LANDAU GIVES INVITED TALK

2008 UNDERGRADUATE DAY
April 24 was set aside as the day when we recognize our undergraduate majors.  Awards for outstanding undergraduate Physics and Astronomy students were presented.  Award recipients were:

2008 GRADUATE STUDENT AWARDS PRESENTED
The department of Physics and Astronomy held its annual honors day for the graduate students in the department on Thursday April 17, 2008. The reception began at 4 PM in the Lobby of the Physics building, and it was attended by the graduate students, faculty and staff.  During the reception Dr. W. M. Dennis, head of the Department, presented the Department's awards to the following outstanding students:

• Jeremy Gulley was awarded the 13^th Cummings Memorial Award for Outstanding Graduate Student and Teaching Assistant.  The award is a $1,000 honorarium donated by the family of Bill Cummings and a framed certificate. Jeremy's Major Professor is Dr. Bill Dennis.
• Junqi Yin was recipient of the 6^th Anderson-Pioletti Memorial Award for Outstanding Early Graduate Student. The award is a $200 honorarium endowed by the Anderson and Pioletti families and a framed certificate.
• David Cotten and Adam Schneider were awarded Outstanding Teaching Assistant Awards.  These awards consist of honoraria of $100 each, donated by Dr. Robert Wood, professor emeritus, and framed certificates, signed by Vice President for Academic Affairs.
• New awards this year for particularly noteworthy research achieventments were won by Zhongye Zhang and Junxue Fu

2008 GEORGIA SCIENCE & ENGINEERING FAIR AWARDS ANNOUNCED
The 60^th Georgia Science & Engineering Fair was held at the Classic Center April 2-5, 2008.  Our Department gives awards to outstanding projects by one Junior Division (grades 6-8) and one Senior Division (grades 9-12) entrant.  This year the awards were won by:

• Jr. Div.: "Parallax Problems", Jesse Zheng and Frank Mu, Autrey Mill Middle School, Alpharetta, GA.
• Sr. Div.: "Degrees of Pleasantness of Various Sounds", William Cooper, Carrollton High School, Carrollton GA.

TANG WINS CARMON AWARD
Ms. Xiaojia Tang was the recipient of the James L. Carmon Award for UGA graduate students who have used computers in an innovative way.

FAN WINS Graduate Student Excellence in Research Award
Mr. Jianguo Fan was the recipient of a Graduate Student Excellence in Research Award. These awards recognize the quality and significance of graduate student scholarship.

STANCIL WINS Creative Research Medal
Prof. Phillip Stancil was the recipient of a Creative Research Medal. These medals are awarded for outstanding research or creative activity within the past five years.

GRAHAM PERDUE PROFESSOR WILLIAM M. YEN, 1935-2008
Colleague and friend, Bill Yen, passed away on January 17, 2008, after a long illness. Click here to view the obituary.

SHELTON PRESENTS INVITED TALK ON XRAY ASTRONOMY
Dr. Robin Shelton, Assistant Professor of Astronomy, presented an Invited Talk on the "Diffuse Interstellar Medium" at the Conference on The Suzaku X-ray Universe held Dec 10-12 in San Diego. This talk focussed on both past achievements of the Suzaku X-ray telescope as well as thinking about the future science Suzaku can do for the next 2-4 yrs. This Invited Presentation was made at the behest of Dr. Nicholas White, Director of the Astrophysics Science Division at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center. Many of the scientific results came from work performed in collaboration with Dr. David Henley and Mr. Shijun Lei, both in the Department of Physics and Astronomy.

SHELTON PRESENTS INVITED TALK AT ISSI WORKSHOP
Dr. Robin Shelton, Assistant Professor of Astronomy, presented an Invited Talk at the International Space Science Institute (ISSI) Workshop "From the Outer Heliosphere to the Local Bubble: Comparison of New Observations with Theory." held in Bern, Switzerland. Her presentation, entitled "Is there hot gas in the Local Bubble and what are its properties?" explained that the Local Bubble of extremely hot gas must exist, though it may be diminished relative to our previous view of it.

