Research Experience for Undergraduates in Physics

Michigan State University, East Lansing MI

Investigators

Abstract

The REU program in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at Michigan State University offers to undergraduate students the opportunity to do forefront research in a field of physics -- nuclear, condensed matter, high-energy, or astrophysics. Approximately twenty students participate in the program each summer. They live and work on the MSU campus for a 10-week period. Seminars, field trips, social activities, and sports are planned, in addition to the individual research projects. Each student in the program will work on a well-defined research project under the direction of a faculty mentor. A wide variety of projects is available, both experimental and theoretical. In nuclear physics, MSU is the site of the National Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory; research opportunities include experimental nuclear physics, accelerator and detector design and testing, and theoretical studies. Condensed matter physics includes basic solid-state physics and properties of new materials. REU projects in high-energy physics are done at MSU, relating to experiments at Fermilab and CERN. In the field of astrophysics, a 24-inch reflecting telescope is available at MSU, and data from other observatories may be analyzed. At the end of the program each student will write a research report and give an oral presentation.