Physics

Opportunities for graduate studies

The graduate physics program at the University of North Texas gives you the opportunity to work with some of the country's best physicists, to use cutting-edge equipment and to make significant discoveries. UNT's program ranks in the second quartile of programs of comparable size in the nation. Graduate education in physics at UNT provides you with the quality of instruction and individual attention characteristic of the finest private universities with the resources and breadth of programs found at a student-centered public research university such as UNT. The more than 50 full-time physics graduate students pursuing research under the supervision of approximately 20 graduate faculty members make UNT's physics program one of the fifth largest in Texas and among the top 14 in the Southwest in size. Nonetheless, a friendly team spirit pervades the physics research laboratories and classrooms.

The Department of Physics is an exciting place, where you can earn master of arts, master of science and doctor of philosophy degrees with majors in physics. During your course work, you perform research in experimental condensed matter physics; theoretical and experimental atomic physics; experimental accelerator-based materials modification and analysis; and theoretical non-linear dynamics. These activities are supported by more than $2 million in annual expenditures for research in the department and aided by a technical support staff of machinists, technicians, engineers and clerks.

Graduate research

The research performed at UNT is fundamental in nature but relevant to technological applications. Participating in this intellectual atmosphere teaches you skills that serve you well throughout life.

For example, members of our semiconductor research group are working to synthesize and characterize semiconductor thin films, artificially structured materials and semiconductor nanostructures. The principal theme of their studies is the development of new and improved optoelectronic materials.

In other research, a faculty member and graduate students have investigated co-polymer gels that exhibit unique properties with applications for drug delivery systems in biological environments, among other possibilities.

In collaboration with researchers in an area semiconductor lab, faculty members in the Ion Beam Modification and Analysis Laboratory have discovered a previously unobserved phenomenon in the single-event upset of solid-state memory devices.

Researchers in the Center for Nonlinear Science have discovered a dynamic approach to anomalous statistics. This theoretical result has been used to create a method of time series analysis, with application to physiological, biological, environmental and sociological processes.

As these examples illustrate, the power and depth of understanding provided by physical analysis have practical applications in unexpected places. But these are by no means the only projects or applications of note.

Our alumni tell us the education they received here has been extremely valuable for careers in academia and industrial research laboratories. They also tell us that a graduate degree from UNT helped them gain real experience dealing with authentic problems of a fundamental nature that also have technological relevance.

Typically, students graduate with at least two publications in the professional literature. They also gain exposure to the international research scene through frequent international visitors and a biennial international conference, which attracts scientists from around the world. Our students also actively participate in regional, national and international meetings of professional organizations such as the American Physical Society. Those events help students meet potential employers and future colleagues and several times UNT students have won the best student paper award. Because of this involvement, our students experience firsthand what makes physics an attractive discipline, and they develop professional skills that help make their careers successful.

Admission requirements

Master’s degrees

You must meet the admission requirements of the Toulouse School of Graduate Studies and a set of departmental requirements. Contact the physics department for departmental requirements a list of admission requirements, contact the graduate school or access the graduate catalog online at www.unt.edu/catalog. While theses are not official requirements for admission to the physics program, typical successful applicants have:

• a minimum 3.0 GPA
• a minimum score of 640 on the quantitative portion of the GRE and a score of 4 or higher on the analytical section

Ph.D. degree

Admission to the doctor of philosophy program requires a satisfactory performance on the doctoral qualifying examination after completion of the basic graduate physics curriculum, usually taken at the end of the second year.

Degree requirements

Master’s degrees

The M.A. degree requires 30 semester hours and a thesis. The M.S. degree may be earned by completing 33 semester hours with a formal written report resulting from PHYS 5920 and PHYS 5930, Research Problems in Lieu of Thesis, or by completing 36 semester hours and satisfactorily passing the master's terminal examination.

Ph.D. degree

The Ph.D. degree requires a minimum of 60 semester hours beyond the master's degree, or 90 hours beyond the bachelor's. The Ph.D. represents the attainment of a high level of scholarship and achievement in independent research. The degree is granted after the successful completion of a sufficient and original body of research and scholarly work that appears in professional literature. After you complete the qualifying examination, you develop a proposal for research. A graduate advisory committee is constituted, to which you present and defend your proposal. The research that ensues from the proposal is then reported in a dissertation. The written dissertation must be approved by the graduate advisory committee and defended in an oral presentation in order for you to complete the degree requirements.

Financial assistance

The Department of Physics offers several graduate teaching assistantships of more than $1,500 per month for nine months for incoming students, with the possibility of summer employment as well. Research assistantships also are frequently available for returning students. Such aid is accompanied by an out-of-state tuition waiver. You should apply at the earliest opportunity.

New physics graduate students may be considered for generous graduate school fellowships that can provide as much as $16,000 for the first year of study plus a guarantee of departmental funding for two additional years. Similarly, new master's students are eligible for first-year fellowships paying $8,000. You must be nominated for the fellowships by the department.

Computer services

UNT has hardware and software for a wide range of instruction and research. Computer networks are installed in all academic departments, providing connections to a variety of general-purpose and specialized computing equipment.

The university offers you the ability to schedule classes, check accounts and pay tuition via the Internet. With the use of WebCT software, UNT electronically enhances curriculum in more than 500 classes and offers 11 graduate programs and certifications through videoconference and the web, with more on the way.

The central resources for academic computing consist of several UNIX multiuser computers, including a cluster of systems that support high-performance computing.

You can use UNT's considerable computing resources through an extensive wireless network on campus. Fourteen general access student microcomputer laboratories provide PC and Macintosh formats as well as laser printing, and one lab is open 24 hours a day. Some labs are reserved for use exclusively by graduate students.

Library system

The UNT libraries contain printed books, periodicals, electronic databases, maps, documents, microforms and audiovisual materials, as well as a large and growing number of electronic journals and books.

The Science and Technology Library holdings emphasize biology, chemistry, computer sciences, library science and physics and include an outstanding collection in mathematics. Catalogs for other major research libraries throughout the world can be searched electronically and documents ordered through UNT's Interlibrary Loan department.

Through the Tex-Share program, administered by the Texas State Library, UNT has borrowing privileges with academic and public libraries throughout the state. UNT libraries also hold membership in the Center for Research Libraries, giving patrons access to unique materials no longer available in other libraries around the country.