¾«¶«AV

PHYS 0110. INTRODUCTION TO PHYSICS & CHEMISTRY. 1st and 2nd Semesters. Lect. 3 credits. Concept of length, time, mass, graphs, vectors, one dimensional motion, Newton's Laws, energy, momentum, conversation of energy and momentum.
 
PHYS 0111 INTRODUCTION TO PHYSICS & CHEMISTRY. 1st and 2nd Semester. Lab and Recitation 3, 1 credit each semester. Laboratory experiences in physics and chemistry experiences in physics and chemistry illuminating the concepts and theories encountered in Physics 111. Open ended approach. Normally taken concurrently with PHYS 0111. Co-requisite: PHYS 0111.
 
PHYS 0113. INTRODUCTION TO EXPERIMENTS IN PHYSICS AND CHEMISTRY. 1st and 2nd Semesters. Lab and Recitation 3, 1 credit each semester. Laboratory experiences in physics and chemistry illu­minating the concepts and theories encountered in Physics 111. Pre-or Co-requisite: PHYS 0110.
 
PHYS 0114. INTRODUCTION TO EXPERIMENTS IN PHYSICS AND CHEMISTRY. 1st and 2nd Semesters. Lab and Recitation 3, 1 credit each semester. Laboratory experiences in physics and chemistry illu­minating the concepts and theories encountered in Physics 111. Pre-or Co-requisite: PHYS 0111.
 
PHYS 0201. PHYSICAL SCIENCE. 1st and 2nd Semesters, Summer. Lect. 3, 3 credits. An elementary course in astronomy, physics and physical environment designed for the non-science majors.
 
PHYS 0210. PHYSICAL SCIENCE. 1st and 2nd Semesters. Lect. 3, 3 credits. An elementary course in the two physical sciences: physics, chemistry. The aim of this course is to give an insight into the relevance of an activity-oriented approach to the investigation of our world and to emphasize the scientific method in study of natural phenomena. Requisites: Take MATH-0107 - Recommended to be taken either prior to or at the same time as this course, but is not required.

 
PHYS 0211. PHYSICAL SCIENCE. 1st and 2nd Semesters. Lect. 3, 3 credits. An elementary course in the two physical sciences: geology, astronomy and atmospheric science. The aim of this course is to give an insight into the relevance of an activity-oriented approach to the inves­tigation of our world and to emphasize the scientific method in study of natural phenomena. Requisites: Take PHYS-0210 - Must be completed prior to taking this course.

 
PHYS 0301. ELEMENTARY GENERAL PHYSICS. 1st and 2nd Semesters, Summer. Lect. 3, 3 credits each semester. Basic concepts and theories of measurements, mechanics, properties of matter, heat, thermodynam­ics with applications in biological sciences. Requisites (2): 1. Take MATH-0107 with a minimum grade of C. - Must be completed prior to taking this course. 2. Take PHYS-0303 - Must be taken either prior to or at the same time as this course.

PHYS 0302. ELEMENTARY GENERAL PHYSICS. 1st and 2nd Semesters, Summer. Lect. 3, 3 credits each semester. Basic concepts and theories of sound, light, electricity and magnetism, optics, elements of electron­ics, atomic physics, applications of the concepts, theories, of physics as encountered in PHYS 0302. Requisites (2): 1. Take PHYS-0301 - Must be completed prior to taking this course. 2. Take PHYS-0304 - Must be taken either prior to or at the same time as this course.

 
PHYS 0303. INTRODUCTION TO LABORATORY WORK IN PHYSICS. 1st and 2nd Semesters, Summer. Laboratory work 2, 1 credit. Laboratory work illuminating the concepts, theories, applications of physics as encountered in PHYS 0301. Pre- or Co-requisites: PHYS 0301.
 
PHYS 0304. INTRODUCTION TO LABORATORY WORK 1N PHYSICS. 1st and 2nd Semester, Summer. Laboratory work 2, 1 credit. Laboratory work illuminating the concepts, theories, applications of physics s encountered in PHYS 0302. Pre- or Co-requisite: PHYS 0302.
 
PHYS 0305. APPLIED GENERAL PHYSICS. 1st Semesters. Lect. 3, 3 credits each semester. Basic concepts and measurements with emphasis on the applications in areas of mechanics, properties of matter, and heat. The courses are designed primarily for students enrolled in architecture and construction. To be taken in sequence with Phys. 0306. Requisites: Take MATH-0107 with a minimum grade of C. - Must be completed prior to taking this course.
 
PHYS 0306. APPLIED GENERAL PHYSICS. 2nd Semesters. Lect. 3, 3 credits each semester. Basic con­cepts and measurements with emphasis on the applications in areas of sound, light, electricity, magnetism, electronics and nuclear physics. The course is designed primarily for students enrolled in architecture and construction. Requisites: Take Phys. 0305 with a minimum grade of C. Prerequisites: MATH 0107, or equivalent.
 
PHYS 0307. APPLIED GENERAL PHYSICS LABORATORY. 1st and 2nd Semesters. Lab 2, 1 credit each semester. Laboratory work illustrating the concepts, theories and applications of physics covered in PHYS 0305. Pre- or Co-requisite: PHYS 0305.
 
