The Department Of Physics And Astronomy.
Newsletter Autumn 2013.
Thank you for attending one of our summer open days. We hope you enjoyed your visit to Sheffield. In this newsletter we’ve included some stories of what has been happening in Sheffield’s Department of Physics and Astronomy over the summer, along with a reminder, below, of information about our UCAS days. We hope to see you soon. Best wishes, Nigel Clark Head of Department
DEPARTMENTAL OPEN DAYS If you apply for a place in this department, and you’re expected to meet our entry requirements, we’ll invite you to a departmental open day and interview. You’ll spend time with staff and students, who will tell you more about their courses and the research they do. There will also be opportunities to explore the University campus and to visit our student accommodation. Physics open days are held between November and March – we will be in touch with a choice of dates as quickly as we can once we receive your application. The open day is a great opportunity for you to ask any questions you might have. If you’d like to visit us again before you apply, there will be opportunities during your October half-term week, on Wednesday 23 October or Wednesday 30 October. For more details and to book a visit, go to: WWW.SHEFFIELD.AC.UK/UNDERGRADUATE/OPENDAYS
Physics and Astronomy Newsletter
Students’ Union COUNTRY’S BEST STUDENTS’ UNION GETS EVEN BETTER The Students’ Union at the University of Sheffield has regularly been voted the best in the UK – and it just got even better. A £20m refurbishment has now been completed and the Union has been transformed, both inside and outside. There are new meeting rooms, cafes and shops, as well as facilities for staff and visitors. Improvements have been made to the events spaces, Fusion and Foundry, and steps have been taken to reduce the Union’s carbon footprint. The aim is to bring the University community closer together, in a place where people can work, socialise and collaborate. VISIT WWW.SHEFFIELD.AC.UK/UNION
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Physics and Astronomy Newsletter
Astronomy
PROFESSOR VIK DHILLON TO DESIGN NEXT GENERATION OF TELESCOPE CAMERA Professor Vik Dhillon develops the fastest astronomy cameras in the world to capture events in our galaxy and across the universe in ever increasing levels of detail. This year he has won a £3m European award to build the fastest camera ever – HiPERCAM. Vik, right, explains: “HiPERCAM is a much improved version of our existing ULTRACAM. It will provide higher frame rates (thousands of frames per second), a larger field of view, a new type of detector, and data from four wavelengths simultaneously. “We will use the camera on some of the largest telescopes in the world to study white dwarfs, neutron stars, black holes, brown dwarfs and extrasolar planets.” 4
Physics and Astronomy Newsletter
Inspirational PROFESSOR MARK FOX CHOSEN BY STUDENTS TO GIVE INSPIRING LECTURE Last year the Students’ Union ran a series of talks by some of the University’s leading lecturers. Students voted to find the best six lecturers in the University, and our own Professor Mark Fox was among the winners. He gave an award lecture at an event dubbed Inspiration & Co, which covered subjects taught across the University, from nanotechnology to Amazonian rainforests. Professor Fox is pictured talking about “quantum information”, and how quantum cryptography could be the ultimate tool to fight piracy and eavesdropping.
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Physics and Astronomy Newsletter
International DR RHODA HAWKINS INVITED TO TEACH IN SENEGAL Dr Rhoda Hawkins is a theoretical physicist in the department. She studies biological systems from a mathematical point of view. Rhoda has spent many years researching abroad and because of her network of collaborators she was invited to teach in Senegal at the African Institute for Mathematical Sciences earlier in the year. She is pictured, below, at the end of a lecture where students learned to describe human cells using mathematics. The balloons helped the students visualise the behaviour of membranes such as those surrounding cells. THE UNIVERSITY OF SHEFFIELD HAS ALWAYS BEEN PART OF A GLOBAL NETWORK OF RESEARCHERS AND TEACHERS AND THIS INTERNATIONALISM CONTINUES TO GROW EVERY YEAR
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Physics and Astronomy Newsletter
Particle physics USING COSMIC RAYS TO MONITOR CO2 CAPTURE AND STORAGE Capturing and storing CO2 is important in controlling future greenhouse gas release. University of Sheffield particle physicist Dr Lee Thompson is developing a way of checking that stored CO2 stays stored. He plans to use muons created in our atmosphere to measure underground CO2 storage. Muons can pass through solid rock and so can be detected beneath potential storage sites, such as old North Sea oil wells. The North Sea test site is pictured above. The muons are used to make a 3D map of the stored CO2, similar to an X-ray image of a human body. Lee has been working with collaborators in Durham and at NASA to make and test a prototype system. If everything goes to plan the muon detectors should be monitoring CO2 storage by 2020. SCAN THE QR CODE ON THE LEFT TO FOLLOW THE STORY ON THE BBC 7
Contact us The Department of Physics and Astronomy Hicks Building Hounsfield Road Sheffield S3 7RH United Kingdom T: 0114 222 4362 E: physics.ucas@sheffield.ac.uk W: www.sheffield.ac.uk/physics @UoSPHY