Journal of Undergraduate Research

Taylor D. Grow and Dr. Robert C. Davis, Physics and Astronomy Cadmium Selenide Nanocrystals are semiconducting particles that exhibit very interesting and as yet not understood quantum properties. These particles also fluoresce with very high efficiency. In order to study how the quantum state of these particles affects their flourescent properties Dr. Davis has designed […]

Matthew B. Garvin with Dr. Eric Hintz, Physics and Astronomy Overview During the course of this summer, I observed a possible ã Doradus/ä Scuti variable star, V927 Herculis. Observations of this star were made using the David Derrick 16 inch telescope located on the Brigham Young University (BYU) campus in the Orson Pratt Observatory. Due […]

York E. Young, Department of Physics and Astronomy Aware of the large number of insights which may result from a better understanding of non-neutral plasmas, the Brigham Young University plasma group currently explores the electrostatic normal modes of oscillation in confined plasmas. Researchers at BYU currently perform computational studies of waves In non-neutral plasmas confined […]

Rebecca J. Carlson, Physics and Astronomy Introduction Small objects from outer space collide with the earth’s atmosphere every day. Most of these are small enough to burn up completely before hitting the ground. A few, however, reach the earth’s surface as meteorites. On occasion, an asteroid large enough to cause serious darnage impacts the earth. […]

Noe Yamaguchi, Physics and Astronomy General Background Research A bow shock is a paraboloid-shaped shockwave that forms around a planet similar to one that forms around an airplane traveling faster than the speed of sound. We may observe this shock by the change in plasma parameters before and after entering the bow shock. Those plasma […]

Spencer E. Olson and Dr. R. Steven Turley, Physics Ellipsometry, a common technique used with visible light, measures the change of the state of polarization as it reflect off a material. By so doing, the way that light interacts with materials can be understood more clearly. Also, optical properties, known as the index of refraction […]

David Oliphant and Dr. R. Steven Turley, Physics and Astronomy Scattering problems are common in physics. A scattered (reflected) wave or particle from an object can give us hints to the nature of the object’s shape, size, color, or composition. This is the basic principle behind sonar, radar, ultrasound, NMR, and even vision. One technique […]

Mitchell W. Larsen, Physics and Astronomy With the expansion of x-ray technology and recent development of laser x-rays, development of a practical, high precision x-ray mirror has become more urgent. One example of a practical and current need for such a mirror is the x-ray microscope at Duke University. The above planned microscope would function […]

Teresa Griffin, Physics and Astronomy My research over the past six months has produced a method of understanding the differences between semiclassical approximation methods and the exact quantum results. By analyzing a particle in an infinite perturbed well, I have found that the discontinuities in the potential cause the semiclassical result to be inaccurate. This […]

Dallin S. Durfee, Physics and Astronomy Description of the Laser In order to get a dye to lase, you have to pump it with energy. You need to get more of the lasing molecules into the higher energy excited state than the lower energy ground state. The way that I pump the dye is with […]