The passing of Dr. David Katzenstein, a friend and benefactor of the UConn Department of Physics
Dr. David Katzenstein, a friend, and benefactor of the UConn Department of Physics, passed away on January 25, 2021 due to Covid-19. David was the son of Henry Katzenstein, the first Physics Ph.D. from UConn and a major benefactor of our Department. Currently, both the annual Katzenstein Distinguished Lecture and the Katzenstein Prize for a […]
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A Signal from Beyond
UConn astrophysicist Chiara Mingarelli is part of a team of researchers who recently published data on a hint of a signal that sent ripples of excitement through the physics community. These monumental findings are the culmination of twelve and a half years of data gathered from NANOGrav — a network of pulsars across the galaxy — all in the hopes of detecting gravitational waves.
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UConn Physics alumnus Dr. Michael Wininger
UConn Physics alumnus Dr. Michael Wininger (BS, 2003) was recently featured in the professional journal O&P Almanac (Orthotics and Prosthetics). The article describes how his eclectic background, beginning with degrees from UConn, has enabled him to lead innovations in several areas of health research. Mike is currently an Assistant Clinical Professor in the Biostatistics Department […]
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UConn Researcher an Architect for Astronomical Survey Making Observations Toward a New Understanding of the Cosmos
November 2, 2020 – Elaina Hancock – UConn Communications The Sloan Digital Sky Survey’s fifth generation – a groundbreaking project to bolster our understanding of the formation and evolution of galaxies, including the Milky Way – collected its very first observations on the evening of October 23. Image: The Sloan Digital Sky Survey’s fifth generation […]
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The passing of UConn Physics Professor Emeritus, Arnold Russek
Arnold Russek, a theoretical atomic physicist, born July 13, 1926, in New York, passed away on October 13th, 2020, in Colorado. As a young man of 18, he served honorably as a radio engineer in the Pacific during WWII. He earned his Ph.D. at the Courant Institute at New York University in 1953, and taught […]
[Read More]Recent Events
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Professor Philip Mannheim University of Connecticut Physics Department Colloquium Series, Prof. Philip Mannheim (Physics Colloquium)3:30pm
3/5
Professor Philip Mannheim University of Connecticut Physics Department Colloquium Series, Prof. Philip Mannheim (Physics Colloquium)
Friday, March 5th, 2021
03:30 PM - 04:30 PM
Storrs Campus remote
Professor Philip Mannheim
University of Connecticut
Physics Department Colloquium Series
Title: Quantum mechanics off the beaten track
Abstract: We discuss some non-conventional options for quantum theory.
We show that not only do Hamiltonians not need
to be Hermitian to have real eigenvalues, they do not even need to be
diagonalizable or possess a complete spectrum of energy eigenstates. We
discuss how to formulate quantum mechanics in such cases.
We show that
it is not always possible to write the momentum operator as the familiar
derivative operator $-id/dx$ where x is real, and discuss what one should
then do. Following
work by Bender and Mannheim [Phys. Rev. Lett. 100, 110402 (2008)] we show
how these issues are relevant to the construction of a consistent theory
of quantum gravity in four spacetime dimensions. In this theory there is no observable graviton. -
Prof. Vernon Cormier, Department of Physics, University of Connecticut, "Earth's Core: formation, structure, and the geodynamo", Graduate Student Seminar12:15pm
3/5
Prof. Vernon Cormier, Department of Physics, University of Connecticut, "Earth's Core: formation, structure, and the geodynamo", Graduate Student Seminar
Friday, March 5th, 2021
12:15 PM - 01:15 PM
Storrs Campus online
Prof. Vernon Cormier, Department of Physics, University of Connecticut
Earth's Core: formation, structure, and the geodynamo
Earth's magnetic field has been sustained for more than 3 b.y. by convection of a
liquid-iron alloy situated between a silicate outer mantle and a solid iron inner core in its center. Its magnetic field is characterized by a rich spectrum of secular and
spatial variations, having correlations with the elastic structures of the lowermost
mantle and an oscillating inner core, driven by lateral variations in convective and
conductive heat transport and Lorentz forces. In this talk, I will review current
research on the structure andevolution of Earth's core and its magnetic field -
Dr. Antonio Picón, Departamento de Química, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, "Mapping the real-time movies of chemical bonds", Atomic, Molecular, And Optical Physics Seminar4:00pm
