Physics Newsletter 2024

A Year of Discovery and Growth

As 2024 draws to a close, we reflect on a year filled with groundbreaking research, inspiring achievements, and a deepened sense of community within the Physics Department at Washington University. From pioneering advancements in physics to the celebration of outstanding faculty achievements and student milestones, it has been a year worth celebrating.

This year, our department continued to build on its rich legacy of excellence in teaching, research, and outreach. We were fortunate to witness exciting developments across our diverse research areas—from biophysics to condensed matter and astrophysics. In addition, our faculty and students received numerous awards and grants, marking a continued commitment to pushing the frontiers of knowledge.

We also welcomed new faces, fostered collaborations with institutions around the world, and engaged in public outreach activities that inspire the next generation of scientists. As we reflect on this year and look ahead to 2025, we are excited about the opportunities and challenges the new year will bring.

Liam Brodie

Liam Brodie, a graduate student working with Prof. Mark Alford, was selected to participate in the Department of Energy’s Office of Science Graduate Student Research (SCGSR) program. Brodie has been working at Brookhaven National Laboratory in Long Island, New York from July through December, and conducting his research under the mentorship of Dr. Rob Pisarski. 

Yashika Kapoor

Yashika Kapoor has been selected to participate in the 73rd annual Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting. Kapoor is an experimental condensed matter physicist investigating novel electronic phases in two-dimensional Van der Waals materials, particularly graphene. Her research, conducted under the guidance of Erik Henriksen, employs cutting-edge nanofabrication techniques and broadband magneto-optical spectroscopic measurements performed at temperatures approaching absolute zero and high magnetic fields.

Takuya Okawa

Doctoral student Takuya Okawa was selected for a research fellowship at Fermilab. Okawa is a graduate student under the advisement of Associate Professors of Physics Francesc Ferrer and Bhupal Dev, and often collaborates with Professor of Physics Jim Buckley and Assistant Professor of Physics Alex Chen. His research centers on the interactions of dark matter with the rest of the universe and the effect this has on the full scope of cosmology.

Andrea Gokus

Andrea Gokus, McDonnell Center Postdoctoral Fellow, and Rebecca Phillipson have been awarded a $79,000 NASA (SMD/Astrophysics Division) grant as part of the Fermi Guest Investigator Program. Their research project involves analyzing data from the Fermi satellite, specifically the Large Area Telescope (LAT) onboard. The researchers are particularly interested in studying blazars, which are active galaxies that harbor a jet pointed towards us.

Faculty Awards & Recognition

Henric Krawczynski

Chair and Professor of Physics Prof. Henric Krawczynski installed as Wilfred R. and Ann Lee Konneker Distinguished Professor of Physics.

Maria Piarulli

Associate Professor of Physics Maria Piarulli was promoted with tenure to associate professor of physics. Congratulations, Maria!

Alex Seidel

Professor of Physics​ Prof. Alexander Seidel was recognized with one of the 2024 Outstanding Staff and Faculty awards at WashU.

Michael Nowak

Research Professor of Physics Michael Nowak named Associate Director of the McDonnell Center for the Space Sciences

Mikhail Tikhonov

Assistant Professor of Physics Mikhail Tikhonov won a Faculty Early Career Development Program (CAREER) award from the National Science Foundation (NSF) for his project “Harnessing emergent simplicity for high-precision predictions in high-diversity ecosystems.”

Li Yang

Professor of Physics Yang installed as the Albert Gordon Hill Professor of Physics

The Graduate Students of the Department of Physics hosted their sixth annual Washington University Physics Research Symposium (WUPRS) - an event that has become a cornerstone of research collaboration and community building within the department. In the graduate category, the competition was particularly tight, with two students sharing the top honors: Nathan Whitsett & Bryce Wedig

WashU Student Research Symposium

November 20, 2024

Students from this summer's Intro to Physics course held the annual Water Rocket Competition, a capstone event fit to bring together a semester of hands-on learning. The event is orchestrated by innovative instructor Reza Khanbabaie and physics department grad student Hamta Farrokhi, and aided by physics faculty Mairin Hynes and staff member Sean Ehle.

Annual Water Rocket Competition

Blasting Off to the Future!

Two exceptional undergraduates, Alice Rho and Jolee Zhou, are breaking new ground in biophysics research with support from the M.R. Metzger Family Foundation. Their groundbreaking work, conducted under the mentorship of Dr. Shankar Mukherji, explores distinct yet complimentary dimensions of cellular biology.

M.R. Metzger Family Foundation

Undergraduate Research Support

Compton Chronicle

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