Skip to main content
Nima Laal headshot
News

Martin O'Neill fellow Nima Laal changing the picture of modern physics

Physics Ph.D. candidate Nima Laal has a poster on his wall of an alien spaceship. The text on the bottom reads “I want to believe.”  To Laal, the poster isn’t referencing creatures from another planet, but instead the search for elusive gravitational waves.    

Researchers perform tests in ProtoDUNE’s electric field cage.
News

Particle physicist probes secrets of the universe with Department of Energy grant

Professor of Physics Heidi Schellman is leading an international experiment to explore the existence of the universe. The project, titled “Essential Computing and Software Development for the DUNE experiment,” has received a $3M grant from the Department of Energy.

Aerial campus shot with the sun glowing through the trees
Faculty and Staff

University Day awards recognize astrophysics discoveries and service during the pandemic

Physicist Davide Lazzati and Chemstores storekeeper Sierra Hansen win 2021 University Day awards.

Isabel Rodriguez is the 2021 Harriet “Hattie” Redmond Awardee!
Graduate students

Isabel Rodriguez is the 2021 Harriet 'Hattie' Redmond Awardee

Congratulations to Isabel Rodriguez (M.S. Physics '21) for being the 2021 recipient of the Harriet “Hattie” Redmond Award. This award celebrates a member of the OSU community who works as an agent of change in service of racial justice and gender equity.

Graphic showing pulsar light traveling to Earth amid a sea of gravitational waves.
Physics

Oregon State leading $17M effort to understand universe via low-frequency gravitational waves

Funded by the NSF as a Physics Frontiers Center, the North American Nanohertz Observatory for Gravitational Waves, or NANOGrav, research group at OSU operates under the direction of Xavier Siemens, professor of physics.

Planetary geologist and OSU alumna Briony Horgan in front of an image of the Perseverance rover.
Alumni and Friends

Oregon State alum plays integral role in Perseverance landing

2005 physics alumna and planetary geologist Briony Horgan's research was key to determining the location on Mars for the Perseverance rover to explore. Explaining the challenge her team faced, she said, "“If we had to choose just one spot on Earth to gather all the data about the entire history of the planet — well, where would you go?”

Graphic showing pulsar light traveling to Earth amid a sea of gravitational waves.
News

Gravitational wave search finds hopeful new clue

An international team, which includes Oregon State graduate and undergraduate students, has gotten closer than ever before to detecting evidence of supermassive black holes.  

Xavier Siemens standing outside Memorial Union brick walkway
Faculty and Staff

New physics professor to significantly expand astrophysics program

The College of Science welcomes renowned astrophysicist Xavier Siemens as a new professor of physics.