PHYS 0308. APPLIED GENERAL PHYSICS LABORATORY. 1st and 2nd Semesters. Lab 2, 1 credit each semester. Laboratory work illustrating the concepts, theories and applications of physics covered in PHYS 0306. Pre- or Co-requisite: PHYS 0306.
 
PHYS 0310. GENERAL PHYSICS. 1st and 2nd Semesters, Summer. Lect. 3, 3 credits each semester. A more comprehensive treatment than Physics 301 designed to meet the needs of physics majors as well as advanced students in chemistry, engineering and other areas. Kinematics, dynamics, and rotational motion are discussed in detail. Requisites: Take MATH-0207 - Must be completed prior to taking this course with a minimumk grade of C.

PHYS 0311. GENERAL PHYSICS. 1st and 2nd Semesters, Summer. Lect. 3, 3 credits each semester. A more comprehensive treatment than Physics 302, designed to meet the needs of physics majors as well as advanced students in chemistry, engineering and other areas. Heat, thermodynamics, geometrical optics electricity, and magnetism are rigorously presented. Requisites: Take PHYS-0310 - Must be completed prior to taking this course with a minimum grade of C.
 
PHYS 0313. GENERAL PHYSICS LABORATORY. 1st and 2nd Semesters, Summer. Lab 2, 1 credit each semester. Laboratory work will consist of experiments on topics covered in PHYS 0310 with an analytical approach (both theoretical and experimental) emphasized. Normally taken concurrently with PHYS 0310. Pre- or Co-requisites: PHYS 0310.

PHYS 0314. GENERAL PHYSICS LABORATORY Lab 2, 1 credit each semester. Laboratory work will con­sist of experiments on topics covered in PHYS 0311 with an analytical approach (both theoretical and exper­imental) PHYS 0314. GENERAL PHYSICS LABORATORY. 1st and 2nd Semesters, emphasize Normally taken concurrently with PHYS 0311. Pre- or Co-requisites: PHYS 0311.
 
PHYS 0320. ANALYTICAL MECHANICS. Ist and 2nd Semester. Lect. 3, 3 credits. Fundamental principles of Newtonian mechanics, brief introduction to Lagrange's and Hamilton's equations, rigid body dynamics. Prerequisites: PHYS 0311. Co-requisite: MATH 0307.
 
PHYS 0330. ELECTRONICS. 1st and 2nd Semester. Lect. 2, Lab 6, 4 credits. Direct and alternating cut, rent theory and measurements, introductory electronics, use and calibration of precision electrical instruments and electronic devices. Prerequisites: PHYS 0311.
 
PHYS 0402. MODERN PHYSICS. 1st and 2nd Semester, Summer. Lect. 3, 3 credits. Introduction to con. temporary theory of matter. Special theory of relativity, application of classical mechanics to atoms and mol­ecules, and an introduction to the basic concepts of quantum mechanics. Prerequisites: PHYS 0311.
 
PHYS 0410. WAVE PHENOMENA. 1st Semester. Lect. 3,3 credits. Introduction to the study of vibrations and waves in general. Emphasis is placed on the quantitative aspects of vibrations confined to mechanical sys­tems and the general development of the theory associated with electromagnetic waves. Prerequisites: PHYS 0311. Pre- or Co-requisite: MATH 0307.
 
PHYS 0411. ELECTRICITY AND MAGNETISM. 1st and 2nd Semester. Lect. 3, 3 credits. Mathematical theory of electrostatics and magnetostatics/magnetism, electron theory, electromagnetic waves, Maxwell's equations, electromagnetic fields, special relativity theory. Prerequisites: PHYS 0311 or special permission.
 
PHYS 0499. READING AND RESEARCH. 1st and 2nd Semester. 1-3 credits. Research and/or reading to be done by each student under the supervision of an instructor. Credits and work to be arranged to suit the interests of students and instructors.
 
PHYS 0502. MODERN PHYSICS LABORATORY I. 1st Semester. Lab 3, 1 credit. Selected experiments to acquaint physics majors with modem experimental techniques and physical concepts. Prerequisite: PHYS 0402.
 
PHYS 0503. MODERN PHYSICS LABORATORY II . 2nd Semester. Lab 3, 1 credit. Continuation of PHYS 0502. Prerequisite: PHYS 0502.
 
PHYS 0507. BIOPHYSICS. 2nd Semester. Lect. 3, credits, Biophysics phenomena and processes; active, pas­sive transport; diffusion, osmosis, membrane dynamics; elementary opto-electronic phenomena; instrumenta­tion, thermodynamics, energetic; molecular spectroscopy; infrared, rotational vibrational, Raman; NMR, ESR, Prerequisite: PHYS 0302.
 
PHYS 0510. THERMODYNAMICS: 1st Semester. Lect 3, 3 credits. Thermodynamics and kinetic theory of gases, introduction to statistical mechanics, quantum distributions, transport equations. Prerequisite: PHYS 0311.
 