3/3
Dr. Antonio Picón, Departamento de Química, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, "Mapping the real-time movies of chemical bonds", Atomic, Molecular, And Optical Physics Seminar
Wednesday, March 3rd, 2021
04:00 PM - 05:00 PM
Storrs Campus online
Dr. Antonio Picón, Departamento de Química, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid
Mapping the real-time movies of chemical bonds
Valence electrons play a crucial role in the formation of chemical bonds within a molecular system and determine its charge and electron transfer properties. In the static regime, these properties are defined by the electron density distribution of the equilibrium geometry. However, when out of equilibrium, ultrafast electronic rearrangements within the order of a few femtoseconds together a significant alteration of the chemical bonds can occur. I will address in this talk our undergoing investigations for mapping these ultrafast changes through X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy that have been critical in retransforming the well-established concepts of chemical shifts. I will additionally illustrate our developments for the selective manipulation of chemical bonding through X-ray free electron laser pulses. -
Dr. Siddharth Mohite, UW-Milwaukee and CCA, Flatiron Institute, "Investigating Populations across the Gravitational-Wave Mass Spectrum: Statistical Tools and Implications for Astrophysics", Astronomy Seminar11:30am
3/3
Dr. Siddharth Mohite, UW-Milwaukee and CCA, Flatiron Institute, "Investigating Populations across the Gravitational-Wave Mass Spectrum: Statistical Tools and Implications for Astrophysics", Astronomy Seminar
Wednesday, March 3rd, 2021
11:30 AM - 12:00 PM
Storrs Campus online
Dr. Siddharth Mohite, UW-Milwaukee and CCA, Flatiron Institute
Investigating Populations across the Gravitational-Wave Mass Spectrum: Statistical Tools and Implications for Astrophysics
Merging compact object binaries comprising of pairs of black holes, neutron stars or a neutron star and a black hole are energetic sources of gravitational-wave (GW) and electromagnetic (EM) radiation. Current and future gravitational-wave observatories such as LIGO-Virgo-KAGRA, LISA and NANOGrav will help uncover a diverse population of these binaries across the mass spectrum. While the LIGO-Virgo-KAGRA observatories probe compact objects roughly from 1 to 100 times a solar mass, observatories such as LISA and NANOGrav are predicted to probe supermassive binaries in the million to billion solar mass regimes. On the other hand, telescopes around the world will aid in detecting binaries that contain neutron stars by observing an associated electromagnetic counterpart called a kilonova. Investigating the properties of these binary populations will shed light on some long-standing problems in astrophysics such as stellar and galaxy evolution and nuclear equation of state. In this talk, I will present an attempt to create a Bayesian framework that can simultaneously use information from GW and EM surveys to place constraints on the kilonova population. I will also briefly introduce a method to model the mass distribution of binaries detectable by LIGO-Virgo-KAGRA, using Gaussian processes. Finally, I will also present some investigations into modeling the effects of circum-binary gas and eccentricity on the expected gravitational-wave sources from merging supermassive black hole binaries detectable by observatories like NANOGrav. -
Joyce Caliendo, University of Connecticut , "Early Science with the Large Millimeter Telescope: Constraining the Gas Fraction of a Compact Quiescent Galaxy at z = 1.883 ", Astronomy Seminar11:00am
3/3
Joyce Caliendo, University of Connecticut , "Early Science with the Large Millimeter Telescope: Constraining the Gas Fraction of a Compact Quiescent Galaxy at z = 1.883 ", Astronomy Seminar
Wednesday, March 3rd, 2021
11:00 AM - 11:30 AM
Storrs Campus online
Joyce Caliendo, University of Connecticut
Early Science with the Large Millimeter Telescope: Constraining the Gas Fraction of a Compact Quiescent Galaxy at z = 1.883
We present constraints on the dust continuum flux and inferred gas content of a gravitationally lensed massive quiescent galaxy at z=1.883 +/- 0.001 using AzTEC 1.1mm imaging with the Large Millimeter Telescope. MRG-S0851 appears to be a prototypical massive compact quiescent galaxy but has evidence that it experienced a centrally concentrated rejuvenation event in the last 100 Myr. This galaxy is undetected in the AzTEC image but we calculate an upper limit on the millimeter flux and use this to estimate the H_2 mass limit via an empirically calibrated relation that assumes a constant molecular gas-to-dust ratio of 150.
