About

The department consists of thirty members on the instructional faculty, together with approximately fifteen additional physicists in purely research positions. Our undergraduate program offers a major and a minor. Through our graduate program, students pursue a Ph.D. degree.

Research areas in the department include atomic, molecular, and optical physics, computational physics, condensed matter physics, nuclear and hadronic physics, high energy physics, and plasma and non-linear physics. Related research areas include accelerator physics (in cooperation with Jefferson Lab and material characterization (in cooperation with NASA-Langley Research Center). The department also has strong links with the interdisciplinary Applied Science Department and Computational Science Cluster.

Our building's official name is The William Small Physical Laboratory, named after William Small.

Among their many components of public service, our faculty members give lectures to general audiences, organize public telescope viewings, offer courses for high school teachers seeking further advanced training, and write books to explain physics to the general public.

The department also serves the wider national and international communities through scientific leadership in various organizations, service on review panels, and on advisory committees.

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General inquiries can be directed to our Administrative Coordinator, Ellie Wilkinson at evwilk@wm.edu.