Department of Physics
The Department of Physics at the South Dakota Mines is a leader in physics research.
Proximity to the Sanford Underground Research Facility, the nation’s premier site
for underground particle physics experiments, provides unique opportunities for work
on experiments such as DUNE, LZ, and CASPAR, and complements the department's historic
strengths in condensed matter and atmospheric science. We pride ourselves on our excellent
department culture and the individual attention that we pay to our students. Our
high-quality undergraduate program maintains a low student-per-faculty ratio, enabling faculty to provide their students
with comprehensive courses and a depth of knowledge beyond what many physics programs
offer. There is a strong emphasis on developing research skills for use in industry
and academia. Because physics is the basis of most engineering disciplines, understanding
basic principles of physics can help one become a better engineer. Our national-award-winning
Society of Physics Students provides excellent co-curricular support of the program.
Our graduate program takes advantage of the strong research opportunities and department culture. The program maintains a high retention rate and provides
excellent placement at national labs, in industry, and in academia.
Come explore the department of physics at South Dakota Mines and see what we have
to offer!
Related Links
SURF Internships, REUs, and SULIs
SURF Internships, REUs, and SULIs
There are many undergraduate research opportunities both on campus and off.
The nearby Sanford Underground Research Facility (SURF) has several internships, with Mines physics majors selected for about one per year. Entering SD freshmen and rising sophomores are eligible for the Davis-Bahcall scholar program. The South Dakota Space Grant Consortium also runs a Student Internship/Fellowship Stipend Program.There are 67 NSF-funded Research Experience for Undergraduate (REU) Sites in Physics around the country (see link ) and 17 sites for the Science Undergraduate Laboratory Internships (SULI) Program. Advice on applying is available here.
Activities and Organizations
The SPS is a student-run organization that enjoys using their knowledge of physics to have
fun working together on various projects. The goal of the organization is to bring
tools and concepts learned in the classroom into the real world, and when possible
share their passion for physics with the community. Activities range from purely social
gatherings to group collaborations with the goal of constructing and presenting demonstration
experiments and community outreach in the form of volunteering in local schools and
forums. As an SPS member you will be part of a community who has a deep love of science
and experimentation and will be able to apply your knowledge of physics to create,
amaze, and educate your community about the wonders of the laws of nature.
To become an official member of the SPS you can apply on their website: Membership is $20 per year and includes a monthly “Physics Today” magazine subscription.
For more information about when the SPS meets, please inquire at the physics office,
EEP 227.
Physics BS Program objectives and student learning outcomes:
Objective #1: Students will have strong scientific and technical skills.
Student learning outcomes:
1. Students will have information literacy.
2. Students will be skilled at problem solving.
3. Students will be skilled at inquiry and analysis.
4. Students will be skilled at critical and creative thinking.
5. Students will demonstrate skills with instrumentation, software, encoding, and
data analysis.
Objective #2: Students will effectively use physics to solve problems.
Student learning outcomes:
1. Students will demonstrate competency in applying basic laws of physics in classical
and quantum mechanics, electricity and magnetism, thermodynamics and statistical mechanics
and special relativity, and the applications of these laws in areas such as optics,
condensed matter physics, properties of materials, nuclear and particle physics, and
other disciplines.
2. Students will represent basic physics concepts in multiple ways, including mathematically
(including through estimations), conceptually, verbally, pictorially, computationally,
by simulation, and experimentally.
Objective #3: Students will communicate effectively.
Student learning outcomes:
1. Students will communicate in writing about scientific and technical concepts concisely
and completely.
2. Students will organize and communicate ideas using words, mathematical equations,
tables, graphs, pictures, animations, diagrams, and other visualization tools.
Objective #4: Students will have strong professional/workplace skills.
Student learning outcomes:
1. Students will have the ability to work well in teams.
2. Students will be able to plan, organize, and prioritize work.
BS degree assessment: course work, physics design projects. See more details in SD Mines’ academic catalog.
Physics MS Program objectives and student learning outcomes:
Objective 1: Students will have deep knowledge of physics.
Student learning outcomes:
1. Physics M.S.'s should have deep knowledge of the theories that form the basis of
classical mechanics, electromagnetism, quantum mechanics, thermodynamics and statistical
mechanics.
2. Physics M.S.’s should have deeper knowledge of one or more specialized fields such
as condensed matter physics, nuclear physics, particle or astroparticle physics.
Objective 2: Students will be able to perform effective research in physics.
Student learning outcomes:
1a. Physics M.S.'s in experimental subfields should be able to design and conduct
experiments in order to investigate physical phenomena. They should be able to analyze
data.
1b. Physics M.S.’s in theoretical subfields should be able to apply or extend theories
in order to describe or explain physical phenomena.
2. Physics M.S.'s should be prepared to follow a career path in a variety of industries
or education.
Objective 3: Students will communicate effectively.
Student learning outcomes:
1. Students will communicate in writing about scientific and technical concepts concisely
and completely.
2. Students will organize and communicate ideas using words, mathematical equations,
tables, graphs, pictures, animations, diagrams, and other visualization tools.
Non-thesis MS degree assessment: graduate course work, master degree project, project presentations. See more details
in SD Mines’ academic catalog.
Thesis MS degree assessment: graduate course work, research proposal, thesis and thesis defense. See more details
in SD Mines’ academic catalog.
Physics PhD Program objectives and student learning outcomes:
Objective 1: Students will have deep understanding of physics.
Student learning outcomes:
1. Physics Ph.D.'s should have deep knowledge of the theories that form the basis
of classical mechanics, electromagnetism, quantum mechanics, thermodynamics and statistical
mechanics.
2. Physics Ph.D.’s should have extensive knowledge of one or more specialized fields
such as condensed matter physics, nuclear physics, particle or astroparticle physics.
Objective 2: Students will be able to perform effective research in physics.
Student learning outcomes:
1a. Physics Ph.D.'s in experimental subfields should be able to design and conduct
original experiments in order to investigate physical phenomena. They should be able
to analyze data and publish these results in scientific journals.
1b. Physics Ph.D.’s in theoretical subfields should be able to apply, extend, or construct
theories in order to describe, explain, or predict physical phenomena. They should
be able to describe and publish their work in scientific journals.
2. Physics Ph.D.'s should be prepared to follow a career path towards quality positions
in academia or assume leading technical roles in a variety of industries.
Objective 3: Students will communicate effectively.
Student learning outcomes:
1. Students will communicate in writing about scientific and technical concepts concisely
and completely.
2. Students will organize and communicate ideas using words, mathematical equations,
tables, graphs, pictures, animations, diagrams, and other visualization tools.
PhD degree assessment: qualifying exam, comprehensive exam, dissertation and dissertation defense. See more details in SD Mines’ academic catalog.
Research Labs & Centers
Located an hour's drive from the Sanford Underground Research Facility (SURF) in the beautiful Black Hills, South Dakota Mines has made recent hires resulting in a group of seven faculty collaborating on internationally recognized underground/under-ice physics experiments to increase our understanding of particle physics and the universe, complementing the department's historic strengths in experimental and theoretical condensed matter and material science, all summarized below. Light TA loads and external funding allow graduate students to focus on research early, and undergraduates also take part in research both for pay and for academic credits.
Click on any category title for more information. Names of participating faculty showed below.
Have more questions?
Mailing Address
Physics
South Dakota School of Mines & Technology
501 East Saint Joseph Street
Rapid City, SD 57701
Physics Secretary's office: EEP227
FAX 1 (605) 394-2365