LANDAU AND GELLER PRESENT INVITED TALKS IN CHINA
Two faculty members in the Department of Physics and Astronomy presented Invited Lectures at the 4th International Workshop on SImulational Physics held at Zhejiang University in Hangzhou, China. Michael Geller, Professor of Physics, presented a lecture on "Quantum Computer Design". While in China he also presented this talk at the Workshop on Computational Physics sponsored by Northwest University in Xi'an. David P. Landau, Distinguished Research Professor and Director of the Center for Simulational Physics also presented an Invited talk at these meetings entitled "Monte Carlo Simulations of Critical Endpoint Behavior: A 'New' Old Problem".

LANDAU WINS Nicholson Medal
David Landau, Distinguished Research Professor of Physics and Director of the Center for Simulational Physics, has been named by the American Physical Society as the recipient of the 2007 Nicholson Medal for Human Outreach. The citation for the medal read: "For his work in computational physics recognized internationally, and his creation and leadership of the Center for Simulational Physics that has had great success in educating young scientists from many countries in computer simulations."

FAN WINS PRESTIGOUS SCHOLARSHIP
Jianguo Fan, a graduate student working with Professor Yiping Zhao, won the Dorothy M. and Earl S. Hoffman Scholarship from the American Vacuum Society. The scholarship was awarded at the 54th International Symposium& Exhibition of the AVS recently and is one of five major graduate student awards given annually by the AVS. More information may be found here.

YUPING HE RECEIVES OUTSTANDING YOUNG RESEARCHER AWARD
Yuping He, a research associate working with Professor Yiping Zhao, received the 2007 Outstanding Young Researcher Award from Thin Film Division American Vacuum Society. The award was presented at the 54th International Symposium& Exhibition of the AVS recently. More information may be found here.

CHHABRA NAMED CHIEF INVESTMENT OFFICER AT INSTITUTE FOR ADVANCED STUDY
Ashvin Chhabra, a former graduate student in the department, has recently been appointed the Chief Investment Officer at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, NJ. More information may be seen at this link. Many who train in physics end up in other fields!

LEE MAKES IMPORTANT ADVANCE IN STATISTICAL MECHANICS
Regents' Professor Howard Lee has published an important contribution to stastical mechanics in Physical Reviews Letters. Details of this work were published recently in Columns.

2007 UNDERGRADUATE DAY
April 26 was set aside as the day when we recognize our undergraduate majors.  Following a pizza & soft drink social hour in the front lobby, awards for outstanding undergraduate Physics and Astronomy students were presented.  Award recipients were:

2007 GRADUATE STUDENT AWARDS PRESENTED
The department of Physics and Astronomy held its annual honors day for the graduate students in the department on Thursday April 19, 2007. The reception began at 4 PM in the Lobby of the Physics building, and it was attended by the graduate students, faculty and staff.  During the reception Dr. W. M. Dennis, head of the Department, presented the Department's awards to the following outstanding students:

• Scott Thompson was awarded the 12^th Cummings Memorial Award for Outstanding Graduate Student and Teaching Assistant.  The award is a $1,000 honorarium donated by the family of Bill Cummings and a framed certificate. Scott's Major Professor is Dr. Steve Lewis.
• Sebastian Winkler was recipient of the 5^th Anderson-Pioletti Memorial Award for Outstanding Early Graduate Student. The award is a $200 honorarium endowed by the Anderson and Pioletti families and a framed certificate. Sebastian's Major Professor is Dr. Bill Dennis.
• Joshua Hughes and Robert Lashley were awarded Outstanding Teaching Assistant Awards.  These awards consist of honoraria of $100 each, donated by Dr. Robert Wood, professor emeritus, and framed certificates, signed by Vice President for Academic Affairs.

McELROY WINS FRANKLIN COLLEGE STAFF EXCELLENCE AWARD
Ms. Sherri McElroy has been selected as a recipient of the Franklin College Staff Excellence Award for her superb service and contributions to the Department of Physics and Astronomy. It is of note that this is the first year that these awards have been conferred, making this year particularly competitive because of the large number of nominations. The award will be presented at the Staff Awards Reception on Wednesday, May 9.

ALUMNUS TRAVIS BARMAN MAKES IMPORTANT DISCOVERY
Dr. Travis Barman, who received both his B.S. and Ph.D. (2002) degrees at UGA, now at the Lowell Observatory, has announced the first convincing evidence for the presence of water on a planet outside our solar system. A more detailed report may be read at this link.

