Fahad Mahmood joins the condensed matter effort at Illinois. In his research on ultra-fast optical spectroscopies of quantum materials, he uses extremely short laser pulses to study problems at the intersection of strongly correlated quantum materials and non-equilibrium physics. He is best known for his work on THz collective modes and fluctuations in cuprate superconductors and on Floquet-Bloch states in topological insulators.
Jaki Noronha-Hostler is a nuclear physicist. In her research, she does simulations of the most perfect fluid we know of – quark-gluon plasma – moving at the speed of light, and then compares the simulations directly to experimental data.
Scientists have simulated every atom of a light-harvesting structure in a photosynthetic bacterium that generates energy for the organism. The simulated organelle behaves just like its counterpart in nature, the researchers report. The work is a major step toward understanding how some biological structures convert sunlight into chemical energy, a biological innovation that is essential to life.
The researchers report their findings in the journal Cell.
The team originally was led by University of Illinois Physics Professor Klaus Schulten and the work continued after Schulten’s death in 2016. The study fulfills, in part, Schulten’s decades-long dream of discovering the mechanisms by which atomic-level interactions build and animate living systems.
Eric Kuo studies the mechanisms of how physics students think and learn, using these investigations to inform design and assessment of new instructional methods.
Helvi Witek specializes in black holes, gravity, and gravitational waves and how we can use them to understand open questions about the universe.
“We deeply appreciate Gary Kelly’s generosity and his investment in our department’s core missions of research, teaching, and outreach,” comments Head of Department and Professor Matthias Grosse Perdekamp. “Unrestricted funds such as these are applied where they will make the greatest impact. Through his generosity, Gary Kelly’s legacy at Illinois will include his support of important new opportunities directly in line with our core missions. A large portion of Gary’s gift will support the research of exceptional women faculty early in their careers, enabling Illinois Physics to attract and retain promising women physicists.”
Now through the end of 2019, The Grainger Foundation will match all donations made to the College's Engineering Visionary Scholarship Initiative.
The Center for the Physics of Living Cells is an NSF Physics Frontiers Center. In true "Urbana style," theoretical and experimental scientists collaborating at the CPLC are elucidating the fundamental processes at the core of life in quantitative physical detail. The CPLC Summer School is world renowned for its training of young scientists in leading-edge research methods, advancing this interdisciplinary physics frontier.
Are you ready to study the glow of black holes? Or how superconductors can carry electricity without resistance? Physics opens the secrets of the universe. Illinois has a long tradition of excellence in physics, and we continue to advance the frontiers of science every day. Watch the video!
How do you determine which egg is cooked if given a cooked egg and an uncooked egg?