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Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
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In 1884, a new physics laboratory opened
at Harvard, the first of its kind in the Nation. It was
based on the revolutionary idea that "the department
of physics in a University must embrace both teaching
and investigation" (John Trowbridge, 1877).
From those pioneering days and throughout the Department's long and illustrious history, its faculty and students have been engaged in groundbreaking research and standard-setting instruction, contributing importantly to Harvard's reputation as one of the premier institutions of higher learning in the world. Among Harvard's 43 Nobel laureates, 10 are or were physics faculty members. Today, the latest generation of Harvard physicists continues to bring new insights into the exploration of fundamental problems involving physics at all length scales, and to provide outstanding and innovative educational opportunities to the many talented men and women who enroll in Harvard's flexible undergraduate and graduate programs.
From those pioneering days and throughout the Department's long and illustrious history, its faculty and students have been engaged in groundbreaking research and standard-setting instruction, contributing importantly to Harvard's reputation as one of the premier institutions of higher learning in the world. Among Harvard's 43 Nobel laureates, 10 are or were physics faculty members. Today, the latest generation of Harvard physicists continues to bring new insights into the exploration of fundamental problems involving physics at all length scales, and to provide outstanding and innovative educational opportunities to the many talented men and women who enroll in Harvard's flexible undergraduate and graduate programs.
Department News and Updates
| Prof. Eric Mazur was elected to the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (Koninklijke Nederlandse Akademie van Wetenschappen). |
| Prof. Lisa Randall was elected a member of the National Academy of Sciences on April 29, 2008... |
in recognition
of her "distinguished and continuing achievements in
original research". |
| Alexander Wissner-Gross (Ph.D '07) has been named an Environmental Fellow at the Harvard University Center for the Environment. |
The Center created
the Environmental Fellows program to enable recent doctorate
recipients to use and expand Harvard's extraordinary
resources to tackle complex environmental problems. The
Environmental Fellows will work for two years with Harvard
faculty members in any school or department to create
new knowledge while also strengthening connections across
the University's academic disciplines. |
| First Annual Greater Boston Area Quantum Matter Meeting will take place on Saturday, May 10, 2008! |
The goal of this
meeting is to provide an informal and supportive forum
for discussing research on quantum systems: strongly
correlated systems, atomic and optical systems, and mesoscopics.
All students, postdocs, and faculty are encouraged to
give a talk. For more information and registration, please
go to the Meeting's
web page. |
| Prof. Gerald Holton has been chosen by the Republic of Austria to be awarded the Order of Merit (Österreichisches Ehrenzeichen für Wissenschaft und Kunst, I. Klasse). |
The honor will
be conferred by the Austrian Minister of Science and
Research at his office at the Ministry on June 23, 2008. |
| The Department of Physics earned honorable mention in the FAS Environmental Competition 2008... |
by achieving
a remarkable 22.39 percent reduction in energy use in
Jefferson and Lyman Laboratories. Read the Gazette article of
Apr. 17, 2008. |
For
more news items, go to News
page
For
recent faculty publications, go to Publications
page
To search for people in the Department, go to People page.
Today's Event
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