PHYS 0511. MODERN PHYSICS II. 2nd Semester. Lect 3, 3 credits. The basic postulates and introductory methods of quantum mechanics, classical statistical mechanics, and quantum statistical mechanics with appli­cations in Solid State Physics are studied. Prerequisite: PHYS 0402, 0410.
 
PHYS 0512. HISTORY OF SCIENCE. 1st Semester, Lect.3, 3 credits. A study of historical development of basic ideas of science in its various disciples-physics, chemistry biology, astronomy, geology, medicine, and mathematics. The history of scientific ideas in relation to social and political backgrounds from which they came. Historic relations between science and philosophy, art and religion. The present status and future fron­tiers of science. Prerequisite: 1 year of Natural or Physical Science.
 
PHYS 0550. SOLID STATE ELECTRONICS AND PHYSICS. 1st Semester. Lect. 3,3 credits. Introduction to Quantum Mechanics, Quantum Statistical Mechanics, Quantization of semiconductor crystal vibrations - Phonons, Thermal Properties, Free Electron Fermi Gas, Electron energy bands, Phonon and electronic ther­mal conductivies in semiconducting electronic systems, and Superconductivity and its impact on electric devices. Prerequisites: PHYS 05511/0402 or consent of instructor.
 
PHYS 0551. SEMINAR 1st and 2nd Semesters, Summer. 1 credit each semester. Required of all physics majors. An individual research project (either experimental or theoretical) and literature search under the advisement of a physics faculty member, which culminates with the submission of a formal report and an open seminar presented to faculty and students.
 
PHYS 0552. SEMINAR. 1st and 2nd Semester, Summer. 1 credit each Semester Required of all physics majors. An individual research project (either experimental or theoretical) and literature search under the advisement of all physics faculty member, which culminates with the submission of a formal report and open a seminar presented to faculty and students. Restricted to only physics majors or consent of the instructor.

• Physics Major Curriculum
• Physics Provisional Sheet
• Physics Minor for Architecture and Construction Science Majors
• Physics Minor for Engineering, Biology, Chemistry, Mathematics and Other Science Majors
• Physics Minor Completion Form
• Courses Description (see above)

General Education Competencies

(Competencies applicable to physics classes are in red)

1. Communication Skills: Mastery over language is a key component for success in both the academic and industrial world. Students will understand, analyze and interpret a variety of texts and visual communication; use various strategies to compose effective texts; adapt to different audiences and situations to express their ideas clearly.

2. Understanding and Appreciation of the Humanities, Creative Expression and Fine Arts: Personal growth and well-being of individuals are closely connected to their ability to understand human condition . Students will show an appreciation of art, music, theater, literature, and foreign languages that will enrich the lives of ¾«¶«AV students and will allow them to explore and analyze human conditions.

3. Historical, Political, Social and Cultural analysis and Understanding: To demonstrate a holistic approach to world views, students must have an understanding of diverse national and regional cultures and interests; they must understand the challenges and necessity of being able to communicate across these diverse cultures; they must understand the global forces that shape societies and nations and the relationships and interdependence between and among them; they must understand how their actions can affect other peoples and places.

They must also understand how history, culture, and society shape and inform the human condition in the successful pursuit of academic and occupational goals; understand how diverse cultures have interacted with, and continue to connect with, each other on a global scale; understand and navigate the conventions, knowledge formations, practices, and discursive norms of society, culture, and the academy in order to improve and analyze their own thinking, value diversity, and cultivate an open-minded approach to new ideas and social issues.

4. Mathematical and Qualitative Reasoning: A well-rounded education will ensure that the students are prepared to use basic mathematical reasoning and algebra to analyze and interpret real world problems and apply as required in real life situations. Students will demonstrate the ability to formulate an inquiry that is mathematical in nature, and then identify and follow an investigative process using empirical and/or quantitative reasoning to satisfy the inquiry.

5. Scientific Knowledge and Skills: Students will demonstrate the knowledge of fundamental scientific concepts and thS scientific Method and apply the basic principles of scientific inquiry.

6. Computational, Informational, and Technological Skills: Technological literacy is an important component for student success in the outside world. Students will discover how information technology assists individuals and organizations to work more efficiently, and how information technology influences society.

7. Critical Analysis/Thinking/Problem Solving Skills: Students will engage in creative and/or innovative thinking, inquiring analysis, evaluation, synthesis of information, organizing concepts, and constructing solutions.

