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Research & Senior Projects
( This page was last updated on September 14, 2009.)
There are a variety of mechanisms for physics majors to get involved in research.
1. Students may work in a research lab, generally as a paid assistant. Our department's Undergraduate Newsletter contains some advice for landing one of these positions.
2. PHYS 390, Undergraduate Research in Physics, provides a mechanism for students to obtain course credit for participating in physics research. This course is described in more detail on its dedicated web page PHYS390.htm.
3. Senior Projects in physics
Senior physics majors are required to complete a year-long research project. Each student chooses a research advisor and works closely with that person over the course of two semesters. The advisor is usually, but not necessarily, a member of the physics department. ( B.S. Engineering Physics students are encouraged to choose an advisor in their area of engineering specialization. All physics majors may request an advisor from a department other than physics or an institution other than CWRU. ) While the research advisor is primarily responsible for guiding the student's research, the course instructors for PHYS 351 and PHYS 353 and a departmental Senior Project Committee oversee the entire program. Students must submit to this committee periodic written and oral progress reports. At the end of the academic year, students write a formal Senior Thesis and present their work in public in a Senior Project Symposium.
Senior Projects are formally handled via registration for either PHYS 351, Senior Physics Project, or for Engineering Physics majors, PHYS 353, Senior Engineering Physics Project. Senior Project students must also register for PHYS 352, Senior Physics Project Seminar. PHYS 352 is an approved SAGES Departmental Seminar, providing 2 of the required 3 credits (PHYS 303 provides the remaining credit). There are regular weekly meetings for PHYS 352. PHYS 351/353 satisfy the SAGES Capstone requirement..
( Abstracts for senior projects from 2000 - 2009 are accessible below. Final poster presentations are also available, starting with the class of 2006. )
Senior Projects 2010 - original abstracts submitted by the class of 2010
Instructions - a detailed description of Senior Project policies and regulations
Contract - pdf or Contract-doc : A contract is required for each senior project. It should be completed within two weeks of the start of the semester and be signed by student and advisor(s). More detailed instructions can be found on the contract form.
Progress Reports - pdf or SeniorProjectProgressReportCover.doc : The schedule for formal progress reports to the Senior Project Committee will be provided in the PHYS 352 syllabus. This link takes you to the cover page that must accompany each report; the cover page also includes instructions for its submission.
Final Report Cover Page - pdf or SeniorProjectFinalReportCover.doc : This is the cover page for the final report, including instructions for its submission..
Final Report Instructions - instructions for writing your final report.
Past Projects: The abstracts available via the following links were prepared at the beginning of each project. Research projects naturally evolve over their lifetime, so these abstracts may not accurately represent the finished work. These abstracts should, however, help illustrate the range of research interests of our seniors. Hard copies of the final reports for each project are available for browsing; they may be found outside Rockefeller 201
Senior Projects 2009 - original abstracts submitted by the class of 2009
Senior Projects 2008 - original abstracts submitted by the class of 2008
Senior Projects 2007 - original abstracts submitted by the class of 2007
Senior Projects 2006 - original abstracts submitted by the class of 2006. Starting with this class, you may also access via the web the poster presentations made by students near the end of their projects. The links to these posters are attached to the project titles; the posters may be either pdf or Power Point files which you can open in your browser or transfer to your computer.
Senior Projects 2005 - original abstracts submitted by the class of 2005
Senior Projects 2004 - original abstracts submitted by the class of 2004
Senior Projects 2003 - original abstracts submitted by the class of 2003
Senior Projects 2002 - original abstracts submitted by the class of 2002.
Senior Projects 2001 - original abstracts submitted by the class of 2001.
Senior Projects 2000 - original abstracts submitted by the class of 2000.