Physics

"During my time at Union, I had the blessing of working with both the mathematics and physics departments. While I was there I began to feel called to education. Through the guidance and support of the physics department, I was able to experience an amazing internship opportunity with the American Association of Physics Teachers in Washington, D.C. Through this internship I began performing research on the relationship between low-income K-12 education and Bachelor degrees in STEM fields. I have had the opportunity to present this research at various conferences across the country to raise awareness on the issue. I am currently completing my Masters of Education in Initial Licensure with a Concentration in Secondary Mathematics online at the University of Tennessee at Martin. I was granted a Noyce Scholarship through the National Science Foundation which aims to put qualified STEM teachers in high-needs schools. Once I complete my masters in May of 2024, I will be double endorsed to teach both mathematics and physics. I plan to teach in a low-income school and hope to make a positive impact, as small as it might be, on the socioeconomic opportunity gap that is especially prevalent in STEM."

"My time at Union developed my mind in ways that I did not expect a college experience to be able to do. I expected to grow in intellect and to develop my problem-solving skills; however, while these skills did develop, I also grew in my theological knowledge and learned how to see mathematics and science through the eyes of faith. Throughout my learning experiences, my faith truly deepened as my knowledge of the universe widened. Through the personal guidance that each professor offers, I learned how to be comfortable with curiosity and wonder and appreciate the universe as a place of mystery."

— Taylor Overcast ('23), Masters student in Education, University of Tennessee at Martin, Martin, TN

"My favorite memories from Union include working late into the night with fellow classmates on physics problems as we utilized the long whiteboard in the Pit. These experiences developed perseverance in problem solving and the value of collaboration. Our shared sufferings and triumphs formed a sense of camaraderie among our small group. I am additionally grateful for the approachability of the Union physics professors and their continuous patience during office hours and class time."

"Currently, I am working on finishing my PhD at the University of Kansas. I am part of the KU experimental nuclear group, which is part of the CMS collaboration at the Large Hadron Collider at CERN. During Fall 2022, I got to travel to Geneva to work at CERN for 5 months to assist with detector hardware work. My own research comes from data taken at the CMS detector and seeks to better understand gluon spin distributions inside nucleons."

— Cole Le Mahieu ('18), PhD student in Physics, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS

"Union was extremely influential in my growth academically and spiritually. The small, personal class rooms allowed for an incredible amount of 1 on 1 time with my professors, which greatly increased my ability to learn the material I needed to know. On top of this, the professors are always extremely open to any student who needed help, and they were very aware of the information the students needed to know to succeed in my field after leaving Union. However, the impact that they had on me as a person is even greater than what they did for me academically. I visited professors' houses for gatherings on a regular basis, and it was very obvious they cared immensely for me as a person even beyond as a student."

"My current research involves searching for and testing useful scalar invariants to investigate metrics of curved spacetimes, especially wormhole metrics. I also work in testing the physicality for models of hetorotic string theory."

— Christian Brown ('20), PhD student in Physics, Baylor University, Waco, TX

"My physics education at Union was very personal. Many of the courses had no more than a few students, and so it was easy to ask questions during the lecture. Professors' doors were always open for our questions, which were encouraged and never disparaged. All these things made for an environment that really supported learning."

— Emilie Huffman ('12), Postdoctoral Fellow, Perimeter Institute, Ontario

"Union University offers a unique blend of the highest-quality classroom education and a caring, nurturing campus life. I have found the training I received at Union to be of the highest caliber. It was that training, along with contacts made through Union's Physics department, that helped me earn a Department of Energy fellowship enabling me to attend graduate school. I now work at a DOE national laboratory thanks in no small part to the training and guidance I received at Union. However, perhaps the greatest benefit of attending Union is that it offers the distinct advantage of learning in a Christian environment with faculty who are genuinely concerned for both the educational and spiritual development of each student."

— Kevin Reaves ('88), Health physicist, Oak Ridge National Laboratory

"Since I left Union, I have been challenged with many science and health science related problems. Union provided me with the foundation needed to address all of these, as well as the many other situations I have regularly encountered."

— Kyle Brown ('97), Radiation Monitoring, State of Tennessee

"My physics training has given me a strong foundation from which to take messy data and impose a degree of order so that we can glean meaningful insights. One thing that sets physics apart as a discipline is its handling of uncertainty and experimental error. You learn how to explore the bounds of what can be known, how to refine data collection processes, and how to draw sensible conclusions. These skills are invaluable in a world where memory is cheap and businesses have access to tremendous amounts of data that can inform their decisions."

