Main goals of this class
Introduction to basic research principles, including literature searches, AI, graphing and presentation
Introduction to sample growth and determination of sample quality
Introduction to magnetic research
Practice in research and scientific communication (in both oral and written form)
Learning to seek feedback from peers and various advisors on how to improve research
Learning how to take ownership of your own research (AKA don't wait on the professor to bug you)
Fall 2026 Lectures (See Syllabus for Future Plans)
August 18: What you will be learning in Physics 293
August 20: Distinguishing types of magnetism
August 25: The novel magnetism our group discovered
Select Fall 2025 Lectures
Distinguishing types of magnetism and a brief project preview
Our magnetic discovery and discussing the project you might do
Characterizing materials with x-ray diffraction focus
Raman data, finding peak locations, and introducing peak fitting
An introduction to Excel and mention of other useful programs for graphing/fitting and the Excel example file
Lorentzian fitting example
How to write and give a good talk (some information on abstracts, see Additional Materials for rubrics)
Future research and funding/scholarship opportunities