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IU Summer REU Research Projects in the Department of Physics
Here are a few examples of potential REU research projects based in the Department of Physics at Swain Hall West. Details of projects from previous years are also available.
Recent project: Development and Benchmarking of the Indiana RF Photocathode Source Simulator (Prof. Mark Hess). Poster presented at the 2005 APS-DNP meeting in Maui.
Construction and Testing of the Full CREST Detector (Prof. Jim Musser, Astrophysics)
Indiana
University is the construction site for the CREST detector, which will be flown from the South
Pole in 2008 to detect high energy cosmic electrons. This project will introduce the student
to the construction and testing of particle detectors, including the analysis of test data. Prof.
Musser has supervised 5 IU undergraduates in research projects and two REU students in
the past three years.
Global structure of the universe (Prof. Mike Berger, Elementary Particle Theory)
Some
interesting models of cosmology relate the infrared cutoff of the dark energy component of
the Universe to the Hubble scale. These models can be used to address the issue of why
the Universe is making a transition from a decelerating phase to an accelerating one at the
present epoch. Incorporating physical mechanisms into Friedmann-Lemaitre-Robertson-
Walker universes to convert dark energy into other cosmological components will be used to
address this cosmic coincidence problem. Professor Berger has previously supervised
5 REU students working on theoretical projects.
Also see: Nuclear Physics Theory
Exotic Forms of Very Dense Matter and Neutron Stars (Prof. Horowitz, IUCF&NTC)
Emergent properties in networks of living neurons (Prof. John Beggs, Physics and Biocomplexity)
The average cortical neuron makes and receives about 1,000 synaptic
contacts. This anatomical information suggests that local cortical
networks are connected in a fairly democratic manner, with all nodes
having about the same degree. But the physical connections found in the
brain do not necessarily reveal how information flows through the
network. In this project, a student will help to map information flow in
living networks of cortical neurons in vitro. We use both acute cortical
slices and cortical slice cultures which can be kept alive for periods
of about 10 hrs. To collect data, we record with either 60-channel or
512-channel microelectrode arrays (in collaboration with Alan Litke of
UC Santa Cruz).
Coding and Processing of Visual Information (Prof. Rob de Ruyter, Physics and Biocomplexity)
The student will help to develop the methodological and theoretical tools
for data analysis of experiments with the blowfly in which we record signals from
photoreceptors that convert light into electrical signals and also from neurons deep in the
visual brain that are sensitive to moving patterns. It turns out that this computation is highly
adaptive, that is, its properties change dramatically in different visual environments. We try
to understand quantitatively this neural plasticity and so to uncover fundamental principles
underlying the nature of biological computation. Prof. De Ruyter joined the IU faculty in
2003 and has supervised one REU student and one IU undergraduate in a long term
project.
Modeling of Limb Development (Prof. James Glazier, Physics and Biocomplexity)
The student will assist in developing simulations of whole limb development in 3-D. The simulation will incorporate several growth factors known to play key roles in directing mitosis, apoptosis, cell migration and differentiation in the developing chick limb. Currently, the simulation includes cell-cell adhesion and cell-matrix adhesion. We need to include cell division and study its effect on shape change during growth. The student will learn how to develop a theoretical model from a real biology problem and simulate it using computational techniques.
New methods for quantifying enzyme catalyzed reactions (Prof Santiago
Schnell, Informatics and Biocomplexity)
Biochemical reactions take place continuously in all living organisms
and most of them involve proteins called enzymes, which act as
remarkably efficient catalysts. Therefore, almost everything that
happens in life can be considered to be enzymatic catalysis. In the
last few years, we have identified 30,000-plus components of the human
proteome. Now the challenge is obtaining quantitative data on the
regulation and energetics of interaction and catalysis of these
proteins. We are interested in formally deriving simplified models from
full reaction mechanisms which capture the kinetics under particular
restricted conditions, or that operating only on certain timescales,
usually fast-slow (steady-state and rapid equilibrium) approximations.