DENNIS WINS GRADUATE SCHOOL OUTSTANDING MENTORING AWARD
Proffesor and Department Head, Bill Dennis, is the recipient of the 2007 Graduate School Outstanding Mentoring Award. This newly established award encourages and rewards innovation and effectiveness in mentoring graduate students. Nominations for this award are initiated by graduate students, and it is given to two graduate faculty members each year. Professor Dennis received this award on April 12, 2007 at the annual Faculty Recognition Banquet.

2007 GEORGIA SCIENCE & ENGINEERING FAIR AWARDS ANNOUNCED
The 59^th Georgia Science & Engineering Fair was held at the Classic Center March 29-31, 2007.  Our Department gives awards to outstanding projects by one Junior Division (grades 6-8) and one Senior Division (grades 9-12) entrant.  This year the awards were won by:

• Jr. Div.: Georgiy Lomsadze, "Does gravitational pull exist?" Sutton Middle School, Atlanta, GA
• Sr. Div.: Charissa Lucas, " Effects of diameter width of fiber optic cable on signal strength" Bristol Academy, Suwanee, GA

LANDAU PRESENTS INVITED TALK TO GERMAN PHYSICAL SOCIETY
On March 27, 2007 Prof. D. P. Landau, Distinguished Research Professor of Physics and Director of the Center for Simulational Physics, presented an Invited Plenary talk at the spring meeting of the German Physical Society in Regensburg, Germany. His title was "Spin Dynamics Simulations of Excitations and Critical Dynamics in a Heisenberg Antiferromagnet: Resolution of a controversy via finite size scaling" and the presentation was part of the Symposium on Finite-Size Effects at Phase Transitions. This meeting is the largest annual gathering of the German Physical Society with over 4000 participants.

ART AND PHYSICS MEET IN EXHIBIT AT GEORGIA CENTER
Professors Yiping Zhao (Physics) and Zhengwei Pan (Physics and Engineering), in collaboration with Professor Michael Oliveri (Art and Digital Media), present an exhibit entitled "The Art of Science: Nanostructures Unstructured" through March 31, 2007, at the Georgia Center for continuing education. For more information, click here.

NANOMECHANICS SUMMER SCHOOL TO BE HELD AT CALTECH
Professor Michael Geller and collaborators Miles Blencowe, Rob Phillips, Tom Powers, and Robert Rudd are organizing a two-week summer school to take place at Caltech during July 2007. The school will provide a pedagogical introduction to the exciting field of nanomechanics, with particular applications to biological and quantum nanoelectromechanical systems, and will bring together active nanomechanics researchers from around the world. The program is jointly funded by the National Science Foundation and the Kavli Nanoscience Institute at Caltech. For more information visit http://www.eas.caltech.edu/nemsss.

PRITCHETT WINS JAMES L. CARMON SCHOLARSHIP
Emily Pritchett, a PhD candidate working with Professor Michael Geller, has been named a recipient of the James L. Carmon Scholarship for the 2007-2008 academic year. The scholarship, consisting of a $4000 stipend, is awarded annually to a graduate student whose thesis/dissertation research reflects state-of-the-art utilization of computer and/or networking technology in the sciences or creative arts. Her research focuses on the design of resonator-based memory elements for superconducting quantum computers.

FERTIG WINS 2006 Ralph E. Powe Junior Faculty Enhancement Award
Chad Fertig, Assistant Professor of Physics, is a recipient of a 2006 Ralph E. Powe Junior Faculty Enhancement Award from Oak Ridge Associated Universities for his proposal, "An experimental investigation of quantum magnetism in low dimensions using atomic Bose-Einstein condensates." Prof. Fertig's research makes use of Bose-Einstein condensates of dilute alkali gases confined to "optical lattices." Research thrusts include the study of quantum magnetism in this system. It is anticipated that this research will help shed light on such important outstanding problems in physics as high temperature superconductivity. Full-time assistant professors at ORAU member institutions within two years of their initial tenure track appointment are eligible for the award., which is intended to enrich the research and professional growth of young faculty and result in new funding opportunities.

FERTIG WINS 2006 FACULTY RESEARCH GRANT
Chad Fertig, Assistant Professor of Physics, is a recipient of a 2006 Faclty Reserach Grant from the University of Georgia for his proposal, "Quantum simulation with spinor BECs." Prof. Fertig's research focuses on developing techniques to control the internal and external states of atomic spinor Bose-Einstein condensates (BECs) sufficiently accurately to enable their future use as analog quantum simulators, which might one day be used to solve classically intractable problems of a quantum many-body physics.   The grant program is funded by the University of Georgia Research Foundantion, Inc, and is intended to act as seed money to promote the growth of nascent research programs at UGA.

