Student News

On September 4, we had our annual welcome-back pizza party for the physics majors and minors.

This year's graduating class of Physics majors is noteworthy in many ways, and the Department is justifyably proud of each one. First of all, all five graduates are members of the National Physics Honor Society, Sigma Pi Sigma. Election into Sigma Pi Sigma is reserved for students in the top one-third of their class who have demonstrated outstanding scholarship in Physics throughout their program. It's unusual to see every member of a graduating class in Physics holding this honor and, as shown in the photo above, wearing the distinctive dark green Sigma Pi Sigma honor stole as an emblem of their achievement. In addition, each graduate is bound directly for graduate work this Fall, (from left to right): Lov Goel, UC Davis (Law); Jeff Coughlin, New Mexico State (Astronomy); Tristan Dennen, UCLA (Physics); James Sustman, Georgia Tech (Electrical Engineering); and Ben Bluth, UCLA (Medicine). The Department will miss you all and sends every best wish for your future success and happiness.

Eight new members of the National Physics Honor Society, Sigma Pi Sigma, were inducted into the Emory Chapter on May 1, 2007 in a ceremony held during the Department's annual spring picnic. Sigma Pi Sigma advisor, Professor Kurt Warncke, gave out certificates, membership cards and pins, but only after putting the majors through their paces with a metaphorical experiment involving empty wine glasses. The national organization of Sigma Pi Sigma was created in 1921 to recognize outstanding scholarship in the field. Emory's chapter goes back to 1948. Congratulations to these new members, (from left to right): Randy Palmer (BS 08), Lov Goel (BA 07), Paul Liebesny (BS,09), Paul Syers(BS,08), [Professor. Warncke wearing his customary Sigma Pi Sigma garb], Keon-Young Park (BA 08), Laura Griffin (BS 08), and Jessica Cook (BS 08). The eighth new member, Kavita Solomon (BS 08) was unable to attend in person as she was studying abroad at King's College in London. Congratulations to all of these outstanding scholars.

Paul Syers (BA, Physics and German, 08) will be an intern in the Department of Physics at TU-Munich in Garching, Germany (just outside of Munich) from May 21-August 3, 2007. His project is studying quantum phase transitions in superconducting materials. Paul's program is through DAAD-RISE. DAAD is a department of the German government that awards international scholarships, grants and internships for students to study in that country. RISE (Research Internships in Science and Engineering) provided funding for the internship, and Emory's IRES program is funding his travel. In additon to Paul, two other Emory students are doing research this summer through DAAD. To prepare for this program, Paul has been working closely with Dr. Segre and Dr. Brody.

Keon-Young Park (BA, 08) was this year's winner of the Jackson Award for Undergraduate Research in Physics and Astronomy. The award which carries a stipend of $4,500 for summer research in our Department was established in 2006 through a generous gift of Emory alumna Deborah Jackson. Keon-Young's project is "Investigating Molecular Rotational Dynamics with Fluorescence Fluctuation Spectroscopy " in Dr. Berland's lab.

This summer Laura Griffin (BS, 08), will be learning Quantitative Analysis (Chem 260) and Perspectives in Chemistry(Chem 468S/WR) in Siena, Italy, one of Tuscany's most beautiful medieval towns. And that's not all. Her program, the award-winning Emory Chemistry Studies Program, is designed around coursework and laboratory work that connect chemistry with art, architecture, and the food and wine industry. The program, which runs from June 7-July 15, 2007 officially begins in Rome, and includes visits to Florence and several other sites in Tuscany. It will be based at the University of Siena. The program won the 2007 Institute of International Education's Andrew Heiskell Award for innovation in a science study-abroad program. In addition to being accepted into the program, Laura has been awarded a Science Study Abroad Travel Grant through CIPA.

Three of our graduating seniors have successfully completed the College Honors Program this spring (07). They are:
Jeffrey Coughlin (BS, 07) Advisor: Dr. Richard Williamon; Thesis: "Observations and Models of Eclipsing Binary Systems."
Tristan Dennen (BS,07) Advisor: Dr. David Borthwick (Department of Mathematics/CS); Thesis: "Unitary Symmetries in Particle Physics, A First Encounter."
Lov Goel (BS, 07) Advisor: Dr. Eric Weeks; Thesis: "Flow Fields Caused by Local Perturbations of Colloidal Glasses."

