Archive for ‘Department of Physics’

Physics Connections

0 Commentsby   |  06.17.11  |  Department of Physics

The ACU Department of Physics has a long history of including our students in our world-class research programs.  Our students work side-by-side with mentoring Christian faculty members.  The results of our work are published in peer-reviewed journals with our students as our co-authors.

  • For more than 30 years the Nuclear Physics Research Group has conducted research at national laboratories.  During the past 3 years more than 30 students have worked with us on three research projects investigating the internal structure of the proton and making precision measurements needed to build the next generation of nuclear power plants.  Primarily funded by research grants from the Department of Energy, funding for this year is almost half a million dollars.  Plans for the summer of 2011 include 15 students working at 5 different national laboratories (Los Alamos National Lab, Brookhaven National Lab, Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, Argonne National Laboratory, and Idaho National Laboratory).
  • The Solid State Research Group is our newest research group and the department’s only completely on-campus experimental efforts.   This group uses phonon-imaging techniques to measure the acoustic properties of crystals.  Seven students have worked with this group during the past 3 years.
  • Plans for the future of our department include adding an ABET accredited engineering degree.  With the addition of an engineering program, new research opportunities and internships for our students will be available.