YIPING ZHAO AND COWORKERS USE NANOTECHNOLOGY TO DETECT VIRUSES
Yiping Zhao, Assistant Professor of Physics and collaborators Ralph Tripp (Infectious Diseases) and Richard Dluhy have successfully found a means of detecting viruses. Tripp prepared samples of different viruses, Zhao fabricated the substrates from silver nanorods, and Dluhy made the measurements. The results have been published in Nano Letters and Nature Nanotechnology .

2006 UNDERGRADUATE DAY
April 27 was set aside as the day when we recognize our undergraduate majors.  Following a pizza & soft drink social hour in the front lobby, awards for outstanding undergraduate Physics and Astronomy students were presented.  Award recipients were:

GELLER AWARDED CREATIVE RESEARCH MEDAL
Associate Professor Michael Geller received a 2006 Creative Research Medal for his work on nanomechanics. In collaboration with experimental physicist Andrew Cleland of UC Santa Barbara, Geller has designed a quantum computer that combines superconductors with nanometer-size resonators. Their architecture also makes it possible to control the quantum state of individual phonons and to study quantum optics effects with phonons. Geller also has proposed and developed a theory for a new scanning probe, a scanning thermal-conductance microscope, that can be used to identify individual biomolecules like chromosomes.

2006 GRADUATE STUDENT AWARDS PRESENTED
The department of Physics and Astronomy held its annual honors day for the graduate students in the department on Thursday April 20, 2004. The reception began at 4 PM in the Lobby of the Physics building, and it was attended by the graduate students, faculty and staff.  During the reception Dr. H.-B. Schüttler, head of the Department, presented the Department's awards to the following outstanding students:

• Paul Schmidt was awarded the 11^th Cummings Memorial Award for Outstanding Graduate Student and Teaching Assistant.  The award is a $1,000 honorarium donated by the family of Bill Cummings and a framed certificate. Paul's Major Professor is Dr. Uwe Happek.
• Wesam El-Qadi was recipient of the 5^th Anderson-Pioletti Memorial Award for Outstanding Early Graduate Student.  The award is a $200 honorarium endowed by the Anderson and Pioletti families and a framed certificate. Wesam's Major Professor is Dr. Chad Fertig.
• Daniel Seaton and Sarah Dunning were awarded Outstanding Teaching Assistant Awards.  These awards consist of honoraria of $100 each, donated by Dr. Robert Wood, professor emeritus, and framed certificates, signed by Vice President for Academic Affairs.

LEWIS RECEIVES SANDY BEAVER EXCELLENCE IN TEACHING AWARD
Professor Steven P. Lewis has been chosen to receive a Sandy Beaver Excellence in Teaching award presented to honor outstanding faculty in the Franklin College who show a sustained commitment to high quality instruction.

Center for Simulational Physics celebrates its 20^th anniversary
The Center for Simulational Physics, with Distinguished Research Professor David Landau as Director, is celebrating its 20^th anniversary this year. From February 20-24, 2006 the annual workshop on Recent Developments in Computer Simulation Studies in Condensed Matter will bring Invited Speakers from Germany, Penn. State, U. of Tokyo, the U. of California Genome Center, the U. of Memphis, IBM, Sandia National Lab, and the U. of California Kavli Institute of Theoretical Physics. There will also be contributed talks by participants from all over the world, as well as from within the UGA Department of Physics and Astronomy.

Stancil and Lewis receive NASA grant to study microphysics of star formation
Professors Stancil and Lewis are the principal investigators of a three-year, $276K grant from the NASA Astrophysics Theory Program to study fundamental atomic, molecular, and surface processes. Working with collaborators from the Universities of Kentucky and British Columbia, they will apply their research in advanced computer models used to interpret NASA space telescope observations of star-forming regions. Further details about their proposed research, which will help guide future NASA space astrophysics mission, can be found here. See Congressman John Barrow's website for a press release on this award which will fund the Ph.D. research of UGA Physics and Astronomy graduate students.

