- Research News
Embracing Uncertainty Helps Bring Order to Quantum Chaos
In physics, chaos is something unpredictable. A butterfly flapping its wings somewhere in Guatemala might seem insignificant, but those flits and flutters might be the ultimate cause of a hurricane over the Indian Ocean. The butterfly effect captures what it means for something to… Read More - Research News
Advocating for Quantum Simulation of Extreme Physics
The Big Bang, supernovae, collisions of nuclei at breakneck speeds—our universe is filled with extreme phenomena, both natural and human-made. But the surprising thing is that all of these seemingly distinct processes are governed by the same underlying physics: a combination of quantum mechanics… Read More - Research News
Novel Quantum Speed Limits Tackle Messy Reality of Disorder
The researchers and engineers studying quantum technologies are exploring uncharted territory. Due to the unintuitive quirks of quantum physics, the terrain isn’t easy to scout, and the path of progress has been littered with wrong turns and dead ends. Sometimes, though, theorists have streamlined… Read More - Research News
UMD Researchers Study the Intricate Processes Underpinning Gene Expression
A new study led by University of Maryland physicists sheds light on the cellular processes that regulate genes. Published in the journal Science Advances, the paper explains how the dynamics of a polymer called chromatin—the structure into which DNA is packaged—regulate gene expression. Through… Read More - Research News
UMD Scientists Help Discover the Highest-Energy Light Coming from the Sun
Sometimes, the best place to hide a secret is in broad daylight. Just ask the sun. A new paper in Physical Review Letters details the discovery of the highest-energy light ever observed from the sun. The international team behind the discovery also found that… Read More - Research News
Crystal Imperfections Reveal Rich New Phases of Familiar Matter
Matter—all the stuff we see around us—can be classified into familiar phases: our chairs are solid, our coffee is liquid, and the oxygen we breathe is a gas. This grouping obscures the nitty gritty details of what each molecule or atom is up to… Read More - Research News
New Study Identifies Mechanism Driving the Sun’s Fast Wind
The fastest winds ever recorded on Earth reached more than 200 miles per hour, but even those gusts pale in comparison to the sun’s wind. In a paper published June 7, 2023 in the journal Nature, a team of researchers used data from NASA’s… Read More - Research News
Insight into How Cells Get Signals from Physical Senses Could Lead to New Disease Treatments
The body’s cells are constantly receiving and reacting to signals from their environment. A lot is known about how a cell senses and responds to chemical signals, or biomolecules, such as COVID-19. But little is known about how signals from the physical environment, like… Read More - Research News
New Research Sheds Light on How Mesothelioma Develops
Mesothelioma has been a high-profile disease at the center of several multi-billion-dollar lawsuits, but the disease itself remains a medical mystery. The incurable cancer develops on the lining of many internal organs—including the lungs and peritoneum—but its symptoms are often undetectable until about 40… Read More
- Rehearsals, Recitals and Research
- Calling All Experimentalists, Designers, Fixers and Tinkerers
University of Maryland physics and astronomy dual-degree senior Delina Levine got her first introduction to music when she just was six years old, soon after she pestered her parents to sign her up for piano lessons. 
Delina Levine
As her fingers rhythmically tapped the black and white keys, Levine noticed that the sounds she created with the piano differed depending on the amount of force her hands exerted on the keys. Applying the piano’s pedals while she played created variations in the
… Read MoreTwo of the best-kept secrets in the University of Maryland’s Department of Physics are its Vortex Makerspace and a small class held in the makerspace that is dedicated to the practical skills needed for physics experimentation.
Since 2019, Professor Daniel Lathrop has taught a unique 400-level laboratory course in the Vortex Makerspace (formerly the Physics Welding Shop), which is tucked behind the John S. Toll Physics Building. Designed to teach students hands-on ways to bring their ideas to life, the
… Read MoreDepartment News
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Sep 19, 2023 Thomas Antonsen Honored by the American Physical Society Distinguished University Professor Thomas M. Antonsen will receive the American Physical Society’s (APS) 2023 James Clerk Maxwell Prize for Plasma Physics for “pioneering contributions in the theory of magnetized plasma stability, RF, current drive, laser-plasma interactions, and charged particle beam dynamics”. He will be honored at… Read More -
May 24, 2021 Jean-Paul Richard, 1936 - 2023 Professor Emeritus Jean-Paul Richard, an experimentalist with numerous contributions to the understanding of gravity, died on September 6, 2023. He was 87. A native of Québec City, Québec, Richard studied at the Université Laval before moving to France for his graduate work. Following doctoral studies in… Read More -
Sep 8, 2023 Physics on the Field On a Saturday in April 2023, an unusual event unfolded on the grassy greens by the University of Maryland’s Memorial Chapel. Nearly 50 students, staff and faculty gathered to play in the inaugural Physics Champions League, an amateur soccer tournament run by the UMD Physics… Read More -
Sep 8, 2023 Ph.D. Student’s Initiative Led to Numerous Research Collaborations and Accolades A big part of research is working with other scientists. As an undergraduate and graduate student at the University of Maryland, Jacob Bringewatt (B.S. ’18, physics) put in the work knocking on doors and connecting with professors, which allowed him to explore a broad range… Read More
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