REU Site: Research Experiences in Physics for Women and Minorities at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee

University Of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Milwaukee WI

Investigators

Abstract

The Physics Department at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (UWM) will establish a new REU site program for undergraduate physics majors. Ten students will be recruited each year, eight from outside institutions and two from within UWM. Priority will be given to women and minorities. A full-time educator within the Department, who has direct experience of minority education, will be in charge of pre-program publicity and recruitment, and, later, the day to day running and administration of the program. Applicants will choose from a broad selection of experimental and theoretical projects including: optical spectroscopy and laser physics; LEED; infrared spectroscopy; molecular beam epitaxy and vacuum deposition; X-ray scattering and other X-ray spectroscopic techniques; UV and X-ray photoemission: electron microscopy; acoustic propagation in high Tc superconductors; computational techniques for the extraction of the geometrical and electronic structure of materials from electron and X-ray probes; and the analysis of data from the Laser Interferometer Gravitational Wave Observatory (LIGO). The 10 week program will start in early June. As well as the formal research activities, the program will include daily (weekdays) one-hour enrichment classes, in which the REU students will be taken through core physics at an appropriate level. There will also be a weekly colloquium. The Physics Department intends to provide an intellectually enriching atmosphere for REU students, and the Department is especially interested in attracting more women and minority students to the UWM graduate program.