Dr. Akshaya Kumar 
Associate Professor, Department Head
503 Luther H. Foster Hall
Phone: 334-727-8968
Email: akumar@tuskegee.edu 

Dr. Moses Ntam 
Associate Professor
Kenney Hall 70-131
Phone: 334-724-4653
Email: mntam@tuskegee.edu 

Dr. Marisol Alcantara Ortigoza 
Assistant Professor
106 Chappie James
Phone: 334-724-4206
Email: malcantaraortigoza@tuskegee.edu 

Dr. Walter Malone 
Assistant Professor
512 Luther H. Foster Hall
Phone: 334-727-8299
Email: wmalone@tuskegee.edu 

Dr. Dimitar Dimitrov 
Assistant Professor
506 Luther H. Foster Hall
Phone: 334-727-8997
Email: ddimitrov@tuskegee.edu 

Dr. Sharvare Palwai 
Assistant Professor
508 Luther H. Foster Hall
Phone: 334-727-8998
Email: spalwai@tuskegee.edu 

Dr. Bipin Lamichhane 
Assistant Professor
504 Luther H. Foster Hall
Phone: 334-727-8742
Email: blamichhane@tuskegee.edu 

Dr. Prakash C. Sharma  
Professor Emeritus
Email: psharma@tuskegee.edu 

Ms. Felicia Windham
Secretary
501 Luther H. Foster Hall
Phone: 334-724-4533 
Email: fwindham@tuskegee.edu 

Mr. Elvert J. Colvert
Lab Manager
405 Luther H. Foster Hall
Phone: 334-724-4426
Email: ecolvert@tuskegee.edu 

• Physics Faculty and Staff
• Student Learning Outcomes and General Education Competencies
• Download the TU General Education Syllabus Template
• Physics Students
• Physics Graduates

• Media and Web Page Updates: Dr. Marisol Alcantara-Ortigoza
• Electronics and Virtual Reality Computation: Dr. Dimitar Dimitrov and Dr. Bipin Lamichhane
• Student Affairs and Society of Physics Students: Dr. Sharvare Palwai
• Student Recruitment: Dr. Akshaya Kumar, Dr. Moses Ntam, Dr. Marisol Alcantara-Ortigoza, Dr. Walter Malone, Dr. Dimitar Dimitrov, Dr. Sharvare Palwai, and Dr. Bipin Lamichhane
• Research Mentoring: Dr. Moses Ntam, Dr. Alcantara-Ortigoza, Dr. Walter Malone, Dr. Dimitar Dimitrov, and Dr. Bipin Lamichhane
• Student Learning Outcomes: Dr. Akshaya Kumar and Dr. Sharvare Palwai
• Instructional Laboratory Requirements: Dr. Marisol Alcantara-Ortigoza, Dr. Walter Malone, and Dr. Elvert Colvert

Current

• The National Science Foundation, through the Designing Materials to Revolutionize and Engineer our Future Program, awared the project “Collaborative Research: DMREF: Computationally Driven Discovery and Synthesis of 2D Materials through Selective Etching” with $2,000,000 from 2024 to 2028. Dr. Walter Malone is co-PI of the project. 
• The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) through the Research Initiation Awards program awarded the project “Photonic Crystal Light Sails: Propelling Through Space on the Wings of Light. Design and manufacture a Photonic Crystal Slab for light sail space propulsion with more dielectric regions and improved area-to-mass ratio.”, led by Dr. Dimitrov, with $260,000 (2024). 
• The Department of Energy, Office of Science, Basic Energy Sciences, awared the "HBCU Undergraduate Program toward ab initio Prediction of Single-Photon-Emitters and Spin Qubits in Defected 2D Semiconductors" project (2023-2026) led by Dr. Alcantara-Ortigoza (PI) with $1,565,400 under Award No. DE-SC0024487. 
• The awarded the "¾«¶«AV's Summer Institute for Increasing Diversity Among Incoming STEM Undergraduates" from 2023-2027, by Dr. Lecia Robinson (Principal Investigator), Dr. Moses Ntam (co-Principal Investigator), Dr. Marisol Alcantara-Ortigoza (co-Principal Investigator), and Dr. Sheritta Fagbodun with $424,939. 
• The project "Promoting Excellence, Retention, Scholarship in STEM (PERSIST)" by Dr. M. Ntam (Principal Investigator), Dr. L. Robinson (co-Principal Investigator), Dr. Alcantara-Ortigoza, Dr. Sheritta Fagbodun, Dr. Hussain Elalaoui-Talibi, and Dr. Brandon Gines got funded for $1.5 million by NSF from 2022 to 2027 to promote STEM degree completion among low-income, high-achieving undergraduates with demonstrated financial need ().

Past (2015 – 2025)

