REU Site: Research Experiences for Undergraduates in Physics

The Physics and Astronomy Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) program at Michigan State University (MSU) offers students the opportunity to conduct advanced research in world-class facilities while being directly supervised by faculty who are recognized experts in their discipline. In addition, peer-mentoring and professional development are key components of the program.

This program consists of a 10-week research experience for the period of 2021-2024 for 12 REU participants each summer. The main goal is to bring the excitement of forefront physics research to undergraduate students, and to foster their development into outstanding scientists by helping them develop professional skills. Especially targeted are underrepresented students in physics and students from smaller colleges that do not have extensive research programs.

This REU program offers undergraduate students the opportunity to do forefront research in a field of physics – nuclear, condensed matter, high-energy, astrophysics, biophysics, or physics education. Each student in the program will work on a well-defined research project under the direction of a faculty mentor. Students choose their projects from a list suggested by the faculty.

A wide variety of projects, both experimental and theoretical, are available. In nuclear physics, MSU is the site of the National Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory and the Facility for Rare Isotope Beams, major centers located within a few steps of the Physics and Astronomy Department. REU students also have access to state-of-the-art research facilities such as the Keck Microfabrication Facility, the MSU High Performance Computing Center, the SOAR Telescope Remote Observing center, and numerous single-investigator laboratories in condensed matter physics, biophysics, and physics education.

Many faculty participate in international collaborations and have access to data from facilities such as neutrino and cosmic ray observatories and high-energy particle accelerators. The department’s theoretical faculty often collaborate with the local experimental groups and have provided excellent research opportunities for REU students. In addition to the faculty mentors, the REU program provides peer-mentoring, several professional-preparation workshops, including preparation for graduate school, and an optional short course on machine learning.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.