You are in the official 2002-2003 General Catalog
for California State University, Fresno.
Department of Physics
The College of Science and Mathematics
VANVILAI KATKANANT, Chair
DEIDRE FIELDS, Administrative Support Coordinator
McLane Hall, Room 173
(559) 278-2371
(559) 278- 7741 FAX
DEIDRE FIELDS, Administrative Support Coordinator
McLane Hall, Room 173
(559) 278-2371
(559) 278- 7741 FAX
http://physics.csufresno.edu/
Single Subject Teaching Credential in the Sciences
Faculty
Vanvilai Katkanant, Chair
Raymond Hall, Undergraduate Adviser
Douglas Singleton, Graduate Coordinator
Parameswar Hari, Preoptometry Adviser
Gerardo Munoz, Graduate Adviser
Amir Huda, Premedical Adviser
Steven J. White, Downing Planetarium Director
Manfred Bucher, Floyd L. Judd, Brandt Kehoe, Gerardo Munoz, Frederick Ringwald, Michael J. Zender
Physics
The fascination of physics is that it is so fundamental: the
continuing attempt to understand how things work. It combines
observational and experimental grappling with nature to get the
facts of behavior, with the creative synthesis of these facts
into theories and laws of nature, often beautiful in their simplicity
and universality.
Albert Einstein said, "They [the laws of theoretical physics]
should form the basis from which a picture of all processes of
nature can be derived by thoughtful deduction -- and these include
also the processes of life." He also said, "The deeper
we search, the more we find there is to know, and as long as human
life exists, I believe it will always be so."
More specifically, physics includes the study of the fundamental
particles that make up nuclear particles, of electromagnetic,
gravitational, atomic and nuclear forces, of energy, of light
and heat, of electronics and the structure of materials, of the
interiors of the earth and the stars.
Faculty and Facilities
Our faculty are here to teach and do research. Several faculty members have research projects involving students. Two of our faculty members do theoretical work in particle physics and field theory while others are involved with numerous different experimental research fields. A few of our faculty are interested in physics pedagogy.
Our classes are small; our upper-division and graduate classes usually have 10-15 students or less. Physics majors get to know each other very well. They develop friendships with peers, faculty, and staff, which extend well beyond graduation.
Our physics facilities have just undergone a multi-million dollar renovation. The renovation project substantially improves both our research and teaching capabilities. The department has well-equipped research laboratories with laminar flow hoods, evaporative and ion beam sputtering chambers, and high temperature ovens for thin film research. We have two medium-power lasers, which enhance our capabilities in modern optical studies, including Raman spectroscopy and nonlinear optics.
Three new research laboratories are also part of our current experimental efforts: the High Energy Physics Laboratory, the Semiconductor Characterization Laboratory, and the Astrophysics Laboratory. The High Energy Laboratory develops and constructs state-of-the-art solid-state charged particle detectors to be used in the D0 Project at Fermi National Laboratory (Fermilab). This has linked us to new frontier physics research areas, including studies of top quark properties and the search for the Higgs boson. The Semiconductor Laboratory is equipped with MMR Hall/Van der Pauw system, an Argon Ion laser (tunable) 400 megawatt output, and a three-stage high temperature furnace and a fume hood providing a sample preparation chamber. This allows us to make many important measurements of condensed matter properties such as resistivity, conductivity, mobility, charge concentration, activation energy, the charge sign of majority carriers, and photoconductivity. It leads us to material science technologies and novel semiconductors used in solar cell applications. The Astrophysics Laboratory is loaded with powerful new computing equipment, all available to students. It is used for image processing and remote observatory operations. Graduate students can participate in astrophysics research. They use both ground-based telescopes and space observatories (including the Hubble Space Telescope, Chandra X-ray Observatory, and other NASA spacecraft), on studies of cataclysmic variable stars, searches for black holes, and searches for extrasolar planets with superflare echoes.
We plan to upgrade instrumentation in our existing Radiation Laboratory to begin a new program of research in biomedical physics. In general, the field is subdivided into four subspecialties: nuclear medicine, diagnostic radiology (use of X-rays, MRI, ultrasound, etc.), radiation therapy (the use of radioactive materials produced by accelerators for the treatment of cancer and other diseases), and radiation biology. With the establishment of affiliations with local area medical centers, research opportunities in this field will open up for our students.
The Downing Planetarium, operated by the Physics Department, was completed in the spring of 2000. It has proven highly successful, with more than 30,000 visitors from schools and the public in its first year. The planetarium features a computer controlled Minolta MS-8 star projector and a main theater with 74 reclining seats under a 30-foot dome. The facility presents multi-media shows on a daily basis. Physics students have the opportunity to participate in presenting the shows and to assist in planetarium operation.
Under construction (adjacent to the planetarium) is a campus observatory equipped with a 16-inch Schmidt-Cassegrain telescope, CCD camera, and adaptive optics system. This observatory will be used for classes and for student research projects. A second observatory with a more advanced 16-inch telescope is being planned for a dark site in the Sierra Nevada mountains. This telescope will be remotely controlled from campus, and students will be able to download images from it over the Internet without having to go to the telescope site. Eventually, the observatory will be able to function as a totally autonomous robot, able to carry out a student's program of observations and close itself down at the onset of bad weather.
Career Opportunities
Approximately half of our bachelor's and master's degree graduates have gone directly into graduate school at various institutions, pursuing master's or doctoral degrees in physics or related fields. The other half have found employment in teaching, in industry, in government, and in the medical professions. We have also observed a recent increase in the demand for high school physics teachers.
Physics graduates have the versatility, knowledge, and analytical skills necessary to adapt quickly to the opportunities which arise in the dynamic world of modern science and high technology. Our graduates report interesting, exciting careers with increasing levels of responsibility and satisfaction.
Physics
Courses