• The ¾«¶«AV Office of the Provost awarded Dr. Sharvare Palwai the 2023 Title III Faculty Development Award for the project "Establishing an Applied Physics Experimental Research Laboratory" with $14,000.
• The ¾«¶«AV Office of the Provost awarded Dr. Dimitar Dimitrov the 2023 Title III Faculty Development Award for the project "Numerical simulations and manufacturing of Photonic light sails" with $8,000.
• The ¾«¶«AV Office of the Provost awarded Dr. Akshaya Kumar the 2023 Title III Faculty Development Award for the project "Acquisition of Handheld LIBS spectrometer" with $20,000.
• The ¾«¶«AV Office of the Provost awarded Dr. Chitra Nayak the 2023 Title III Faculty Development Award for the project "Enhancing Workforce Development and Student Engagement through Extended Reality (XR) Technologies" with $15,600.
• The ¾«¶«AV Office of the Provost awarded Dr. Walter Malone the 2023 Title III Faculty Development Award for the project "Exploring the Effects of Fluorination on Molecular Heterostacks" with $12,300.
• The "Starter Grants for Faculty in Non‐Ph.D.‐Granting Departments" program of the Petroleum Research Fund of the American Chemical Society awarded the project "" by Dr. Walter Malone with $55,000 from 2023 to 2025. (PRF# 65980-UNI5)
• The American Chemical Society, through the Petroleum Research Fund, awarded the Undergraduate New Investigator Award to the project “Using Machine Learning to Predict Novel Catalysts for the Hydrodesulfurization of Petrochemical Fuels” led by Dr. Walter Malone ($55,000) from 2023  to 2024
• The Catalyst project "" by Dr. C. Nayak (Principal Investigator), Dr. M. Alcantara-Ortigoza (co-Principal Investigator), Dr. Dimitar Dimitrov, and Dr. Akshaya Kumar got funded by NSF from 2022 to 2024, Award # 2204838 for $199,937.
• The NSF program Excellence in Research awarded the project "" with $500,000 by Dr. John Solomon (Principal Investigator), Dr. Chitra Nayak (co-Principal Investigator), Dr. Mandoye Ndoye (co-Principal Investigator), and Dr. Phillip Kreth (co-Principal Investigator) from 2019-2023. (NSF Award # 1900177).
•  awarded the “” to prepare prospective students for college and retain them in STEM disciplines by Dr. Lecia Robinson (Principal Investigator), Dr. Moses Ntam (co-Principal Investigator) and Dr. Marisol Alcantara-Ortigoza (co-Principal Investigator) during Summer 2022 for $65,000.
• Dr. Z. Chen and Dr. P. C. Sharma received the NSF support for the investigation of graphene growth over silicon carbide. The total budget of this project is $80,000.00 and the period is one year.
• Dr. P. C. Sharma won four years US Department of Transportation’s “University Transportation Center -  Tier 1” grant of $1,414,100.00 (share with University of Central Florida) to work on to transform the country’s transportation network, create a STEM education for environmental sustainability. ¾«¶«AV is sub-awarded with $150,000 per year for four year from the period of Jan 2014 to Dec. 2017. 

Integrating Virtual Reality into the classroom transforms traditional learning by immersing students in interactive, experiential environments such as conducting virtual science experiments. VR empowers educators to create dynamic lessons that cater to diverse learning styles and bridge the gap between theory and practice.

The mission of the Center for Immersive Learning Experience (CILE) is to support faculty members with equipment, demonstrations, and training (limited) for the implementation of Virtual Reality in the classroom. It is currently under the supervision of Dr. Alcantara-Ortigoza within the Department of Physics. 

Contact

Dr. Marisol Alcantara-Ortigoza, Director
Department of Physics
Chappie James, Rm. 106
¾«¶«AV
¾«¶«AV Institute, AL 36088
Telephone: 334-724-4206
Fax: 334-724-3917
Email: malcantaraortigoza@tuskegee.edu

Available Equipment 

• Desktop computers (8)
• Oculus Rifts (6)
• HTC Vive 3 (9)
• HTC Vive Pro (1)
• Lenovo Daydream (7)
• 3D Cameras (5)
• Oculus standalones (10)
• IPads (21) (Located in Kenny Hall under the CAS supervision)

2020 - 2025

• Physics Majors Ms. Taylor Jones (President) and Mr. Brandon Guiseppi (Vice President), advised by Dr. Chitra Nayak, won the 2022 Marsh W. White Outreach Chapter Award by the Society of Physics Students, for their project designed to increase representation of minorities in physics. 

2015 - 2020

• Physics major Mr. Salah Elafandi won a FIRST PRIZE in the oral presentation competition the 95th annual meeting of Alabama Academy of Science at Samford University in Birmingham, AL, in Feb. 2018.
• Physics major Mr. Maurice McGee won a FIRST PRIZE in the poster competition at  the 92nd annual meeting of Alabama Academy of Science at the University of West Alabama in Livingston, AL on March 12, 2015. Congratulations to his faculty mentors: Dr. Prakash C. Sharma and Dr. Zengjun Chen.
• Physics major Mr. Kumasi Salimu won a SECOND PRIZE in the poster competition at  the 92nd annual meeting of Alabama Academy of Science at the University of West Alabama in Livingston, AL on March 12, 2015. Congratulations to his faculty mentors: Dr. Akshaya Kumar and Dr. Prakash C. Sharma.
• Physics major Mr. Eduvie Ojebga won a SECOND PRIZE in the oral presentation competition at  the 92nd annual meeting of Alabama Academy of Science at the University of West Alabama in Livingston, AL on March 12, 2015. Congratulations to his faculty mentors: Dr. Akshaya Kumar and Dr. Prakash C. Sharma.

2010 - 2015

• Physics majors Mr. Jeremiah F. Wilson and Ms. Leah Sanks have been nominated to receive the prestigious White House initiated HBCU ALL STAR Students Award for the Year 2014.
• Physics majors Mr. Jeremiah F. Wilson and Mr. Sammie Ely III with their faculty mentors Dr. Sesha Srinivasan and Dr. P.C. Sharma have successfully filed their 2013 invention on “Universal Photocatalytic Reactor Design for the Water and Air Detoxification and Fuel Production”.

