Welcome

WCU Partners with Women in Aerospace and Technology Program (WATP)

Sophomores Carolyn Zeits and Nora Pearse are serving as teachers and mentors for a new Girl Scout troop which meets at the American Helicopter Museum. Here they are applying Newton's third law and torque to demonstrate the need for tail rotors on helicopters. The WATP initiative involves local industry partners as well as academic partners and the museum, and aims to inspire female students to pursue careers in science and technology. As part of the program, Carolyn and Nora have also job-shadowed engineers at Sikorsky Global Helicopter and Boeing. If you are a WCU student interested in becoming involved in WATP, please contact Dr. Sealfon.

Click here for more.

We offer a comprehensive education in Physics and exciting research opportunities that prepare students for academic and professional careers. Our small upper-level classes (around 10 students) allow for close faculty-student interactions and mentoring. Many students take part in cutting-edge research with faculty members. We continue to stay in touch and act as a resource to garduates long after they obtain their degree. Please stop by the Department and discover for yourself all we have to offer.

Click here for more.

Modern Physics Abroad a Success

Physics majors had the opportunity to take PHY 240 (Modern Physics) in a unique environment this past summer. Dr. Waite arranged the course to include two and a half weeks of study at WCU, followed by two and a half weeks study in Europe where, in addition to continue studying physics, students visited to scientific and historic sites of interest. Some of these sites included Churchill's War Room Michael Faraday's Lab, and the Royal Observatory at Greenwich. PHY 240 is normally taken by sophomore Physics majors. However, other students interested in enrolling may contact Dr. Waite.

Click here for more.

Physics Students Gear up for Trebuchet Competition

Physics and engineering majors put their design skills to the test this year by building a 12-foot trebuchet that launches a cantaloupe-sized object. Trebuchet competitions are growing in popularity due to their alluring combination of technical challenges and good old fashioned fun. WCU students chose the "floating arm trebuchet" design for the 2011 competition held at Kutztown University; their best launch hurled their object 400 ft, which won them second place in the competition. The project design team included Desmond Frost, Chris Massaro, Caleb Keay, Jacob Lawton, and Kurt van Mol. The trebuchet was funded by the Society of Physics Students.

Click here for more.

WCU Taking Part in 6-meter Telescope in Chile

For the past five years, Physics Professor Robert Thornton has been part of a collaboration led by Princeton University and the University of Pennsylvania to build a 6-meter telescope in the Atacama Desert in northern Chile. The collaboration was recently awarded $10M to build a new instrument for the telescope.

The new camera, "ACTPol," is designed to detect the degree to which the Cosmic Microwave Background, the afterglow of the Big Bang, is polarized. Prof. Thornton and West Chester Physics students are be involved with the optical, mechanical, and cryogenic design of the estimated 1500-lb camera over the next several years.

Click here for more.

Physics Tea Every Thursday

Join us each Thursday at 3:00 pm in the Physics Library (Merion 125) for The Physics Tea. This is a social time we have set aside for physics students and faculty to chat about physics, classes, grad school, and anything else that happens to come up in conversation. It's a great time to relax and see your professors and classmates in an informal atmosphere outside the classroom. Visitors welcome, especially alumni and prospective students!

Click here for more.

Physics tenure-track faculty positions

The Department of Physics has two position openings: one in condensed matter physics and one in medical physics. These are tenure-track positions starting August, 2012. Applicants must possess a Ph. D. in Physics or related field, be able to teach the full range of undergraduate physics courses, and give evidence of a commitment to excellence in undergraduate teaching. The positions are offered at the Assistant Professor level. For more information clik here.

Click here for more.

Welcome new faculty!

We would like to welcome the addition of three new Physics faculty members who will be joining us for the 2011-2012 academic year. Dr. Paul Belony received his Ph.D. from Lehigh University, and will be teaching PHY 130 and PHY 310 (Intermediate Lab). Dr. John Shaw, who received his Ph.D. from the University of Delaware, will be teaching PHY 140 and PHY 300 (Classical Mechanics). Last but not least, we have a new lab coordinator and instructor, Prof. Barry Feierman, who received his M.A. from Swarthmore University. Please stop by Merion 120 to say a quick hello and welcome them to the department!

Click here for more.

2010-2011 Physics Awards

A belated congratulations to those students who, at the end of last semester, received Physics awards and were inducted into Sigma Pi Sigma, the National Physics Honor Society. The award recipients included physics majors Eric Brown, Chris Massaro, Carolyn Zeits, Miguele Abele, Jacob Lawton, Julia Mayer, and Ben Plumridge. The yearly awards ceremony features a reception and colloquium, both of which are open to friends and families of the students being recognized. This year's colloquium was delivered by Dr. Bruce Partridge, the Bettye and Howard Marshall Professor of Natural Sciences, Emeritus, at Haverford College.

Click here for more.