Departmental news

Dr John Marshall and Dr John Back are working as part of the AIDAinnova programme to further the development of the Pandora pattern-recognition software. They are developing algorithms to interpret highly-complex images of neutrino interactions in the detectors that will be deployed for the Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment, DUNE. Their software uses a careful blend of sophisticated clustering algorithms and machine-learning approaches.

The Pandora software aims to provide an automated approach to reconstruct what happened in neutrino interactions, and so help unlock the mysteries of neutrinos. One of the defining features of DUNE will be its cutting-edge detectors, and the role of pattern recognition and machine learning is becoming more important to interpret the detector outputs. Under the AIDAinnova programme, Dr Marshall and Dr Back are adapting the Pandora software specifically for use at the DUNE Near Detector.

Dr Marshall says “Through AIDAinnova, we’re collaborating with other teams across Europe: to develop software for future detectors, and to help include the Pandora software in a reusable “turnkey” software stack, designed for easy use at future particle physics experiments.”

AIDAinnova is co-ordinated through CERN. The U.S. Department of Energy’s Fermilab is the host laboratory for DUNE, in partnership with funding agencies and more than 1,000 scientists from all over the globe.

Find out more about AIDAinnova project by watching The AIDAinnova project video.  

25 April 2022.

Professor Tom Hase (Magnetic X-ray Scattering group), Co-Director of XMaS alongside Co-Director Dr Didier Wermeille (University of Liverpool) has developed materials aimed at secondary schools to learn about 'The power of X-rays in Material Science' at the European Synchrotron.

Check out the materials and find out more.

Each year, our department offers a small number of work experience placements for students in Years 10-12. The placement will provide a broad insight into physics and what it would be like to work in a busy university physics department.

Applications are now invited for work experience taking place 11-14 April 2022 (inclusive).

Find out more about the work experience placement.

A nationwide competition open to all UK Year 12 female physics students to win an all expenses paid, 4 day trip to the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF) world leading science research facility in Grenoble, France.

The group will tour the facilities, conduct experiments, meet the amazing scientists who work there and have the opportunity to tour the beautiful French city of Grenoble.

Find out more information about the opportunity.

Once again, our team in Physics alongside other departments are back to entertain and amaze audiences with experiments and an insight into the some of the world class research that we do. Don't forget to book your tickets to attend some fun for all of the family.

Lectures will take place on Monday 29 November and Monday 6 December at 7pm, and will be BSL Interpreted.

Find out more information and book your tickets.

Astrophysics PhD student, Catriona McDonald talks to BBC Radio Coventry & Warwickshire about her involvement with Nasa's DART (Double Asteroid Redirection Test) mission, which launched on 26 November, 2021. The mission will test that if an asteroid was heading for Earth, whether sending a spacecraft towards it would be able to redirect it away from Earth. In June 2021, Catriona attended a virtual meeting with all the scientists working on the mission to see how NASA makes a mission like this happen.

Listen to Catriona talking on BBC Radio.

Listen to Professor Sandra Chapman's inspiring talk as she speaks to Adrian Chiles on BBC5 live radio about her research as Director of Centre for Fusion, Space and Astrophysics, and how she became interested in Physics.

You can listen to Sandra on BBC5 live from 02:44:25

The Terabotics project, led by Professor Emma MacPherson, which aims to integrate terahertz technology with surgical robotics to help improve cancer diagnosis and treatment has been shortlisted for the Engineer's Collaborate to Innovate Awards 2021.

Find out more about Emma's Terahertz Research Group. 

New fellows of the Warwick Institute of Engagement have been announced! Physics is very well represented - congratulations to:

Ally Caldecote (Foundation Fellow)
Anne-Marie Broomhall (Foundation Fellow)
Aruni Fonseka (Associate Fellow)
Don Pollacco (Honorary Fellow)
Oksana Trushkevych (Associate Fellow)
Tishtrya Mehta (Associate Fellow).

They will work with the team (incl. Rachel Edwards, the Institute's Deputy Director) to deliver and promote high quality public engagement.

Social distancing may be keeping you at home, but that doesn’t mean you can’t be exploring the universe at the same time. Did you know that you can enter a whole world of stargazing using objects you might have around the home? There is plenty that you can discover using only the naked eye. Scientists from the Astronomy and Astrophysics Group will be showing us what you can discover in our skies over the coming weeks, with advice on how you can get involved in Astronomy without ever leaving your garden.