"Physics isn't easy. I've studied physics at three different universities, and I've seen many students struggle and burn out without proper support. Union's physics department was by far the most supportive environment, with professors who are patient, kind, and committed to cultivating their students' highest potential."

"I currently work as a senior business analyst for Apprenti. My role has three main areas of responsibility: systems architecture, business analytics, and data pipeline management."

— Michael Cochran ('15), Senior Business Analyst, Apprenti, Seattle, WA

"The part of the Union education which helped me most, and has set the stage for where I would like for my career to go, is the small class sizes. Working at a large state university has shown me how hard it is to form relationships in classes with over a hundred students. The small class sizes at Union allowed me to form better relationships with both the faculty and with the other students, remaining in touch with some UU faculty after leaving and maintaining friendships with the students I met at Union."

"My current work is in experimental nuclear physics as a PhD student at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. I work on data analysis for the retired EXO-200 experiment. EXO-200 was an experiment designed to search for neutrinoless double beta decay in Xenon-136, a process that if discovered would show that neutrinos are majorana particles. My current research is on the decay of Xe-137, an unstable isotope of Xenon with a half life of a little under 4 minutes produced through thermal neutron capture on Xenon-136. On the smaller scale, I also spend some of my time working on silicon photomultipliers which will be used for the nEXO experiment, a kilotonne scale neutrinoless double beta decay xenon experiment currently in development stages."

— Seth Thibado ('18), PhD student in Physics, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA

"As a Scientist at Simulation Technologies Inc. (Simtech), based in Huntsville, Alabama, my role is dynamic and multifaceted. I'm responsible for extracting valuable insights from various sources, including 6-DoF simulations and live system test events. Using Python and Matlab, I process raw data into meaningful plots, facilitating a comprehensive analysis of system performance. Identifying and addressing performance deficiencies is a critical part of my role, helping to ensure the reliability and effectiveness of our projects. Furthermore, I regularly contribute to the communication of our findings by developing presentations and reports, whether it's sharing analysis results or providing insights into normal system behavior to project management."

"The Physics Department at Union University offers an inclusive and nurturing environment, where the professors are not just educators but dedicated mentors actively invested in your growth and success. My time at Union was characterized by memorable experiences, from friendly board game nights to enlightening conversations with professors who genuinely cared about their students' academic journeys. I had the privilege of attending Physics conferences and collaborating with professors on physics demonstrations at public events. This close-knit community of passionate educators at Union is driven by a shared commitment to teaching and active involvement in their students' academic lives. The genuine care and dedication of Union's Physics professors have left an indelible mark on my educational journey, emphasizing the department's unique and welcoming ethos."

"My current occupation demands a unique blend of technical analysis, programming, and technical writing skills — competencies that I began honing during my time within Union's close-knit Physics community. Solving classical physics word problems instilled in me an intuitive ability to apply fundamental physics concepts to real-world scenarios. The physics programming assignments equipped me with programming proficiencies highly sought-after across the STEM workforce, serving as a solid foundation for software development and data science roles. Additionally, the experience of composing and presenting detailed lab reports was instrumental in refining my capacity to effectively communicate intricate technical concepts and research findings to a broader audience. The nurturing environment of Union's Physics department, underpinned by dedicated faculty and rigorous coursework, played a pivotal role in molding me into a well-rounded professional."

— Daniel Keylon ('16), Scientist, Simulation Technologies Inc. (Simtech), Huntsville, Alabama

"I entered the Navy to teach at the Naval Nuclear Engineering School. The background in physics and chemistry I received at Union was fundamental in my success. Although I was humbled by the other instructors-in-training, all selected from the top 5% of colleges in the U.S., I found I was able to comprehend and communicate even the most difficult material as well as or better than most.""

— Michelle Goforth ('91), Navy Nuclear Engineering School

"Union University's physics department did an excellent job of preparing me to work with the fusion energy physicists at the Fusion Research Center at Oak Ridge National Lab. Even though the physics problems we solved were often difficult, I have many good memories of the small classes and teachers. The faculty are outstanding scientists, teachers, and Christian role models."

— Vicki Lynch ('77), Fusion Research Center, Oak Ridge National Laboratory