Research in the Department

From the first college observatory in the US to new telescopes in Chile and South Africa, astrophysics has become a major part of the department, covering topics from stellar evolution to explosive phenomena to cosmology.	Problems in biology, such as, for instance, the human genome or the brain, are increasingly attracting the attention of physicists. At UNC, biological physicists develop models for information processing in the brain and develop techniques to manipulate biological tissue on nanoscales.
Our condensed matter and materials physics research encompasses a full range of topics from the synthesis of materials to elucidation of their fundamental properties to the creation of new technology. The materials studied include nanomaterials, semiconductors, organic materials, metallic and magnetic materials, polymers, and more.	Gravitational physics research involves studies of applications of numerical relativity, black hole dynamics, sources of gravitational radiation, critical phenomena in gravitational collapse, the initial value problem of general relativity, and relativistic astrophysics. Department faculty also undertake research on the cosmological constant, the holographic principle, the origin of the ultra-high energy cosmic rays, spacetime foam, and possible relations to LIGO/LISA physics.
Departmental efforts focus on theory, in particular extensions of the standard model with regard to the mass of the neutrino and the strong CP problem. Gravity-oriented efforts include work on the origin of the "dark energy", the distribution of the cosmic microwave background radiation, and the origin of the highest energy cosmic rays, as well as the physics of quantum foam and the holographic principle.	Nuclear physics deals with topics that range in diversity from the fundamental forces of nature to the evolution of the universe. At UNC, we study the interaction between nucleons, the properties of neutrinos, stellar evolution and dark matter.
String theory is a dynamic new field at the forefront of research in theoretical physics and mathematics. Its goal is to provide a unified theory of matter and gravity, and to profile the substructure of matter.	UNC has an active Cosmology component with research concentrated in the study of phenomena in the Early and Late Time Universe such as: Dark Energy and Matter, Large Scale Structure, Cosmic Microwave Background, Inflation and Initial Conditions of the Universe, Modified Gravity, String Cosmology and Extra Dimensions, Observational Cosmology, Particle Astrophysics and more. Much of the research involves interdisciplinary work at the interface with gravity, particle physics, astrophysics, string theory and quantum gravity.
Here's a listing of some of the research projects undertaken by undergraduates in our Department. Most majors undertake a project on campus or off campus during their career at UNC, and many publish their results. At least one student has co-earned a patent.