10/24/1972 Construction of a new telescope observatory building, the Student Observatory.

10/24/1972 Construction of a new telescope observatory building, the Student Observatory.

Credit: Chuck Painter / Stanford News Service

Main content start

The Stanford Physics Department Annual Newsletter - 2024/25

Contents

A Message From The Chair

Dear Friend of the Physics Department,

A new academic year is beginning, and I hope that this newsletter will provide some connection with our department...

Alfred Zong & Jeongwan Haah, new professors in physics

Alfred Zong & Jeongwan Haah

New Faculty: Alfred Zong & Jeongwan Haah

Introducing our new faculty. 

Stanford Student Observatory telescope observing the night sky

Linda A. Cicero / Stanford News Service

Stanford Student Observatory Turns 50

In the hills west of the campus, tucked in between the Stanford Golf Course Club and Center For Advanced Study In Behavioral Sciences, lies the Stanford Student Observatory, an optical astronomical telescope built by students for teaching students...

The ceramic samovar branded “ECP” for ElectroChemical Plant, one of the soviet “Closed Cities”, near Krasnoyarsk

An unusual and highly effective career started by physics: Tom Neff, 1943 – 2024

Some of you may remember Tom Neff as a graduate student of Richard Blankenbecler and Sid Drell in the SLAC theory group. Tom received his PhD in 1973 with the thesis “Eikonal Methods and Absorptive Effects in Hadronic Production Processes” (SLAC preprint 156)...

Building quantum materials, one layer at a time

In primary school, we are told that there are three phases of matter: solid, liquid and gas. We later learn that solids can act as metals, insulators, or semiconductors, and that in most cases, their electronic character can be understood by considering one electron at a time...

Stanford overview

Photo by Linda Cicero

Faculty & Staff Retirements

Faculty & staff who retired in 2024. 

2024 Highlights

Bill Fairbank Memorial Run/Walk/Bike

David S. Levine Luncheon 

New Varian Courtyard

Upcoming Events

In Memoriam : Peter Sturrock

Peter Andrew Sturrock 1924-2024

Peter Sturrock, distinguished physicist and emeritus professor at Stanford University, passed away peacefully in his home, surrounded by his friends and family, on August 12, 2024, at the age of 100. A pioneering scientist, Sturrock was known for his profound contributions to the fields of astrophysics, plasma physics, and solar research...

Giving To Physics

Please make a contribution to the Stanford Physics Department at: giving.stanford.edu

Donations may also be made by enclosing:

1. A check payable to “Stanford University – Department of Physics” and

2. Specific instructions for the gift in the memo if applicable (eg. to which fund you wish to contribute) and mailing them to:

Department Of Physics, Attn: DFO
382 Via Pueblo Mall
Stanford, CA 94305