Physics & Astronomy News
Smart Quantum Technologies for Secure Communication
Researchers from Louisiana State University have introduced a smart quantum technology for the spatial mode correction of single photons. In a paper featured on the cover of the March 2021 issue of Advanced Quantum Technologies, the authors exploit the self-learning and self-evolving features of artificial neural networks to correct the distorted spatial profile of single photons.
QuBits: Ten Things You Should Know About Quantum Computing
Michelle Lollie in LSU’s Quantum Science and Technologies Group to explain 10 things we should all know about quantum computing.
Mark Wilde Chosen as APS Physical Review Journal Outstanding Referee
Associate Professor Mark M. Wilde is among the 151 Outstanding Referees of the Physical Review journals for 2021, as chosen by the journal editors. Wilde also holds an appointment in the LSU Center for Computation and Technology (CCT).
LSU alumnus engineers landing of NASA Perseverance Rover on Mars
LSU alumnus Keith Comeaux engineers landing of NASA Perseverance Rover on Mars
LSU Medical Physicist Receives Prestigious Shalek Award
The Southwest Regional Chapter of the American Association of Physicists in Medicine has announced LSU Associate Professor Kenneth "Kip" Matthews as the 2020 recipient of the prestigious Robert J. Shalek Award.
SpaceX Invites LSU Students to Present Radiation Research Effects on Astronauts
SpaceX headquarters recently invited two LSU medical physics graduate students to present their research findings. Nousha Afshari and Jared Taylor traveled to Hawthorne, California to report on how radiation impacts the human body in outer space.
Designing the Best Possible Solar Cell, by MacGyvering a Bit of Quantum Supremacy
LSU physicists and material scientists are building a quantum simulator with a gold chip to discover better materials for solar cells. Ideal materials must introduce some amount of mayhem, the researchers say, to get more light to go through.
Unraveling the quantum structure of spacetime with gravitational waves
LSU physicists Ivan Agullo, and Jorge Pullin, in collaboration with European researchers, are investigating the potential of gravitational wave astronomy to enlighten us on the quantum aspects of black holes.
LSU Astronomer and NASA Missions Unmask Cosmic Eruptions in Nearby Galaxies
A brief burst of high-energy light swept through the solar system on April 15, triggering many space-based instruments, including those aboard NASA and European missions. Now, multiple international science teams conclude that the blast came from a supermagnetized stellar remnant known as a magnetar located in a neighboring galaxy.
Unbinding the Stellar Envelope in Grazing Envelope Evolution
Sagiv Shiber, postdoctoral researcher, LSU Department of Physics & Astronomy, along with Roberto Iaconi, Department of Astronomy, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan have been investigating interactions between two stars in a binary system which affect the formation of close binary systems, which are the progenitors of gravitational waves sources, and some type Ia supernova explosions.
Joyoni Dey Awarded U.S. Patent to Improve Detection of Breast Cancer
Associate Professor Joyoni Dey, together with colleagues in the J. Bennett Johnston, Sr. Center for Advanced Microstructures and Devices (CAMD), Department of Chemistry and Department of Physics & Astronomy, has received a U.S.
Kekejian has been awarded 2020 LSU Alumni Association International Student Scholarship
Department of Physics & Astronomy PhD candidate David Kekejian has been awarded a 2020 LSU Alumni Association International Student Scholarship.
Tracking COVID-19 Trends in Hard-Hit States
Currently, there are over 10 million confirmed cases and more than 240,000 casualties attributed to COVID-19 in the U.S. LSU researchers have applied computational models to investigate infection rates in relation to social distancing measures. Their paper, Effect of mitigation measures on the spreading of COVID-19 in hard-hit states in the U.S., was recently published in PLOS ONE.
Vicari's Journey to Continue Family Legacy in Medical Physics
Student Spotlight with physics undergraduate student Matthew Vicari.
LSU Graduate Student will Perform Thesis Research at Oak Ridge National Laboratory
LSU physics graduate student, Thomas Ruland, has been selected by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science for the Office of Science Graduate Student Research (SCGSR) award in response to the 2020 SCGSR Solicitation 1 cycle.
LIGO and Virgo announce new detections in updated gravitational-wave catalog
After several months of thorough analysis, the LIGO Scientific Collaboration and the Virgo Collaboration have released an updated catalog of gravitational wave detections. The catalog contains 39 new signals from black-hole or neutron-star collisions detected between April 1-Oct. 1, 2019, which more than triples the number of confirmed detections. The new set includes some of the most interesting systems seen so far, and enables qualitatively new studies of astrophysical populations and fundamental physics.
NASA Supports LSU Physicist's Work to Advance Human Space Exploration
LSU Assistant Professor Jeffery Chancellor's research looks to help answer questions about astronaut health and performance during future long-duration missions beyond low-Earth orbit.
LSU Physicist's Research Measures Unprecedented Precision of the Highest-energy Particles in the Universe
In two related papers published in the scientific journals Phys. Rev. Lett. 125, 121106 (2020) and Phys. Rev. D 102, 062005 (2020), the Pierre Auger Collaboration reports measurements with unprecedented precision of the highest-energy particles in the Universe, ultra-high energy cosmic rays. In addition to the well-known kink in the energy spectrum, typically referred to as the ankle, a new spectral break is found at somewhat higher energy. This new break in the energy spectrum can be explained by an energy-dependent mass composition of cosmic rays.