LIN WINS JAMES L. CARMON SCHOLARSHIP
Chih-Yuan Lin, a Ph.D. student working with Professor Phillip Stancil, has been named a recipient of the James L. Carmon Scholarship for the 2006-2007 academic year. The scholarship, consisting of a $4000 stipend, is awarded annually to "...a graduate student whose thesis/dissertation research reflects state-of-the-art utilization of computer and/or networking technology in the sciences or creative arts." His research focuses on large-scale atomic and molecular collision calculations which are needed to interpret NASA observations of extra-solar planets and supernovae.

THIRD FIREWALK LECTURE AND DEMO/PARTICIPATION
For the third time in the last decade, Dr. John Campbell, University of Canterbury (NZ) gave a lecture discussing the science of firewalking. After the talk, those interested were given the opportunity to walk on a bed of coals outside the Physics Building. Several hundred members of the campus community tried their "feet" at it with no serious ill effects.

YEN WINS ICL PRIZE FOR LUMINESCENCE RESEARCH
Dr. William Yen, Graham Perdue Professor of Physics at the University of Georgia, has been named winner of the ICL Prize for Luminescence Research, and he received the award at ceremonies in Beijing on July 25. The honor from the International Conference on Luminescence is being given for Yen’s “pioneering discoveries in the dynamics of solid state optical processes and for exceptional leadership in the field of luminescence.” For more information, link here.

GELLER NAMED ADJUNCT PROFESSOR AT EMORY
Associate Professor Michael Geller has been appointed Adjunct Professor of Physics at Emory University in Atlanta. He will spend one or two days a week there interacting with the theory group.

YEN WINS LAMAR DODD AWARD
Graham Perdue Professor William M. Yen has been named recipient of the Lamar Dodd award for an outstanding body of research in the sciences. The citation stated that his research has influenced "every branch of solid state physics, from the study of electronic and magnetic to vibration properties of solids."

YEN NAMED VISITING PROFESSOR
Graham Perdue Professor William M. Yen was named a Brittingham Visiting Professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison for the summer of 2005. He is spending May and June of 2005 there.

YEN NAMED VISITING PROFESSOR
Graham Perdue Professor William M. Yen was named first Edwin T. Jaynes Visiting Professor by Washington University in St. Louis and spent the Fall 2004 semester there. At the end of his visit he was named Honorary Professor of Physics beginning in 1005.

YEN APPOINTED CONSULTANT TO FEL PROJECT
Graham Perdue Professor William M. Yen was appointed as a consultant to the Terahertz Free Electron Project at the University of Hawaii-Manoa campus and named to the Affiliated Graduate Faculty at UH.

GELLER TO GIVE INVITED LECTURES AT NATO SUMMER SCHOOL
Prof. Michael Geller will give a series of lectures on superconducting quantum computation at the NATO Advanced Study Institute conference on "Manipulating Quantum Coherence in Solid State Systems", to be held in Cluj, Romania, in September 2005. Program information can be obtained at http://ostc.physics.uiowa.edu/~natoasi/. Emily Pritchett and Dong Zhou will also be attending the three week school.

2005 GRADUATE STUDENT AWARDS PRESENTED
The department of Physics and Astronomy held its annual honors day for the graduate students in the department on Thursday April 21, 2004. The reception began at 4 PM in the Lobby of the Physics building, and it was attended by the graduate students, faculty and staff.  During the reception Dr. H.-B. Schuttler, head of the Department, presented the Department's awards to the following outstanding students:

• Ray Chastain was awarded the 10^th Cummings Memorial Award for Outstanding Graduate Student and Teaching Assistant.  The award is a $1,000 honorarium donated by the family of Bill Cummings and a framed certificate. Ray's Major Professor is Dr. Loris Magnani.
• Chi-Yuan Lin was recipient of the 4^th Anderson-Pioletti Memorial Award for Outstanding Early Graduate Student.  The award is a $200 honorarium endowed by the Anderson and Pioletti families and a framed certificate. Chi-Yuan's Major Professor is Dr. Phillip Stancil.
• Samantha Lugo and Steve Compton were awarded Outstanding Teaching Assistant Awards.  These awards consist of honoraria of $100 each, donated by Dr. Robert Wood, professor emeritus, and framed certificates, signed by Vice President for Academic Affairs.

