Physics and Astronomy

The department is pleased to report four successful oral defenses this week: two doctoral dissertations and two Honors theses, in four very different research areas in the department. Matthew Parent successfully defended his dissertation on Tuesday (April 21), Quantification Of Interactions Between Influenza Hemagglutinin And Host Cell Phosphoinositides By Super-Resolution Microscopy, advised by Sam Hess.  […]

Our own Emera Astronomy Center‘s Maynard F. Jordan Planetarium is being put to work for COVID-19 research while the Planetarium is closed to the public during the pandemic. The Jordan Planetarium is the second planetarium in the nation to join an innovative platform operated by the University of California, Berkeley, called the Berkeley Open Infrastructure […]

Charles I. “Chuck” Peddle, Engineering Physics class of 1959 and Maine native, passed away in December 2019, in Santa Cruz, CA, at 82 years old. Peddle led the creation of the MOS 6502 microprocessor, which was used in the first personal computers made by Apple and Commodore. Peddle is arguably one of the most influential […]

In the fall of 2019, three physics graduate students made the transition from “PhD student” to “PhD candidate” by passing a Thesis Proposal Defense.  This involved preparing a grant-proposal-like document that was submitted to a committee of four department faculty, including their dissertation advisor, and then giving an oral presentation with public and closed-door question […]

The department is pleased to announce that physics graduate student James Deaton received the College of Engineering’s 2019 Graduate Teaching Assistant Award.  James was given the award at the 2019 Bryand Recognition Banquet for the College in November. James earned the award primarily for his work in PHY 107 and 108,  but also in PHY […]

We are proud to announce that the Society of Physics Students National Council has awarded the University of Maine SPS Chapter as a 2019 Distinguished Chapter for their efforts in the 2018-2019 academic year. This is the 3rd year in a row that this honor has been awarded to UMaine’s SPS chapter.  It’s a testament […]

Prof. Neil Comins is part of a new collaboration to use the video game Minecraft to motivate interest in STEM using scenarios based on his popular “What If?” books, “What If the Moon Didn’t Exist?” and “What If the Earth Had Two Moons?”  Thanks to Prof. Comins and graduate student Zach Smith, middle-school students will […]

Susan McKay, Professor of Physics and the Director of the Maine Center for Research in STEM Education (the Maine RiSE Center), is the recipient of the 2019 Presidential Public Service Achievement Award, the University of Maine’s top faculty honor for public service.  McKay is being recognized for her leadership in transforming STEM education research at UMaine […]

The department is pleased to announce that two physics graduate students have received awards of excellence from the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (CLAS).  Jaqulin Wallace has been awarded the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences Graduate Student Excellence in Teaching Award for 2019, and Matthew Parent has been awarded the College of Liberal […]

University of Maine alumnus and “father of the personal computer” Chuck Peddle will deliver the keynote at “Disruptive Innovation,” a moderated panel discussion April 5 on campus. For more information about the panel and Peddle’s work, please read the UMaine News article, which can be found here.