Student Research in Physics

Physics students at Otterbein are  encouraged to participate in research with a faculty member, which, depending on interests, may start as early as the freshman year. Physics faculty members are active in a variety of experimental and theoretical areas.

On this page:

Recent Projects

Links below go to Honors and Distinction theses in the Otterbein Digital Commons. * indicates winner of annual best Honors Thesis award.

2023:

  • Cole Benishek and Christian Robinette: Design and Construction of a demonstration Tesla Coil.
  • Gabriel Jennings: Electromagnetic wave propagation through periodic slat structures.
  • Ben Giera and Braden Keck: Thermal Characterization of Thermoelectric Materials, in collaboration with Lake Shore Cryotronics.

2022: Michael Colley: Electromagnetic bound states and duality on the light front

2021: Ryan Bosworth: Magnetic Susceptibility of Lithium Bismuthate Glasses

2020:

2019:

2018:

2017:

2016:

2015:

2014:

  • Philip Kellogg: Calibration of the MicroBooNE detector with Muon Decays
  • Peter Watkins: Construction and operation of a Remote Operations Center for the MINERvA experiment
  • Ben Graber: Measurement of the hyperfine energy splittings in the 5P_{3/2} manifold of levels in rubidium
  • Michael Highman: Design and construction of an ultrahigh vacuum system for cold atom experiments

In addition to work at Otterbein, students also regularly participate in NSF-sponsored Research Experience for Undergraduates programs around the nation and the world. Recent examples include:

  • BYU
  • University of Utah
  • Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory
  • University of Nevada, Las Vegas
  • University of California at Davis
  • CERN, Geneva, Switzerland (LHCb Collaboration)

Students have also participated in research at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, the Southeastern Association for Research in Astronomy, Argonne National Laboratory, the McNairs Scholars Program at the University of Maine, and the summer research program at the Kent State University Liquid Crystals Institute.

Theory Group (Profs. David Robertson and Uwe Trittmann)

Development of computational methods and tools for precision calculations of particle properties in quantum field theory, most notably for theories involving “supersymmetry,” a symmetry relating particles of different spins that may be an integral part of the most fundamental theories of physics. Such tools are needed and used in the analysis of ongoing experiments at the Large Hadron Collider.

Variational methods in strongly interacting quantum systems, in particular as an approach to understanding and modeling the structure of hadrons and nuclei.

Work on the “light-cone” formulation for quantum field theory, as a basis for the development of new non-perturbative methods of calculation in strongly interacting systems. This approach involves formulating quantum field theory on a null plane, which can lead to certain dramatic simplifications. Current work is focused on detailing the relation between the light-cone and standard “equal-time” formulations, and studying the approach in low-dimensional test models.

Quantum mechanical wavefunction of a bound state of strongly interacting particles in two dimensions, as a function of the momentum fractions of the particles. It is highly symmetric and shows how momentum is distributed among the constituents.