Environmental Physics
New Opportunity in Graduate Education
The Department of Physics and the Department of Soil and
Environmental Sciences at the University
of California at Riverside announce a unique interdisciplinary graduate
training opportunity in Environmental Physics.
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Apply the theoretical and experimental techniques of optical, surface,
and condensed matter physics to the environmental problems confronting
society today.
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Receive graduate training in both physics and environmental science.
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All admitted candidates will receive competitive stipends, in the form
of fellowships, assistantships, fee remissions, and/or other financial
awards.
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Degree options include:
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All training programs include jointly supervised thesis or dissertation
research, seminars, professional development and other activities.
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Training and research programs are integrated within UCR's Program in Graduate
Studies in Environmental Science and Engineering. Eight
other participating degree granting units
(departments or programs) offer research opportunities in a variety of
areas including: atmospheric
science, pollution detection and remediation, dynamical processes at land-water
and water-air interfaces, colloidal science, and biological effects of
pollution and bioremediation science.
Research
Students will conduct thesis research under the joint supervision of faculty
members from both Physics and Soil and Environmental Science. Proposed
research topics include:
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Nonlinear optical studies of molecular activity and orientation at air-water,
mineral-water, and oil-water interfaces
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Synchrotron and x-ray photoemission studies of contaminant sorption and
reaction on environmentally active surfaces
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Scanning probe microscopy studies (STM, AFM, NSOM) of environmental surfaces
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Surface studies of water and ice
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Molecular dynamics and Monte Carlo studies of transport and reactions at
environmental interfaces
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Fundamental studies of ion and contaminant transport and structure in ice
and water
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Application of percolation theory to soil and groundwater systems
Participating Faculty
Dr.
Harry W.K. Tom, Co-Director and Professor of Physics.
Dr.
Michael A. Anderson, Co-Director and Associate Professor
of Environmental Chemistry.
Dr.
Chris Amrhein, Associate Professor of Soil Chemistry
Dr.
Ward P. Beyermann, Assistant Professor of Physics.
Dr.
Andrew Chang, Professor of Agricultural Engineering.
Dr.
Eric L. Chronister, Associate Professor of Physical Chemistry.
Dr.
William A. Jury, Professor of Soil Physics.
Dr.
Douglas E. MacLaughlin, Professor of Physics.
Dr.
Umar Mohideen, Assistant Professor of Physics.
Dr.
Raymond L. Orbach, Professor of Physics and Chancellor.
Dr.
Jory A. Yarmoff, Professor of Physics.
Facilities and Resources
Participants in Environmental Physics have access to a wide array of research
facilities. In addition to the facilities of the Physics and the Soil and
Environmental Sciences departments, students have access to the materials
and surface science communities at the Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory, Brookhaven
National Synchrotron Light Source, Los Alamos National Laboratory and Argonne
National Laboratory through faculty collaborations. Active collaborations
also exist between SES faculty and the USDA Salinity Laboratory located
within the UC Riverside campus. The campus has two state-of-the-art user
facilities, an Analytical Chemistry Instrumentation Facility and an Electron
Microscopy Instrumentation Facility. Environmental science and engineering
research emphasizing atmospheric science and air pollution are supported
by two centers: Center for Environmental Research and Technology (CE-CERT)
and the Statewide Air Pollution Research Center (SAPRC).
About UCR
 UC
Riverside is one of the nine campuses of the University of California.
The university occupies a spacious 1200 acre site at the foot of the Box
Spring Mountains in Riverside (60 miles East of Los Angeles). Present campus
enrollment is 9,559 students, including approximately 1250 graduate students.
UCR has 5 Colleges and professional schools. Both the Physics and the Soil
and Environmental Sciences departments are located in the College of Natural
and Agricultural Sciences. Additional academic resources are available
through the Chemical and Environmental Engineering program in the College
of Engineering.
Admissions
Applicants may apply directly to the Physics or Soil Science Ph.D. programs
at UCR (general admissions information and applications available here)
or to the program in Graduate Studies in Environmental
Science and Engineering (see their admissions
instructions). Candidates should indicate their degree
and research interests clearly in a cover letter and in their personal
statements. Successful Environmental Physics candidates are expected
to have strong undergraduate training in physics, chemistry, or soil science,
although candidates with training in environmental engineering, hydrology
and related fields are also encouraged to apply. Applications sent to the
departments are reviewed by the relevant Ph.D. granting department and
a joint committee of Environmental Physics participating faculty.
Applications sent to the Environmental Science and Engineering program
are reviewed by all their participating units including the Environmental
Physics program and attempts are made to place applicants in one of the
eight units. Applicants are encouraged to contact the relevant departments
and individuals below before applying. All applications are also
reviewed by the Graduate Division of UCR. UCR is an Affirmative Action/Equal
Opportunity employer.
Financial Aid
All candidates admitted to the graduate programs in Environmental Physics
are offered competitive financial aid packages which includes support through
Teaching Assistantships, Research Assistantships, and Fellowships.
Additional Information
Please contact: Prof. Harry Tom, Department of Physics, University of California,
Riverside, CA 92521, harry.tom@ucr.edu
(909) 787-2818 or Prof. Michael Anderson, Department of Soil and Environmental
Sciences, University of California, Riverside, CA 92521. michael.anderson@ucr.edu
(909) 787-3757. General information, program offerings and departmental
course offerings are described in the UCR general catalog.
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