. Atlas data-taking will begin in 2009. BaBar
measures CP violation in the decays of bottom mesons and is exploring whether
the origin of this CP violation lies within the Standard Model. BaBar data is
fertile ground for precision and rare decays of bottom and charm particles, and
tau lepton. The group explores both charmonia and a class of unexpected
particles with charm-anticharm quark content with properties that are quite
different from conventional charmonium. BaBar has completed data-taking and is
analysing its data. The group's research is funded by the U.S. Department of
Energy. The UTD High Energy Physics group specializes in high performance
computing, simulation production, and data analysis while contributing to the
commissioning and operation of experiments. Additional information can be found at: http://www.utdallas.edu/~joe/hepweb/utdhep.html
Solid
State/Condensed Matter Physics/Materials Science
Materials Science is at the
interface of many disciplines and involves a collaborative approach with
colleagues in chemistry, and electrical engineering. Our research facilities
are distributed over the physics laboratories, NanoTech
Institute (nanotech.utdallas.edu) and Electrical Engineering Clean Room. Research in Materials Science involves both
experiment and theory with emphasis on the physical aspects of solid state
materials, optical properties of solids, Raman scattering, physical properties
of thin films, and carbon nanotubes. Various nanoscale
and synthetic materials are being studied for their optical, electronic,
magnetic and transport properties, as well as applications in photonics,
spintronics and (opto)electronics. The materials of
interest include nanostructures (quantum dots and wires, fullerenes and carbon
nanotubes) and low-dimensional systems, photonic band gap crystals and
"left-handed" electromagnetic meta-materials, organic and polymeric materials.
Unconventional superconductivity and superconducting nanostructures are also
under investigation.
The interaction of nanoscale
materials, such as carbon nanotubes, with biological entities are being
investigated for prospective biomedical and electronic applications. For
example, chemically functionalized carbon nanotubes are being studied as
building blocks in transistor and sensor applications.
Degree Requirements
The
University’s general degree requirements are discussed here.
All candidates for graduate degrees in
physics must satisfy general University degree requirements. Well prepared students may demonstrate by
examination adequate knowledge of the core and basic course material. In addition to the general university
graduation requirements, graduation in physics requires a grade of B or better
in all core courses in the MS, Applied MS, and Ph. D. programs
A
minimum total of 32 graduate hours is required, including the core courses
listed below.
1. MS
Core courses (12 hours)
PHYS 5301 Mathematical Methods of
Physics I
PHYS 5311 Classical Mechanics
PHYS 5320 Electromagnetism I
PHYS 6300 Quantum Mechanics I
2. MS
Elective courses (20 hours)
In addition to the core courses, 20
hours of additional graduate level physics courses must be successfully
completed by MS candidates in physics, with prior approval from the Graduate
Advisor. Up to 6 hours of elective credit may be satisfied through approved
industrial internships, supervised research, or the satisfactory completion of
an MS thesis. Prior approval for these
options must be obtained from the Graduate Advisor.
Master of Science in Applied Physics (MSAP)
The MSAP degree is intended as a
terminal degree that does not lead to the Ph. D. track. A minimum of 32 graduate credit hours are
required for the MSAP degree. Students
in this degree plan must successfully complete a minimum of 16 semester credit
hours of MSAP core courses, including PHYS 5301. All core courses in the MS/PhD track are acceptable
MSAP core courses, as are courses from the Augmented MSAP Core Courses List
provided below. Approved elective credit
hours in the MSAP program include any graduate level physics courses, as well
as approved graduate-level courses in electrical engineering, computer science,
biology, geosciences, chemistry, and operations research. Specific courses should be chosen with the
guidance of the graduate advisor for the MSAP program
Augmented MSAP Core Course List
PHYS 5305 Monte Carlo Simulation Method and its Applications
PHYS 5315 Scientific Computing
PHYS 5316 Applied Numerical Methods
PHYS 5317 Atoms, Molecules and Solids
PHYS 5318 Atoms, Molecules and Solids II
PHYS 5321 Experimental Operation and Data Collection Using Personal Computers
PHYS 5371 Solid State Physics
PHYS 5372 Solid State Devices
A minimum of 24 credit hours in the
graduate core sequence are required for the Ph. D. degree, plus additional
courses specified by the student’s thesis committee chair. The required core courses must include Phys
5301, 5302, 5311, 5313, 5320, 5322, 6300, and 6301. Students in space sciences must also take
Phys 6383.
A candidate must also take a minimum
of 3 elective courses, 1 from within his/her area of specialization and 2
selected from outside the student’s specialty area. Additional courses may be
required to satisfy the particular degree requirements and/or to ensure
sufficient grounding in physical principles. The graduate advisor and the
student’s supervisory committee must approve course selections. A minimum of
one year residency after admission to the doctoral program is required.
Ph. D. students are required to take a
comprehensive qualifying examination. The first opportunity to take the exam is in the fall semester of the
first year of graduate study – taking advantage of this opportunity allows the
qualifier to be attempted up to 3 times. Students who choose not to take the qualifier in their first semester
are required to take it in the second fall semester in residence. Satisfactory performance on the qualifier
allows continuation with financial support beyond the second fall term. Students who fail the qualifier in the second
fall semester and wish to remain in the graduate program are required to retake
the exam in the subsequent spring semester – failure to pass the
qualifier on this attempt will result in loss of
financial support from the university in subsequent semesters, and
ineligibility to complete the remaining Ph. D. degree requirements.
After a student has completed the
required course work with the minimum GPA of 3.3, passed the qualifier
examination, and decided upon his/her field of specialization, a committee is
formed to guide the student’s dissertation work. Once a dissertation topic has
been identified, the student must submit a proposal that outlines the present
state of knowledge of the field and presents the research program the student
expects to accomplish for the dissertation. This proposal must be approved by
the committee and the Department Head.
A seminar on the dissertation
proposal must be presented, followed by an oral examination conducted by the
faculty on the proposed area of research and related topics. The Supervising
Committee shall determine by means of the exam and any ancillary information whether
the student is adequately prepared and has the ability to conduct independent
research. The approved dissertation proposal is then filed with the Dean of
Graduate Studies. A manuscript embodying a substantial portion of the
dissertation research accomplished by the student must be submitted to a
suitable professional refereed journal prior to the public seminar and
dissertation defense. A public seminar, successful defense of the dissertation,
and its acceptance by the Supervising Committee conclude the requirements for
the Ph.D. In lieu of the traditional dissertation, and at the discretion of the
supervising professor, a manuscript dissertation following the guidelines
published by the Graduate Dean’s Office may be substituted.
Core
Course listing for Doctor of Philosophy (24
credit hours required, 27 for Space Science.)
PHYS
5311 Classical Mechanics
PHYS 5313 Statistical Physics
PHYS 5320 Electromagnetism I
PHYS 5322 Electromagnetism II
PHYS 5301 Mathematical Methods of Physics I
PHYS 5302 Mathematical Methods of Physics II
PHYS 6300 Quantum Mechanics I
PHYS 6301 Quantum Mechanics II
PHYS 6383 Plasma Science (Space Science students only)