2020 - 2025

• Dr. Alcantara-Ortigoza published "Aluminum vacancy/sulfur complex in wurtzite AlN as an optically controllable spin qubit” in Physical Review B Letters (2024)
• Dr. Malone published "Accessing the usefulness of atomic adsorption configurations in predicting the adsorption properties of molecules with machine learning" in Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics (2024)
• Dr. Malone published "Mapping high entropy state spaces for novel material discovery" in Acta Materialia (2024)
• Dr. Malone published "High-throughput thiophene adsorption calculations on bimetallic surfaces" in Chemical Data Collections (2024)
• Dr. Malone published "Data-driven methods for diffusivity prediction in nuclear fuels" in the Journal Computational Materials Science (2024)
• Dr. Malone published "Combining Deep Learning Neural Networks with Genetic Algorithms to Map Nanocluster Configuration Spaces with Quantum Accuracy at Low Computational Cost" in the Journal of Chemical Information and Modeling (2023)
• Dr. Malone published "NEXMD v2.0 Software Package for Nonadiabatic Excited State Molecular Dynamics Simulations" in the Journal of Chemical Theory and Computation (2023)
• Dr. Malone published "Predicting adsorption energies and the physical properties of H, N, and O adsorbed on transition metal surfaces: A machine learning study" in the Journal "Surface Science" (2023)
• Dr. Nayak organizes a Faculty Development Workshop: "", April 19-20, 2023. 
• Dr. Alcantara-Ortigoza published "A closer look at how symmetry constraints and the spin-orbit coupling shape the electronic structure of Bi(111)" in the Journal of Physics: Condensed Matter (2023) 
• Dr. Alcantara-Ortigoza published “Thermodynamic stability and optical properties of C-doping-induced defects in hexagonal boron nitride as potential single-photon emitters” in Physical Review B (2022)
• Dr. Alcantara-Ortigoza published "Tuning the Properties of Metal Surfaces to Make Them CO-Tolerant and Highly Active Catalysts for Hydrogen Oxidation: A First-Principles Approach" in the Journal ChemCatChem (2021)

2015 - 2020

• Dr. Alcantara-Ortigoza published “Au/Ta(110) and Au/Nb(110) as Highly Active, Stable, and Inexpensive Catalysts for Oxygen Reduction Reaction on Hydrogen Fuel Cell Cathodes: Prediction from First Principles” in the Journal ChemCatChem (2020)
• Dr. Alcantara-Ortigoza published "Substrate-Driven Electrochemical Stabilization and Activation of Ag Monolayers to Catalyze the Oxygen Reduction Reaction: Beyond Pt-based Electrocatalysts" in the Journal Chemistry Select (2018)
• Dr. Alcantara-Ortigoza published “On the Elusive Link between Adsorbate’s Binding Energy and Bond Strength: An Illustration from CO Adsorption on Metal-Doped Graphene” in the Journal Chemistry Select (2017)
• Dr. Alcantara-Ortigoza published the "Rational catalyst design methodologies – Principles and factors affecting the catalyst design” Chapter in the book "Electrocatalysts for low temperature fuel cells – Fundamentals and Recent trends”; Ed: Wiley-VCH Verlag Gmbh & Co. KGaA. (2016)
• Dr. P. C. Sharma published his findings regarding  the effect of nanoparticles on thermal conductivity in a recently published article titled "Phonon conductivity of nanoparticles embedded in dielectric media"  which appeared in  the  journal Physica Status Solidi (b).
• Dr. Chitra Nayak attended the SACSCOC summer institute as part of the ¾«¶«AV team. It was a four day institute during July 22-25, 2018 held in Atlanta, Georgia. Dr. Nayak attended the institute as part of the general education committee which is formed to review the general education curriculum and standards at ¾«¶«AV. The summer institute included detailed sessions on curriculum mapping, development of program learning outcomes, and critical thinking.
• Dr. Akshaya Kumar was awarded the fellow of Alabama Academy of Science in Feb. 2018.

2010 - 2015

• Dr. Alcantara-Ortigoza published "Lattice perturbation: The missing key to understand gold nobleness”;  in the Journal of Chemical Physics (2015)
• Our paper entitled, "Optical Absorption Spectroscopy of Dry Eraser Marker Ink" has been adjudged as the "Best Research Poster Paper" in the "International Conference on Lasers, Optics and Photonics" held on October 7-9, 2013, at San Antonio. Dr. Sharma’s award has been attributed in recognition of research paper quality, novelty and significance as indicated on the award certificate.The research papers entered in competitions for the best research poster were from countries like China, Russia, Korea, USA, Egypt, and Ethiopia.