These mathematical techniques are an important step in the development
of representations of enzymatic reactions for the determination of
kinetics parameters.
Wave Propagation in Novel Structures (Prof. John Carini, Condensed Matter Physics)
The student will study
the behavior of microwaves confined within waveguide and photonic crystal structures. This
project involves designing and building the structure and using a microwave network
analyzer to look for novel behavior of the confined microwaves. It will be carried out in
collaboration with theoretical physicists Profs. Londergan (NTC) and Schaich (Physics).
Prof. Carini has previously been involved in the supervision of 5 REU students in
collaboration with Profs. Londergan and Schaich.
Foam Flow (Prof. James Glazier, Condensed Matter Physics)
The student will assist in experiments and simulations of two-dimensional foam flows. Foams are a fascinating material in their own right with many similarities to
granular materials and are crucial in many industrial applications because of their unique flow properties. We currently have running simulations and experiments
which the student will adopt and extend. Prof. Glazier participated in the REU Program in Physics at Notre Dame. Last summer, he had a supplementary REU grant to support two undergraduates working in his new lab here at IU.
Studies of Electron Motion in Two Dimensions (Prof. Londergan, Physics and NTC)
Electrons traveling on 2-D "quantum wires" exhibit dramatic wave-like interference effects,
including bound states in bent wires and resonance phenomena for conduction though
narrow channels. The summer student will perform calculations for the analysis of
resonances and current flows in new wire geometries. About a dozen REU students have
been involved in theoretical projects with Prof. Londergan (and his collaborator, Prof.
Murdock, Tennessee Tech University) in previous summer REU programs at IUCF. This
research project also has an experimental component with Prof. Carini's lab.
Quantum Information and Computation (Prof. Ortiz, Physics)
Quantum simulation, as
conjectured by Feynmann, is the process of faithfully imitating a physical phenomenon using
a quantum computer. The student will simulate few qubit systems using the logic gates
appropriate for an ion trap quantum computer (or simulator). Prof. Ortiz joins us from Los Alamos National Lab, where he participated in research with visiting students for over a decade.
Optical near-field dynamics (Prof. Dragnea, Dept. of Chemistry, and
Prof. Schaich, Dept. of Physics)
The student will help with experiments and simulations of the optical
gradient forces arising in the near-field of metallodielectric
nanostructures. Such structures include arrays of subwavelength holes in
metal films, 3D biomaterials, and double-cusp optical antennas.
Technical skills that will be learned during this project include
nanolithography, scanning probe microscopy, and finite difference
simulations.
Holographic Dark Energy and the Coincidence Problem (Prof. Berger, Physics)
Some
interesting models of cosmology relate the infrared cutoff of the dark energy component of
the Universe to the Hubble scale. These models can be used to address the issue of why
the Universe is making a transition from a decelerating phase to an accelerating one at the
present epoch. Incorporating physical mechanisms into Friedmann-Lemaitre-Robertson-
Walker universes to convert dark energy into other cosmological components will be used to
address this cosmic coincidence problem. Professor Berger has previously supervised
5 REU students working on theoretical projects.
Also see: Nuclear Physics Theory
Exotic Forms of Very Dense Matter and Neutron Stars (Prof. Horowitz, IUCF&NTC)
Studies of Quark Pair Creation in the Gluon Field (Prof. Szczepaniak, IUCF&NTC)
Neutrino Physics at Fermilab: The MINOS and NOvA experiments (Prof. Mark Messier, High energy astrophysics)
Recent project: Exploring the Neutrino Energy Shift between Near Detector Data and Monte Carlo
Search for New Particles at the Fermilab D0 Facility (Prof. Rick Van Kooten, High Energy Physics)
The
student will work on a research project related to the study of particles containing b quarks
as part of the search for new particles at the Fermilab D0 experiment. Past projects with 12
undergraduates include designing and implementing data acquisition systems for detector
testing and fabrication, coding of artificial neural networks and applying them to identify
complicated particle signatures in our data, Monte Carlo simulation of particle collision
events, and subsequent analysis of these events to test data analysis and detector design.
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