Graduate Programs

Research Options

The Physics Department is strongly research oriented with faculty involved in both experimental and theoretical areas. Some areas of current interest are the theory of plasmas, the theory of local, marginal and other correlated Fermi liquids, theoretical and experimental studies of the optical and transport properties of novel condensed matter systems, laser physics, and superconductivity. In addition to individual research projects, faculty members have established major internal collaborative research efforts, including the search for plasma instabilities in novel condensed matter systems, the theory of strongly correlated electron systems, and the properties of nanostructured semiconductor systems.

Significant research facilities are available to our graduate students. Departmental facilities include laser-equipped optical laboratories, a low-temperature physics laboratory equipped with superconducting magnets, a SUN local area network, graduate and undergraduate computational facilities, and access to the University computing system. As part of its ongoing expansion, the Department of Physics will greatly enhance and supplement these facilities during the next few years.

The Department of Physics also has developed strong ties to many outside facilities, including Los Alamos National Laboratory, Argonne National Laboratory, the Illinois CRAY supercomputing facility, the Naval Research Laboratory, and the National High Magnetic Field Laboratory. Boston College's participation in the Boston Area Graduate School Consortium enables students to cross-register for graduate courses at Boston University, Brandeis University, and Tufts University.

Students wishing more detailed information can contact the department or read more in the Research section of this site
- Theoretical Research
- Experimental Research