About

The Department of Physics hosts a colloquium every month during the fall and spring semesters, typically every fourth Thursday (excluding holidays and final exam days) at 11:00 AM, unless indicated otherwise. Speakers include faculty from the Physics Department as well as faculty and researches from other universities. The subjetcs cover all areas of physics and is expected to attract a broad audience, including Physics Majors and Minors, and to promote research collaboration. The colloquia are typically 50 minutes followed by 10 minutes of questions. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the colloquia have been conducted via Zoom meetings, but this format may change in the future. For more information, please contact Dr. Alcantara-Ortigoza at malcantaraortigoza@tuskegee.edu

Schedule and Venue

Colloquia are held from 11 am to 12 pm, unless otherwise indicated. The meetings are virtual via Zoom. Zoom meeting ID:  513 619 5883 (No password)

Fall 2021 – Spring 2023 

DATE - TITLE  (CLICK FOR ABSTRACT) - SPEAKER

09. May 04 2023  (Tuesday) - Development of Piezoelectric Polymers for Advance Sensors Applications - Dr. Sharvare Palwai (¾«¶«AV)

Dr. Sharvare Palwai

Piezoelectric polymers have been attracting increasing interest in recent years due to their unique properties, such as flexibility, lightweight, and low cost. These properties make them suitable for use in a wide range of advanced sensor applications, including pressure sensors, strain sensors, and energy harvesters. The development of these polymers involves the synthesis and characterization of polymers with piezoelectric properties. One of the most commonly used piezoelectric polymers is polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF), which has been extensively studied due to its excellent piezoelectric properties and processability. The use of these polymers in sensor applications has shown great potential for a wide range of industries, including healthcare, aerospace, and energy. For example, piezoelectric polymer-based sensors can be used to monitor blood pressure, detect structural defects in aircraft, and harvest energy from vibrations and movements. In conclusion, the development of piezoelectric polymers for advanced sensor applications is an exciting and rapidly evolving field that holds great promise for the future of sensor technology.

08. Feb 23 2023 - Berry Phase Interference in Single Molecule Magnets - Dr. Gabriel Gonzàlez Contreras (Universidad Autònoma de San Luis Potosì)

Single molecule magnets or nanomagnets provides a perfect ground to understand quantum mechanical behavior such as quantum tunneling in macroscopic systems which is derived from a combination of large spin (S) and easy axis magneto-anisotropy. It contains very rich phenomena spanning from the most fundamental physics to the frontier technologies such as quantum computation. In this talk, I address the Berry phase interference in single molecule magnets, I will focus on proposing how to detect the quantum phase interference in transport phenomena using analytical and numerical approaches. I will also discuss new advances in molecular nanomagnets and future applications in quantum information.

07. Oct 27 2022 - Active Nozzle Injectors for High-speed Flow Mixing and Control - Dr. John Solomon (¾«¶«AV)

Dr. John Solomon 

Efficient and controlled mixing of a fuel with air, moving at very high speed, is a challenging physical problem relevant to supersonic and hypersonic combustion. Dr. Solomon's ongoing research focuses on the design and development of nozzle injection systems integrated with ultra-high frequency microactuators. The goal of such an active nozzle injection system is to tailor the instabilities of an injected fluid in favor of enhanced entrainment and mixing in high-speed flow conditions. The actuators, called resonance-enhanced microjets (REM), integrated into the nozzle assemblies, can generate high-frequency compressible streamwise vortices up to 60k kHz. The seminar will cover design details of the active injector assembly, flowfield characterization using the microschlieren imaging technique, nearfield acoustic measurements, and planar laser-induced fluorescence (PLIF) experiments. (Full abstract)

06. Sep 22 2022 - Using Machine Learning to Predict Surface Adsorption - Dr. Walter Malone (¾«¶«AV)

Dr. Walter Malone

The interaction of molecules on metallic surfaces plays an important role in a wide array of technologies from catalysts that remove harmful gases from the atmosphere to light-harvesting devices and devices to store hydrogen.  Modeling these types of interactions, between molecules and a metallic substrate, can cost a large amount of computational time, limiting both the amount of systems one can study and the potential to improve device performance.  To remedy this problem and cut down on computational cost one can employ machine learning techniques.  In this talk I present the results of utilizing the Hierarchically Interacting Particle Neural Network (HIP-NN), a deep learning neural network, to predict the adsorption of hydrogen on various single crystal surfaces.  Overall, a trained HIP-NN model predicts both the adsorption heights and energies of hydrogen on these surfaces close to the accuracy of the reference calculations, representing a large step forward in streamlining novel material discovery. 

05. Mar 24 2022 - Sailing on the Wings of Light - Dr. Dimitar Dimitrov (¾«¶«AV)

Dr. Dimitar Dimitrov

In recent years, solar sails have been successfully built and launched by the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) with their IKAROS spacecraft, by NASA with their NanoSail-D spacecraft, and by The Planetary Society with our LightSail 2 spacecraft. A solar sail-propelled spacecraft could reach distant planets and star systems much more quickly than a rocket-propelled spacecraft because of the continual acceleration that solar sailing provides. The technology for interplanetary or interstellar solar sailing is still far from being developed, however. Photonic crystals are advanced materials for solar sailing with high reflectivity, large area over mass ratio, and possibility of thermal control. This presentation is an overview of current efforts building practical solar sails and demonstration of specific type of Anisotropic Photonic Crystal Slab with some promising properties.

