News - UMD Physics

Finding Unconventional Superconductors by Visual Inspection

Details: Category: Research News; Published: Wednesday, February 13 2013 00:00

Researchers, including Steve Anlage, have discovered a new and simple experimental test to see if a superconductor is ‘unconventional’ and unusual. Many of the high temperature superconductors discovered over the past 30 years are thought to be unconventional in nature. One strategy for discovering new higher temperature superconductors is to create even more exotic unconventional superconductors. The experiment creates a clear graphical image of the properties of the superconductor in different directions, as shown below. An anisotropic image is a clear sign of the unconventional nature of the superconducting state. This image shows the four nodal directions of the d-wave superconductor YBa2Cu3O7- as enhanced response (tall, white areas). The technique can now be applied to newly discovered superconductors to test them for unconventional properties, and will help guide the search for even higher temperature superconductors.

The results appeared in a spring issue of Physical Review Letters.

Buonanno and Banavar are Added to the APS Outstanding Referees List

Details: Category: Department News; Published: Friday, February 08 2013 14:29

Alessandra Buonanno and Jayanth Banavar are among the new Outstanding Referees selected by the editors of the APS journals. Initiated in 2008, the highly selective Outstanding Referee program recognizes scientists who have been exceptionally helpful in assessing manuscripts for publication in the APS journals. Selections are based on two decades of records on the number, quality and timeliness of referee reports.

The full list of Outstanding Referees is located at, http://publish.aps.org/OutstandingReferees

Roald Sagdeev Interviewed by NPR's Daniel Zwerdling

Details: Category: Department News; Published: Thursday, January 31 2013 00:00

“The Day I Said ‘Nyet!’ to Gorbachev… and Other Life Tales of a Famous Soviet Scientist”

Distinguished University of Maryland Professor Roald Z. Sagdeev discussed “The Day I Said ‘Nyet!’ to Gorbachev… and Other Life Tales of a Famous Soviet Scientist” with journalist Daniel Zwerdling on February 7, 2013 at the Marriott Conference Center on the UMD campus. Sagdeev ran the Soviet space program and advised Soviet leaders on the nuclear arms race. He spoke about love, communism, physics and the end of the Soviet Union with Daniel Zwerdling, an award-winning correspondent and investigative journalist with National Public Radio.

The interview was part of the "Sagdeev at 80" symposium sponsored by the University of Maryland Department of Physics and the Eisenhower Institute. A videorecording is posted here:

http://umdphysics.umd.edu/sagdeevsymposium/717-sagdeev-symposium-media.html

Jim Gates Receives National Medal of Science, Regents Professorship

Details: Category: Department News; Published: Monday, December 31 2012 00:00

President Obama presented the National Medal of Science to Professor Sylvester James "Jim" Gates Jr. on Friday, Feb. 1.

Gates, the John S. Toll Professor of Physics and Director of the Center for String & Particle Theory, is a UMD Distinguished Scholar-Teacher and a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST) and the Maryland State Board of Education. In addition to his seminal work in supersymmetry, supergravity and string theory, Professor Gates is a well-known advocate for science and science education here and abroad. He has been a frequent guest on NOVA productions on PBS and a featured presenter at the World Science Festivals. He has delivered the annual Karplus Lecture to the National Science Teachers Association and has received the Public Understanding of Science and Technology Award from the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

The National Medal--the nation's highest award in science--was established in 1959 and is administered by the National Science Foundation.

In addition, Professor Gates was recently named a University System of Maryland Regents Professor.

For more images from the Friday medal ceremony, see the links below.
gatesnationalmedal