Tristan Dennen (BS,07) has received the Mathematics/Computer Science Department's highest award for an undergraduate major this spring: the Trevor Evans Award. Established in honor of Professor Trevor Evans, this annual prize recognizes outstanding performance by an undergraduate major in the Mathematics/CS Department and is intended to defray educational expenses. Tristan is a double major in Physics/Mathematics CS. For more information on the award, please visit http://www.mathcs.emory.edu/Spotlight/trevor_evans_award.html

This March (07), Randahl Palmer (BS, 08) was awarded Emory's prestigious Sonny Carter Scholarship. This merit-based award was established in memory of alumnus Sonny Carter who was both a talented student and athlete. The award covers all tuition expenses for the recipient's senior year (worth approximately $32,000). Randi's superb performance as a physics major along with a life-long dedication to swimming and physical fitness helped her achieve this honor: the criteria for selection included not only academic excellence, community involvement, leadership, and moral qualities but also participation in daily physical activity or sports. Randi demonstrated leadership and community involvement through a number of activities including serving as a supplemental instruction leader for Physics 141, an officer in SPS, and an active member of Gamma Phi Beta sorority. Randi is a member of Dr. Warncke's lab.

Kavita Solomon (BS, 08) is currently studying at King's College, London and will be back in June. Her courses include philosophy, maths, and electrical engineering. One of the things she likes about being at Kings is, "James Clerk Maxwell taught here for a few years around the time he released his work on electromagnetism. I thought that was pretty cool."

Lov Goel (BS, 08) presented a talk at the APS (American Physical Society) March Meeting held this year, March 4th-9th, in Denver, CO.

Title: "Flow Fields Caused by Local Perturbations in Collodial Glasses."

Lov is a member of Dr. Weeks' lab.

Cortney Crane (BS, 08) spent Fall 06 studying at James Cook University in Queensland, Australia where she took Mathematical Methods, Classical Mechanics, Physical Oceanography (her favorite) and Anthropology.

Cortney reports she, "had a wonderful time scuba diving, enjoying the hot weather and traveling around Queensland." She can't wait to go back and definitely recommends studying abroad: "It's a great experience, just be prepared to work hard!

Jeffrey Coughlin (BS, 07) presented an award winning poster at the American Astronomical Society's 209th meeting in Seattle, WA, held January 6-10th, 2007. The poster was a result of work as a summer intern with the SARA REU-NSF (Southeastern Association for Research in Astronomy) and was co-authored by Dr. Lopez-Morales at the Carnegie Institute of Washington and Dr. Scott Shaw at the University of Georgia. Title: "Five New Low-Mass Eclipsing Binary Star Systems." Jeff 's travel was funded by (SARA) REU-NSF. The presentation won Jeff an Honorable Mention for student research.

Randahl Palmer (BS, 08) participated in a poster presentation at the Southeastern Magnetic Resonance Conference (SEMRC) in Gainesville, Florida in November 06. The title of her poster was "EPR and ESEEM Spectroscopy of Models for Copper (II)-- Imidazole Coordination Geometries in Amyloid Proteins." Randi is a member of Dr.Warncke's lab.

Now an annual event, Physics Night was created four years ago by SPS Advisor, Dr. Keith Berland as a way of introducing Emory science majors to research opportunities in Physics. The Society of Physics Students now sponsors this event each year and welcomes non-majors to listen to faculty presentations. These brief talks are followed by a lively reception where everyone can continue to explore research-related topics over pizza and sodas. This year, Professors Stefan Boettcher, Kurt Warncke and Ivan Rasnik presented overviews of their current work to about 80 students in all. Congratulations to SPS President Ben Bluth (BA, 07), Vice-President Alexcis Brown (BA, 08), Treasurer/Secretary Randi Palmer (BS, 08) and other SPS members for putting together another very successful program.

Three physics majors recently participated in the Fall 2006 SIRE Research Symposium for Emory undergraduate researchers. On Ocobert 20th, Keon-Young Park (Physics and Music, 08) gave an oral presentation on her research in France ("Study of aggregation behavior of the amphiphhilic molecule with guanosine counterion at the air-water interface and in solutions") while Ben Bluth (BA, 07) participated in a panel discussion on summer research abroad. Both were the Department's first recipients of the newly-created IRES grants (International Research Experience for Science Students). Jeff Coughlin (BS,07), SIRE grant recipient, also gave an oral presentation on his research "Eclipsing Binary Stars: The Rosetta Stones of Astronomy."

