REU Site: Physics Research at the University of Washington Bothell

This award supports research in relativity and relativistic astrophysics and it addresses the priority areas of NSF's "Windows on the Universe" Big Idea

A new Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) program in physics at the University of Washington Bothell (UWB) will be one of the only physics REU programs in the Pacific Northwest. The goal is to give a diverse group of physics students short-term research experience in gravitational-wave astronomy, computational physics and astrophysics, physics education research, and condensed matter physics.

The program includes close mentoring and guidance from faculty, fostering interaction, and active participation by students through professional development workshops, seminars, outreach opportunities, social activities, and presentation of research projects. Establishing an REU in Physics at the University of Washington Bothell will broaden the UWB Physics program's impact by attracting diverse physics students from the Pacific Northwest and across the country.

The REU program's coordination with local UWB physics summer research students will bring a broad national perspective and awareness to the participating UWB physics students, encouraging them to continue their studies and research training to become part of the diverse STEM workforce. Program activities will incorporate best practices in recruiting, supporting, and training diverse physics students.

Overall, the UWB Physics REU program is designed to positively impact the diversity of the national STEM pipeline and the training of future STEM professionals.

The program will give eight undergraduate students from outside UWB the opportunity to participate in a ten-week summer research program at UWB during each of the next three years. Up to six UWB students supported by faculty grants will join the REU cohort to benefit from and contribute to the program activities. The program includes close mentoring and guidance from faculty, fostering interaction, and active participation by students through professional development workshops, seminars, outreach opportunities, social activities, and presentation of research projects.

The proposed REU site will focus on research in frontier areas of phenomenological, experimental, and applied physics. In gravitational wave astronomy, participants will contribute to data analysis developments needed to maximize discoveries in this new observational field. In computational physics and astrophysics, students will improve developed software to analyze astrophysical phenomena and contribute to open source scientific computing.

In physics education research, participants will understand how people learn and practice physics and astronomy. Condensed matter research projects will investigate the characteristics of thin films for optical and electrical applications. All participating students will have the opportunity to gain programming skills through REU training workshops and in application to their research projects.

REU student contributions to UWB Physics research groups will advance the work led by each research mentor within the context of their research collaborations and the broader field. Establishing an REU in Physics at the University of Washington Bothell will broaden the UWB Physics program's impact by attracting diverse physics students from the Pacific Northwest and across the country.

Overall, the UWB Physics REU program is designed to positively impact the diversity of the national STEM pipeline and the training of future STEM professionals.

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.