As the initial crisis of the COVID-19 pandemic has faded, this was a year of returning to normalcy. Classes and research were back in person and our community continued working together to maintain a safe and productive educational environment. The Society of Physics Students and the Outreach Committee were able to enjoy live programming this year as well.
After ten successful years under the guidance of department chair Mark Alford, new leadership started in July with the appointment of Henric Krawczynski as Chair and Saori Pastore as Co-Chair. Three new faculty members have joined the department this summer and one more has been hired to start next July. In addition to the new members, existing research efforts are thriving with 29 awards from NASA, DOE, NSF, NIH, and other agencies.
NSF is investing $3 million in a new graduate student training program for aspiring scientists and educators who want to explore careers in quantum science at St. Louis-area research laboratories, private companies, and other facilities. Sophia Hayes, vice dean of graduate education and professor of chemistry, and Kater Murch, professor of physics, will lead the effort to establish a convergent quantum sciences and engineering graduate training program across the St. Louis region.
The Department of Physics hosted a very successful international conference on Particle Physics and Cosmology at the Knight Center in June. We had 168 registered attendees from countries all over the world.