2005 GEORGIA SCIENCE & ENGINEERING FAIR AWARDS ANNOUNCED
The 57^th Georgia Science & Engineering Fair was held at the UGA Colliseum April 6-9, 2005.  Our Department gives awards to outstanding projects by one Junior Division (grades 6-8) and one Senior Division (grades 9-12) entrant.  This year the awards were won by:

• Jr. Div.: Kevin Flansburg, The Walker School, Canton, GA, "An Investigation of Battery life for Different Technology Batteries"
• Sr. Div.: Daniel Gallagher, Savannah County Day School, Savannah, GA, "Can You Hear Me Now?"

ZHEJIANG UNIVERSITY WORKSHOP MODELLED ON UGA/CSP WORKSHOPS
Last Spring Prof. Bo Zheng came to the UGA Center for Simulational Physics (CSP) annual International Workshop as an invited speaker from Zhejiang University in China, one of the top five universities in China. This occasion was noteworthy not only for the high caliber of Prof. Zheng’s scholarship, but also for a unique outcome of his participation.  The format of the Workshop, with equal emphasis on presentation and in-depth discussion of frontier research, so impressed Prof. Zheng that he returned to China and organized an international workshop that parallels the one he attended here at UGA.  He invited Dr. David Landau, Director of the Center for Simulational Physics and a Distinguished Research Professor of Physics here at UGA, to travel to China to lend his support to this first workshop in early November by serving as Chairman of the International Organizing Committee.

The 17 years the CSP workshop has been hosted here at UGA has served as an effective outreach vehicle for international collaborations and relationships between established and upcoming scientists from all over the world.  Having an international workshop patterned after UGA’s CSP workshop is a new way to expand the international influence of the Center and UGA and to extend the participation of international researchers in stimulating research and cooperation in simulational physics. 

LANDAU AWARDED FELLOW STATUS
Distinguished Research Professor David Landau has been chosen as a Fellow of the Institute of Science (London).

LANDAU NAMED TO SENIOR PROFESSORSHIP IN CHINA
Distinguished Research Professor David Landau has been named Senior Guangbiao Distinguished Professor of Physics at Zhejiang University in Hangzhou, China. 

GELLER AND CLELAND RECEIVE ATTENTION FOR QUANTUM COMPUTING WORK
Professors Michael Geller (UGA) and Andrew Cleland (UC Santa Barbara) published their work on using nanomechanical resonators in quantum computers in Physical Review Letters.  This work was selected to be featured in the prestigious journal Nature.  A summary of the research may be read there or in a recent UGA news release. 

GELLER AND COWORKERS WIN NSF NANOSCALE INTERDISIPLINARY RESEARCH GRANT
Professor Michael Geller is the Principal Investigator of a 4-year, $1.46 million NSF Nanoscale Interdisciplinary Research Team grant on theoretical nanomechanics.  The co-PIs are from Brown University, The California Institute of Technology, Dartmouth College, and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. The subjects to be investigated include solid state, biological, and integrated nano/bio systems.  UGA is the lead institution.  In 2006 there will be a 3 week summer school on nanomechanics at UGA, as well as an evening public lecture series.

2004 GRADUATE STUDENT AWARDS PRESENTED
The department of Physics and Astronomy held its annual honors day for the graduate students in the department on Thursday April 22, 2004. The reception began at 4 PM in the Lobby of the Physics building, and it was attended by the graduate students, faculty and staff.  During the reception Dr. H.-B. Schuttler, head of the Department, presented the Department's awards to the following outstanding students:

• Kelly Patton was awarded the 9^th Cummings Memorial Award for Outstanding Graduate Student and Teaching Assistant.  The award is a $1,000 honorarium donated by the family of Bill Cummings and a framed certificate. Kelly's Major Professor is Dr. Mike Geller.
• Jianguo Fan was recipient of the 3^rd Anderson-Pioletti Memorial Award for Outstanding Early Graduate Student.  The award is a $200 honorarium endowed by the Anderson and Pioletti families and a framed certificate. Jianguo's Major Professor is Dr. Yiping Zhao.
• Scott Thompson and Long Pham were awarded Outstanding Teaching Assistant Awards.  These awards consist of honoraria of $100 each, donated by Dr. Robert Wood, professor emeritus, and framed certificates, signed by Vice President for Academic Affairs.

FACULTY TRIUMPHANT AGAIN 
The annual departmental picnic was held on Saturday, April 17 at Sandy Creek Park.  As has become customary, the faculty soundly trounced the graduate students in the annual softball battle.  Although nobody knew the exact score for certain, one graduate student allowed that the score had been "at least 15-5". 