04. Feb 24 2022 - Students' Understanding of Newton's Second Law of Motion - Dr. Salomon Itza (University of Mobile)

One of the most important topics taught in a first semester introductory physics course is Newton’s laws. Physics Educations Research (PER) suggests college students bring to the classroom their experiences and own understanding of the physical world. This acquired knowledge often conflicts with the concepts defined in class, thus making the teaching and learning of physics concepts a challenge. On this seminar, I will present results from PER work on which we investigated Newton’s second laws mental models used in mechanics and electromagnetism (EM). I will also present some ideas that may assist instructors in helping their students to transfer understanding of forces from mechanics to EM topics. Of particular interest is that our research subjects were students in a two-semester calculus-based physics course. 

03. Jan 27 2022 - Differential Response of Type-I Interferons - A Computational Approach to telling the story of Interferon Signaling Pathways - Dr. Chitra Nayak (¾«¶«AV)

Dr. Chitra R Nayak

Type I interferons are used effectively in the treatment of Hepatitis C by activating a cascade of interferon-stimulated genes with antiviral properties. The signaling cascade involves the binding of IFN to the two subunits of the IFN receptor, IFNAR1 (R1) and IFNAR2 (R2), to form a ternary complex. The kinases - Jak’s and Tyk’s - bound to the cytoplasmic domains of receptor subunits become phosphorylated, which further phosphorylates STAT (p-STAT). Dimers of p-STAT migrate to the nucleus to initiate the transcription of a large number of genes. The subtypes of type I interferons can exhibit differential responses even though they bind to the same receptor subunits and initiate similar signaling pathways. Type I interferons are also known to exhibit a reduced response (refractoriness) to prolonged or multiple doses of IFN. It has been shown that despite binding to the same receptor, the subtype IFN-α is more refractory than IFN-β. The talk focuses on explaining the differential behavior of the subtypes of type I interferon by using computational and analytic tools.     

02. Nov 16 2021 (Tuesday) - Paving the Way to Clean, Renewable Energy - Dr. Sergey Stolbov (University of Central Florida)

This talk is about a possible solution to the problem of clean renewable energy. First, I will shortly describe the basic ideas of hydrogen economy, which includes a) hydrogen production from water using solar radiation as a source of energy needed for this process; b) safe storage of hydrogen inside of solid materials; c) conversion of chemical energy of hydrogen into electric energy using hydrogen fuel cell. After short overview of challenges of this endeavor, I will focus on the fuel cell (FC) problems, in particular, on development of new cost-effective and highly active catalysts which are the key elements of FC. Currently platinum-based materials are used as the catalysts in FCs, which make them prohibitively expensive. Rational design of the cost-effective catalysts requires deep understanding of the physics and chemistry behind the processes facilitated by the catalysts: a) release of protons from H2 molecules (hydrogen oxidation) on the FC anodes, b) reaction of the protons with oxygen on the FC cathodes (oxygen reduction reaction). I will illustrate our rational computational design approach to this problem with two examples: a) search for efficient anode catalysts, which not only catalyze hydrogen oxidation, but also remove unwanted carbon monoxide molecules from the anode; b) efficient graphene-based cathode catalyst.     

01. Oct 21 2021 - Vision and scope of physics colloquium & a glimpse of laser spectrocopy - Dr. Akshaya Kumar (¾«¶«AV)

Dr. Akshaya Kumar

The department physics at ¾«¶«AV has made a cohesive effort to begin a physics colloquium in the department. It is a unique opportunity to bring professionals on a common platform, learn about their scientific interests, and stem a research participation/collaboration. Moreover, it broadens the scope of scientific research that can be helpful in multiple areas of scientific applications.

The rare-earth ions doped glasses are well-known optical materials that have applications in high-power lasers, optical amplifiers, white light-emitting diodes, and solar cells. Glasses of arbitrary composition are easy to tailor when compared to crystals. Therefore, this advantage brings the opportunity to tailor the optical properties via changes in the glass composition. I will present the details of spectroscopic techniques such as UV-Vis-NIR absorption, laser-induced fluorescence, laser-induced excitation spectroscopy, and lifetime measurements to evaluate the optical properties of rare-earth-doped glasses. Besides, I will also present the applications of laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy.

Student Opportunities (Scholarships / Internships)

• Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU)
• PERSIST Scholarship Program (NSF funded)
•  (DOE funded)
•  (NASA funded)

Outreach and Recruitment

• Physics Department Brochure
• Physics Department Poster
• Physics Open House Events – Open House Spring 2022 Session II, April 23, 2022, Chapel
• Physics Visits to Booker T. Washington High-School

Faculty Development Resources

• Culturally Responsive and Backward-Design-based Bimodal Units and Assessments as Learning Tools in College Physics
• ChatGPT: What is it? From Higher-Order Thinking Downfall to Teaching Tool?

• Physics Fall BBQ - 2018

• Community Service at The ¾«¶«AV Public Elementary School