News & Events

School of Physics and Astronomy Colloquium

Speaker: Rudolf M. Tromp, IBM T.J. Watson
Subject: Low Energy Electron Microscopy

In Low Energy Electron Microscopy (LEEM) and Photo Electron Emission Microscopy (PEEM) the sample forms the cathode in a strongly decelerating/accelerating immersion objective lens. This enables low energy electrons at the sample (0-100 eV) to be used for high resolution (2 nm) image formation, diffraction, and spectroscopy. This form of microscopy came to fruition in the early 1990’s, much later than other forms of electron microscopy, and has undergone a rapid development since.

In this talk I will discuss some of the principles and unique capabilities of cathode lens microscopy (as it is generally known), and illustrate its wide range of applications with recent examples from our research program, including growth and properties of 2D materials, occupied and unoccupied momentum-resolved electronic structure, reflection/transmission experiments to study electron mean free path, and the effects of low energy electron irradiation on thin resist films. A unique feature of many of these experiments is that the lab is inside the electron microscope, rather than the other way around.I

Supernova telescope image

Kelly leads first-of-its-kind measurement of the Universe’s expansion rate

Assistant Professor Patrick Kelly of the School of Physics and Astronomy led a team which used a first-of-its-kind technique to measure the expansion rate of the Universe, providing insight that

Fellowship and awards title

2023 Graduate Awards and Fellowships

There are 14 graduate award and fellowship recipients in the School for 2021.

Marron background with the words "scholarships and Awards

2023 Undergraduate Scholarship Recipients

There are 28 undergraduate recipients for 14 separate scholarships.

Boris Shklovskii

Shklovskii elected to the National Academy of Sciences

Professor Boris I. Shklovskii of the School of Physics and Astronomy has been elected as a member of the prestigious National Academy of Sciences (NAS) for his excellence in original scientific

Lindsay Gelsener and the image of a solar flare.

Glesener receives College Research Award

Professor Lindsay Glesener of the School of Physics and Astronomy has received the 2023 George W. Taylor Award for Distinguished Research from the College of Science and Engineering at the University

Image from James Webb Space Telescope showing a galaxy cluster

Kelly part of group that discovers tiny galaxy with big star power using James Webb telescope

Using first-of-their-kind observations from the James Webb Space Telescope, a University of Minnesota Twin Cities-led team looked more than 13 billion years into the past to discover a unique,

Ali Sulaiman and the icy moons of Jupiter

Could Jupiter’s icy moons support life? Mission to Jupiter set to launch on April 13

Assistant Professor Ali Sulaiman of the School of Physics and Astronomy is part of the magnetometer instrument team that will study the icy moons of Jupiter. The European Space Agency’s flagship

Elias Puchner in his laboratory.

Puchner receives Biosensing grant

Professor Elias Puchner of the School of Physics and Astronomy received a 2023 grant from the University of Minnesota's International Institute for Biosensing (IIB). Puchner’s research group

Rafael Fernandes

Fernandes named Distinguished McKnight University Professor

Professor Rafael Fernandes of the School of Physics and Astronomy has been named a 2023 Distinguished McKnight University Professor. Fernandes is a condensed matter theorist and Director of

Image of X-ray observation of the sun

Student-planned NuSTAR observation reveals hidden light shows on the Sun

Students at the School played a key role in planning a NuSTAR solar observation which could help shed light on one of the Sun’s biggest mysteries. UMN physics grad students Marianne Peterson and Reed