HAPPEK WINS CREATIVE RESEARCH MEDAL 
Professor Uwe Happek has been named recipient of one of this year's Creative Research Medals.  Creative Research Medals are given to faculty for outstanding research or creative activities on a single theme while at UGA.  Happek conducts research on condensed matter, an area of physics that investigates materials and their properties. Happek studies the light-emitting properties of phosphors, which are materials widely used in fluorescent lighting, TV screens and medical imaging equipment. Phosphors, made of a “host” material interspersed with rare earth or transition metal ions, emit visible light following exposure to UV light. Happek has developed two new methods to measure energy levels of rare earth ions and host materials. Such information may contribute to developing better phosphors. Happek collaborates with researchers in the United States, Europe and Asia and has working ties with industry.

SHAW WINS MEIGS AWARD 
Professor J. Scott Shaw has been named recipient of the Josiah Meigs Award for outstanding accomplishments in teaching.  In his 33 year career here, he has been a much-revered teacher and scholar and is regarded as the main force behind developing a full academic program in astronomy at UGA.  He has been repeatedly praised for his unique gift to engage, excite and inspire all his students.

2004 GEORGIA SCIENCE & ENGINEERING FAIR AWARDS ANNOUNCED
The 56^th Georgia Science & Engineering Fair was held at the UGA Colliseum April 15-17, 2004.  Our Department gives awards to outstanding projects by one Junior Division (grades 6-8) and one Senior Division (grades 9-12) entrant.  This year the awards were won by:

• Jr. Div.: Greywynn Smith, Charles Ellis Montessori Academy, Savannah, GA, "How Salty is the Ocean?"
• Sr. Div.: Chris Schultz, Union Grove High School, McDonough, GA, "How do Flaps Affect Lift?"

HEIL SELECTED FOR "LAST LECTURE" PROGRAM 
Professor Timothy Heil was selected recently to participate in the Russell Hall Last Lecture Series.  Russell Hall houses approximately 950 first-year students.   The Last Lecture program solicits nominations from the resident students for their favorite instructor/professor here at The University of Georgia.  The instructor/professor receiving the most nominations is then asked to come to Russell Hall to present a lecture to the students as if it were the last of his/her career.  Professor Heil teaches our PHYS 1010, physics for AB students, as well as our other introductory physics courses, and this honor illustrates his popularity among his students.

STROBEL WINS NATIONAL INERTIAL FUSION AWARD 
Professor George Strobel was selected and won  a NIF Directorate performance achievement award by the NATIONAL INERTIAL FUSION PROGRAMS Directorate "for his Beryllium Ignition Target designs with a graded Copper Dopant", September 30, 2003.

SHELTON AND MAGNANI AWARDED OBSERVING TIME ON "FUSE" SATELLITE
Professors Robin Shelton and Loris Magnani have been awarded a major block of observing time (240,000 seconds, about 70 hours) on the Far Ultraviolet Spectroscopic Explorer (FUSE), a satellite-borne ultraviolet telescope.  Their research will determine  the height of diffuse hot (~300,000 ⁰K) gas in our Galaxy.

QIN ZHANG WINS JAMES L. CARMON SCHOLARSHIP
Qin Zhang, a Ph. D. student working with Professor Steven Lewis, has been named the recipient of this year's James L. Carmon Scholarship.  The scholarship, consisting of a $4000 stipend, is awarded annually to "...a graduate student whose thesis/dissertation research reflects state-of-the-art utilization of computer and/or networking technology in the sciences or creative arts."  His research is wedding state-of-the-art computations in nanophysics, cutting-edge computer science user interface design and visualization techniques, and innovative applications of the whole scheme to undergraduate education.  A more detailed description of the research may be seen here.

JOB OPENINGS

 Postdoctoral Position in Thin Film Deposition

A postdoctoral position is available at the Department of Physics, University of Georgia, on the fabrication of nanorod arrays using oblique angle deposition method. The anticipated starting date is in June 2007. Hands-on experience in vacuum technology and e-beam evaporation deposition is strongly required. Other related experience in thin film deposition, characterization, Raman spectroscopy, and clean-room micro-/nano-fabrication processes is preferred. A qualified applicant should submit curriculum vitae, a list of publications, and names of three references, by June 1, 2007, to Prof. Yiping Zhao, Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, or by e-mail at zhaoy@physast.uga.edu. UGA is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Institution.

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