M.A. in Physics

In a recent study, a team of researchers, including Dr. Emil Prodan in the Katz School’s M.A. in Physics, has taken a big step forward by demonstrating a new type of topological material using sound waves, opening up exciting possibilities for future technologies.

Read the story in the Katz School blog.

Dr. Fredy Zypman, director of the Katz School’s M.A. in Physics, and several recent graduates have developed an advanced algorithm that uses scanning force microscopy to measure electric charges on nanoscale rings, a promising innovation that will benefit numerous fields.

Read the story in the Katz School blog.

Blending theory with hands-on practice, Joshua Rodriguez's new makerspace course on 3D printing has sparked excitement, challenging students to bridge scientific principles and practical design, all the while cultivating valuable career skills.

Read the story in the Katz School blog.

New York City traffic jams tend to begin with clusters of tie-ups within a network of streets before expanding rapidly and chaotically to surrounding areas, according to a paper published by two professors in the Katz School’s M.A. in Physics.

Read the entire story in the Katz blog.

Katz School researchers are developing an advanced method for examining how ice crystallizes and how antifreeze proteins inhibit the crystallization process.

Read the entire story in the Katz blog.

A Katz School of Science and Health paper that devises a theoretical framework for studying the quantum origins of flexoelectricity, a phenomenon in which electric charges scatter within a material after it has been bent, has been published in the Journal of Applied Physics.

Read the story here.

Three Katz School mathematics and physics researchers have developed a theoretical framework for predicting the possible shapes and gravitational fields of asteroids.

Read the story here.

Dr. Lea Ferreira dos Santos, professor of physics and chair of the physics department at Stern College for Women, has received two major awards that will significantly help her advance the computational study of many-body quantum systems.

In 2019, Dr. Santos received a $400,000 National Science Foundation grant to study “Nonequilibrium Quantum Matter: Timescales and Self-Averaging.” The grant is a collaboration between the NSF and the U.S.-Israel Binational Science Foundation (BSF) that reduced barriers to working internationally. Using a lead agency model, U.S. and Israeli researchers can submit a single collaborative proposal that will undergo a single review process at NSF, which will be the lead agency.

“This collaboration,” noted Dr. Santos, “will allow for the combination of complementary skills and will significantly expand the NSF-PI’s group size and computer resources.” A further benefit of the collaboration will be that “the undergraduate students of Yeshiva University will have the opportunity to experience research at a Ph.D.-granting institution in Israel.”

This award supports computational and theoretical studies of the evolution of systems that have many interacting particles and which are described by quantum mechanics. These so-called many-body quantum systems are so complex that it is often impossible to describe their evolution analytically, which forces us to resort to numerical methods. But even numerically, the problem is challenging. Because the number of states that need to be considered grows exponentially with system size, existing computers soon run out of memory. As a result, despite being ubiquitous, these systems are still little understood. Understanding the properties of many-body quantum systems out of equilibrium is a fundamental problem of great interest to a wide range of fields, from atomic, molecular, and condensed matter physics to quantum information and cosmology. These studies may also lead to practical applications.

Dr. Santos also received notice that she had been selected as a Simons Fellows in Theoretical Physics by the Simons Foundation, an organization dedicated to “advancing the frontiers of research in mathematics and the basic sciences.” The selection includes a $100,000 grant to support “sabbatical research leaves from classroom teaching and administrative obligations” and is based on “the applicant’s scientific accomplishments in the five-year period preceding the application and on the potential scientific impact of the work to be done during the leave period.”

Dr. Santos’ project will be “Nonequilibrium Quantum Dynamics of Many-Body Systems,” and as she explained it, the grant will give her the time and space to expand her current program of studying nonequilibrium quantum dynamics by allowing her to “initiate a new research line, develop computer codes, strengthen current collaborations and establish new ones, and write proposals.”

Of course, Dr. Santos is thrilled by these awards, not only for the way they help her advance her career but also for the positive notice they bring to Yeshiva University. “I’m especially pleased,” she noted, “that the NSF grant will help my undergraduate students at Stern College work with leaders in the field and across the two countries. The Simons fellowship is a very prestigious award, and I’m humbled by being included in the exceptional company of the past awardees.”

Both Dr. Selma Botman, provost and vice president for academic affairs, and Dr. Karen Bacon, the Mordecai D. Katz and Dr. Monique C. Katz Dean of the Undergraduate Faculty of Arts and Sciences, were both thrilled to hear the news. “We are so very, very proud of her achievements,” said Dr. Bacon, “as well as of this recognition of her as an exceptional scientist and scholar.”

Yeshiva University ranks 68th among Best National Universities and 33rd in Best Value Schools in the 2022 edition of U.S. News & World Report’s Best Colleges.

Read more about Yeshiva University's U.S. News & World Report rankings.