We constrain the 3 sigma upper limit of the H_2 fraction from the dust continuum in MRG-S0851 to be M_(H_2)/M_* < 6.8%. MRG-S0851 has a low gas fraction limit with a moderately low sSFR owing to the recent rejuvenation episode, which together results in a relatively short depletion time of -
Dr. H. Larsson, California Institute of Technology, "Molecules in quantum motion --- Understanding electrons, nuclei, and their interactions", Atomic, Molecular, And Optical Physics Seminar4:00pm
3/1
Dr. H. Larsson, California Institute of Technology, "Molecules in quantum motion --- Understanding electrons, nuclei, and their interactions", Atomic, Molecular, And Optical Physics Seminar
Monday, March 1st, 2021
04:00 PM - 05:00 PM
Storrs Campus online
Dr. H. Larsson, California Institute of Technology
Molecules in quantum motion ---
Understanding electrons, nuclei, and their interactions
In order to fully understand the chemical physics of molecular systems, we need to simulate both the electronic and vibrational motion quantum mechanically. However, simulations of quantum many-body systems, such as molecules, scale exponentially with system size. I will explain how to tame this 'curse of dimensionality' by combining methods from the traditionally disjoint fields of electronic structure and nuclear dynamics. This combination has enabled the simulation of complex systems with unprecedented accuracy and speed. I will demonstrate how these methods make it possible to solve a diverse set of problems, ranging from characterizing hydrated protons on a molecular quantum level to the interaction of molecules with extremely short and intense light pulses on attosecond time scales. I will demonstrate how these simulations provide new insight into complex fundamental physical processes. -
Prof. Stella Offner, UT Austin, "Physics Department Colloquium", Professor Stella Offner (Physics Colloquium)3:30pm
2/26
Prof. Stella Offner, UT Austin, "Physics Department Colloquium", Professor Stella Offner (Physics Colloquium)
Friday, February 26th, 2021
03:30 PM - 04:30 PM
Storrs Campus remote
Prof. Stella Offner, UT Austin
Physics Department Colloquium
Title and abstract: TBD -
Graduate Student Yasaman Homayouni, Department of Physics, University of Connecticut, PhD Dissertation Defense1:00pm
2/26
Graduate Student Yasaman Homayouni, Department of Physics, University of Connecticut, PhD Dissertation Defense
Friday, February 26th, 2021
01:00 PM - 03:00 PM
Storrs Campus Video meeting
Graduate Student Yasaman Homayouni, Department of Physics,
University of Connecticut
Supermassive black holes are among the most exciting and unusual objects in our Universe, as literal rips in space and time. Reliable measurements of mass, the structure, and geometry of infalling material to supermassive black holes are critical to understanding the growth history of black holes and galaxy formation and evolution over cosmic time. Beyond the local Universe, the gold standard for black hole mass and accretion-disk structure is reverberation mapping. I will present a new generation of industrial-scale study of the structure, and geometry of infalling material and black hole mass studies from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey Reverberation Mapping (SDSS-RM) project and Ultraviolet-monitoring using the Hubble Space Telescope. These new measurements have transformed our understanding of supermassive black holes by dramatically expanding the number of quasars with reliable mass and accretion structure in distant Universe. These measurements have also revealed a surprisingly large diversity in accretion structure and the broad-line region size of quasars at the peak of supermassive black hole assembly. My work lays the foundation by developing the framework to reliably measure mass and the structure of accretion using direct disk size measurements from future massive time-domain photometric monitoring studies from SDSS-V and Rubin/LSST.
Webex link: https://uconn-cmr.webex.com/join/jot16106