Research Opportunitiesﾠ

The Physics Department believes that developing finely tuned laboratory skills is a critical component of every physicist's training. The department is committed to offering courses that teach basic and advanced laboratory techniques and to offering opportunities for students to work on independent research projects. Students are encouraged to work on in-depth research projects, and that work can take a variety of forms. Students may apply for a Stetson Undergraduate Research Experience (SURE) grant that pays a stipend for students to do research during the summer. There are also several federally funded programs that students can apply for that pay a stipend and travel expenses for them to do summer research internships at a variety of universities and national laboratories around the country. And, while students are encouraged to pursue topics of their own individual interests, they are also invited to work on the professional projects of our faculty as well. These projects do not offer any stipend, however the Department will support the equipment needs of the project as much as possible with departmental funds. Students should seek out a faculty mentor if they are interested in pursuing such an opportunity. Finally, the capstone of the physics major is a comprehensive laboratory project. Every physics major is required to do a senior research project, and if a student wishes to expand this project additional work can be done as an independent study.

The SURE Grant Program

Stetson offers grants to students through a program called the Stetson Undergraduate Research Experience (SURE) program. Each spring, students are invited to submit applications in which they describe their projects. The applications are reviewed by an interdisciplinary faculty committee and awards are granted on a competitive basis. The awards provide a stipend for working on the project at Stetson for the summer. The work that is supported by a SURE grant may not by itself be used for a student's senior project, but additional work may be done on the same project during the fall semester for the senior project. Complete information on the SURE Grant Program can be found at the SURE web site: http://www.stetson.edu/other/research/sure.php.ﾠ

Physics majors who have been awarded SURE grants in recent years include:

  • Sarah Caudill: ﾠ Evaluating How Elastically Scattered Electrons Affect the Holographic Analysis of Kikuchi Electron Patterns, working with Dr. Glander, 2005. (Sarah declined the SURE award to go to an internship at California Institute of Technology's Laser Interferometer Gravity-wave Observatory/ LIGO.)
  • Jonathan Gosnell: ﾠ Using Magnetic Force Microscopy to Analyze the Magnetic Structure of Fe/Ga As Thin Films, working with Dr. Riggs, 2003.
  • Robert Adam Pridemore: ﾠ The construction of a laser Doppler velocimeter, for the purpose of examining the onset of turbulence in fluids, working with Dr. Riggs, 2002.
  • Todd DuBosq: ﾠ Analyzing Vibrating Objects Using T.V. Holography, working wiith Dr. Riggs, 2000.
  • Hope Wymer: ﾠ Using Fast Fourier Transforms in the Analysis of Electron Diffraction Data, working with Dr. Glander, 2000.
  • Edwynn Wallace: ﾠ Holographic Analysis of Kikuchi Electron Patterns for the Si (111)‑(root7xroot7)-R19.1°‑Al Surface Structure, working with Dr. Glander, 2000. (Ed declined the SURE award to go to an internship at Auburn University, and instead he did this project for his senior research.)
  • James Stock: ﾠ Computational Processing of Kikuchi Electron Diffraction Data, working with Dr. Glander, 1998.
  • Amanda York: ﾠ Development of a TV Holography System for Modal Analysis of Musical Instruments, working with Dr. Riggs, 1998.
  • Ryan Munden: ﾠ Auger Electron Spectroscopy, working with Dr. Glander, 1997.

Summer Internships

The federal government has several programs that provide funding for summer research internships at a variety of universities and national laboratories around the country. The internships usually pay a modest stipend and provide housing, and often pay travel expenses as well. The Physics Department posts the announcements for these in the upstairs hallway and maintains a web page with links to pages for the different programs -- to see a list of the current list of opportunities, click here. Most applications are due early in the spring semester.

This is an excellent opportunity for students. These programs show students what doing research is like in graduate schools and professional laboratories, they are an excellent item to list on a resume or on applications for graduate schools, and the work done on the internship can sometimes be used for the student's senior research project.

Our students have been very successful at being accepted into these programs. Recent participants include:

  • Brett Abraham: NSF STEM Grant, Physics Department, Stetson University - Summer 2011
  • Stephanie Lengemann: Primal Innovation - Summer 2010
  • Angela Steinmann: Physics Department, University of Michigan - Summer 2010
  • Andrea Belanger: Applied Physics Group, NASA, Kennedy Space Center - Summer 2009 
  • Brian Bell: Physics Department, University of Nebraska - Summer, 2008
  • Christian Pecora: Physics Department, University of Central Florida - Summer, 2008
  • Timothy Holifield: Physics Department, Drexel University - Summer, 2008
  • Michelle Adan: Los Alamos National Laboratories - Summer, 2007
  • Timothy Holifield: Florida International University in Miami - Summer, 2007
  • Charles Rareshide: Iowa State University - Summer, 2007
  • Brandon Marsell: High Altitude Observatory - Summer, 2006
  • Sarah Caudill: Laser Interferometer Gravity-wave Observatory/LIGO, California Institute of Technology - Summer, 2005
  • Daniel Carlson: Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution - Summer, 2004
  • Renee Dickinson: Clemson University - Summer, 2004
  • Daniel Carlson: Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute - Summer, 2003
  • Daniel Carlson: University of Florida - Summer, 2002
  • Daniel Carlson: Florida International University - Summer, 2001
  • Ashley Cowart: University of Central Florida School of Optics/CREOL - Summer, 2001
  • Ryan Munden: Oak Ridge National Laboratory - Summer, 2001
  • Ryan Munden: Materials Science Division, Argonne National Laboratory - Summer, 2000
  • James Stock: Physics Department, University of Florida - Summer 2000|
  • April Teske: Living State Physics Department, Vanderbilt University - Summer 2000
  • Edwynn Wallace: Department of Physics, Auburn University - Summer, 2000

Senior Research

The senior research project is an experiment that the student designs and performs, usually in close collaboration with a faculty mentor. The student is guided through the steps of choosing and then planning a project in Senior Project Proposal (PHYS-497) and conducting the research in Senior Project (PHYS-498). The results of the project are then presented in Senior Seminar (PHYS-499). The research is usually done during the fall semester of the student's senior year, but faculty are sometimes available to supervise a project during the summer. Students who do a summer research internship at another university or a national laboratory can often substitute that work for their senior project. Click here to see a list of research project titles and abstracts.

The department maintains a wide selection of equipment that students may use for their projects; a partial listing of this equipment can be found here. Additionally, the faculty of the department are active researchers and frequently invite students to work with them in research grade laboratories devoted to the study of magnetic films, electron diffraction, and vibrational holography. The resources available within the Physics Department are enhanced by machine shop and full-time machinist who is skilled at making components for modifying existing equipment or making new instruments. To take a virtual tour of our facilities, including all the research labs and the machine shop, click here.