Abstracts: [PDF] [DOC]

Since adding the item below, we have learned that one more physics major is doing summer research. Eun Lee (Amy) (BS, 08 Physics, Applied and Music) has been at the University of Central Florida School of Lasers and Optics conducting research on PIN semiconductor neutron detectors. Well done Amy and to all physics majors who were able to expand their research skills this past summer.

This summer (06), the Department has a record number of physics majors engaged in summer research projects. In addition to Ben Bluth (BA, 07) who's working in a lab at Universidad de Sevilla, Spain and Keon-Young Park (Physics and Music, 08) who is in Bordeaux, France (both received IRES grants for summer research abroad), there are another 8 students working on physics research projects right here at Emory. They are: Jessica Cook (BS, 08) working with Dr. Stephan Koehler; project: researching how the angle at which a rectangular or triangular geometry is rotated effects the normal force and torque felt by the geometry.
Cortney Crane (BS, 08) working with Dr. Eric Weeks; project: analysing emulsions at high volume fractions.
Lov Goel (Ga Tech 3-2 program, 08) working with Dr. Weeks; project involves poking colloidal glasses.
Manu Lakshmanan (BS, 08) working with Dr. Laura Finzi as a Lab Assistant under the SURE Research Partner Program; project involves looking at the normal and mutant forms of the protein maleless (MLE) and the influence a specific domain (portion) of its genome has on its behavior and functions using the singlye molecule techniques called tethered particle motion (TPM).
Randahl Palmer (BS, 08) working with Dr. Kurt Warncke; project: using electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopic techniques to determine the 3D structure of the copper (II)-imidazole interaction in a model for copper (II) interactions with the beta-amyloid protein of Alzheimer's disease.
Benjamin Robertson (BS, 08) working with Dr. Koehler; project: "swimming through loose sand."
Kavita Solomon (BS, 08) working with Dr. Laura Finzi; project: trying to understand and document an existing Java program for the magnetic tweezers used in the lab as well a improving the code where possible.
James Sustman (BS Physics and BS Mathematics 07) working with Dr. Phil Segre; project: studying particle sedimentation in a liquid fluidized bed.
Finally, Jeffrey Coughlin (BS, 07) is nearby at the University of Georgia studying low-mass eclipsing binary systems with Dr. Scott Shaw, and
Laura Griffin (BS, 08) is honing her research skills in a NASA lab at the Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt Maryland.

Be sure to check out Keon-Young's and Ben's BLOGS for an exciting look at summer research in Europe:

http://kypinbordeaux.blogspot.com/

http://www.ben-spain.blogspot.com/

Traditionally, newly elected members of Sigma Pi Sigma are honored with an induction ceremony at the Department's annual spring picnic and this year was no exception. Sigma Pi Sigma advisor, Dr. Kurt Warncke, donned his wizard robes on May 8th, 2006, to confer lifetime membership on four outstanding physics majors (from left to right): Ben Bluth (BA,07), Matt Bzdega (BS Applied,06), James Sustman (BS Physics and BS Mathematics, 07) and Jeff Coughlin (BS,07). Sigma Pi Sigma is the national physics honor society created in 1921 to recognize outstanding scholarship in the field. Congratulations to the new members of Emory's chapter.

For 10-weeks this summer, Laura Griffin (BS, 08) will be part of the summer internship program at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. After one week of lectures and study in the atmospheric, biospheric, hydrospheric, and solar and space plasma sciences, she will work on a research project for the remaining 9 weeks with a Goddard scientist as a mentor.
For the program website see http://neptune.gsfc.nasa.gov/summerinstitute

Jessica Cook (BS,08) is the first recipient of the newly-created Jackson Award for Undergraduate Research in Physics and Astronomy. This award carries a stipend of $4,500 for work with an Emory faculty member for at least 10 weeks during the summer. It was made available through a generous gift from Emory alumna, Ms. Deborah Jackson. Jessica will study drag forces on objects pulled through sand in Dr. Stephan Koehler's lab this summer. Congratulations to Jessica and to all the students who competed for this award. Dr. Eric Weeks, Director of Undergraduate Studies, noted that all the applicants deserve recognition for the high quality of their proposals.

