Applied Physics

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Faculty

Marvin M. Antonoff, PhD, Cornell University

Theoretical Solid State Physics (Emeritus)

Stephen B. Arnason, PhD, Stanford University

Materials Physics

Mathew Bell, PhD, SUNY Buffalo

Superconducting Electronics
Quantum Computing

Walter Buchwald, PhD, Rutgers University

Integrated Quantum Optics
Photonics
Semiconductor Devices and Materials
Nanotechnology
Plasmonics
Metamaterials

Jonathan Celli, PhD, Boston University

Cancer BioPhysics
Biomedical Optics
Photodynamic Therapy
Microrheology
Mechanobiology

Filip Cukov, PhD, Old Dominion University

Embedded Systems
Computer Architecture

Adolfo del Campo, PhD, Basque Country Univeristy, QUINST

Theoretical and Condensed Matter Physics
Ultracold Gases
Formation and Control of Topological Defects
Quantum Non-equilibrium Dynamics
Foundations of Quantum Mechanics

Arthur Eisenkraft, PhD, Stonybrook University

STEM Education and Pedagogy

Christopher Fuchs, PhD, University of New Mexico

Foundations of Quantum Mechanics
Quantum Information Theory

Edward S Ginsberg, PhD, Stanford University

Theoretical Elementary Particle Physics
Physics Education Research

Kurt Jacobs, PhD, Imperial London University

Quantum Noise and Feedback Control
Stochastic Processes

Rahul Kulkarni, PhD, Ohio State University

Biological Physics
Stochastic Modeling of Gene Expression
Non-equilibrium Physics

Tomas Materdey, PhD, Cornell University

Quantum Statistical Mechanics
Signal Processing
Scientific Computation
Science and Engineering Education

Benjamin R. Mollow, PhD, Harvard University

Theoretical Quantum Optics

Maxim Olchanyi, PhD, Institute of Spectroscopy

Quantum Integrable Systems
Inertial Sensors
Cold Atomic Gases

D. V. G. L. N. Rao, DSc, Andhra University of India

Experimental Laser Research
Nano- and Biophotonics
Medical Imaging and Image Processing.

Gregory Sun, PhD, Johns Hopkins University

Semiconductor Opto-Electronic Devices and Materials

Bala Sundaram, PhD, University of Pittsburgh

Quantum and Classical Nonlinear Dynamics
Mesoscopic Systems
Mathematical Biology

Chandra Yelleswarapu, PhD, Alabama A&M University

Biomedical Imaging and Sensing
Non-Linear Photoacoustics
Microscopy

The MS Program

The primary goal of the applied physics master’s program is to give students a broad spectrum of skills that will allow them to work as researchers in a range of capacities and to adapt to new employment opportunities. Recent graduates are employed in corporate and government research laboratories, hospitals, and finance and high tech startups. In addition we provide the opportunity to develop the quantitative skills necessary to proceed to doctoral work. Finally, the program also offers courses meeting the professional licensure requirements for the Master of Education program.

The requirements of the program split evenly between practical laboratory and theoretical courses. Our goal is to train students in a balanced way, developing practical laboratory skills and facility with the quantitative techniques of theoretical analysis, both sides of the education being enriched through the understanding of the other perspective.

In addition to coursework, the program also requires a credit-bearing research project. This project can take several forms. First, it can be work done under the direction of a faculty member on a subject of the faculty’s expertise. Alternatively, the research can be pursued as an internship co-administered by a faculty advisor and an extramural advisor, either in another department on campus or in a research or development facility outside of the UMass system. The department views the spectrum of acceptable projects broadly. We are interested in giving students the tools to pursue a deep understanding of the world around them and are willing to consider any reasonable project that allows the students to employ and cement the skills developed within the programs course work.

The PhD Program

The PhD in applied physics operates largely with the same motivations as our stand-alone thesis master’s program—to prepare students for broad career options and not just academic positions. The PhD provides a framework that allows inclusion of capable, non-traditional candidates for a PhD. Unlike many PhD programs that seek to train academics, the constituency for this degree consists primarily of those who wish to work as independent researchers in high tech industries, positions that demand the independent thinking developed during PhD training. Our emphasis is on problem solving broadly construed. We seek students for whom the discipline of thought inherent in advanced study of physics will be an aid in finding solutions to a broad spectrum of problems.

Training in physics promotes the ability to build conceptual frameworks and concomitant models to describe natural phenomena. These very same skills can be used to address questions which arise in a myriad of applications, e.g. photonics, oceanography, meteorology, finance, medicine, to name but a few. The range of these issues extends from mathematics to engineering to computational sciences and is collectively referred to as applied physics.

The program is intended to accommodate local working professionals in a variety of sectors where physics skills, appropriately contextualized, would be useful for career advancement. The curriculum is considerably different from a traditional physics PhD structure. For example, there is a significantly greater emphasis on labs skills and data acquisition and a greater accommodation of cross-disciplinarity. At its core, the curriculum develops the “three-legged stool” of theoretical, experimental and computational skills, which together promote the widest range of applicability of core physics ideas.

Programs

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