Congratulations to Elsinore Alexander (BS, 06), the Department's first graduate in the Physics and Astronomy Program. Ellie (seated on the far left) is joined by other astronomy students and well-wishers, including Dr. Richard Williamon, in the telescope control room.

Jeff Coughlin (BS,07) received a SIRE grant to travel to the Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff, Arizona from April 19-23, 2006. He and one of his project advisors, Horace Dale, spent five nights using the Hall Telescope there to study eclipsing binary stars. All five nights of observing were under crystal-clear skies and Jeff reports that "a lot of great data" was collected for his honors thesis (directed by Dr. Richard Williamon) and a publishable article on the star he is studying: TU Bootis.

This photo was taken in Flagstaff on one of the rare days when Jeff wasn't resting from a previous 12-hour night of star gazing. He gave a presentation at the Undergraduate Research Symposium on March 23rd titled, "Observations and Computer Modeling of Eclipsing Binary Stars."

The American Journal of Physics has accepted for publication a paper authored by Advanced Lab instructor, Dr. Jed Brody, and two of his students: physics major Tristan Dennen (BS,07), and graduate student Zhiyong Dong. Tristan is a member of the Emory Chapter of Sigma Pi Sigma, the National Physics Honor Society.

The paper resulted from experiments conducted in Advanced Lab concerning the Hall effect in metals and semiconductors--a commonly studied phenomenon in instructional physics labs. Typically, semiconductor Hall samples are purchased from a manufacturer because the fabrication of semiconductor devices often requires expensive equipment and very-high-temperature furnaces. In Emory's Advanced Lab course, the paper's authors refined a process for fabricating silicon Hall samples using little more than a hot plate and some indium.

With Dr. Brody's help, Tristan and Zhiyong demonstrated that their silicon samples yielded results consistent with known material properties. Their data and analysis are described in a paper titled, "Inexpensive fabrication of silicon Hall devices," which is expected to be published between April and August, 2006.

Emory's brand-new IRES program, i.e. International Research Experience for Science Students, was recently established to encourage science students to pursue research opportunities abroad. Students who win this award are given a grant which funds a summer of working in a science laboratory in another country. (The program is funded by Emory College and ICIS). Students may not apply directly but must be nominated by their departments, and they must have previous research experience. The first two majors to receive this prestigious grant in our Department are Ben Bluth (BA, 07)-who will be conducting research next summer in Spain, and double-major Keon-Young Park (Physics and Music, 08), who won the award to study in France. During the Fall after they return, recipients will present their research on the Web, in symposia and conferences...so we will hear more about this in Fall 2006.

On November 20, 2005 , physics major Matt Bzdega (BA, 06) gave a 10-minute presentation on research conducted with fellow major Tristan Dennen (BS, 07) at the APS 58th Annual Meeting of the Division of Fluid Dynamics held in Chicago . It was titled, "A Minimalistic Approach to Swimming through Sand," and dealt with understanding how a self-propelled robot can swim through sand. The conference was also attended by faculty member, Dr. Stephan Koehler, with whom Matt and Tristan conducted their research. For more information, visit: http://meetings.aps.org/Meeting/DFD05/Event/36670

The SIRE program, which stands for Scholary Inquiry & Research at Emory, matches outstanding undergraduate students with faculty researchers. Last fall, two physics
majors who had distinguished themselves as SIRE Grant Recipients, described their projects at the Fall symposium:

Ben Bluth (BA, 07) who had worked closely with Physics faculty member Dr. Eric Weeks, presented his research on "Local Disturbances of Colloidal Glass Systems," in the poster session. He's pictured above with Dr. Ray DuVarney, Department Chair (center), and Dean Robert Paul, Dean of Emory College.

Tsondue Samphel (BA, 06) is using his SIRE grant to explore two of his interests in addition to physics---Buddhist philosophy and translating Tibetan sacred texts into other languages, notably English and modern Chinese. He presented an abstract outlining research he hopes to conduct in Taiwan in the near future. (He has also received an ICIS Undergraduate Foreign Research Grant.) The title of his abstract was "Linguistic Construction in the Tradition of Logic in Taiwanese Buddhism."