Welcome to the University of Chicago Department of Physics!
We are excited for you to join our department and the university community. We have developed a schedule to facilitate your transition to graduate school, combining a welcome by the Department of Physics, information sessions, advising meetings, and research talks. As graduate students, you are an important part of the Department of Physics and we hope to do everything we can to help you transition into our community.
This year orientation will take place in-person.
Newly Admitted Student Resources
Orientation Week One: Monday, September 14, 2026 - Thursday, September 17, 2026
Week One will consist of an introduction to the department, advising meetings, and information sessions. All sessions will be held in-person and mandatory, unless specified as optional.
Orientation Week Two: Monday, September 21, 2026 - Friday, September 25, 2026
Week Two will consist of required workshops and faculty presentations. All sessions will be held in-person and mandatory, unless specfied.
WEEK ONE
Monday, September 14, 2026
12:00 pm - 1:00 pm Lunch with Putri
KPTC 206
1:00 pm Welcome from the Chair of the Department of Physics, David Schmitz
David Schmitz is a Professor and Chair of the Department of Physics at the University of Chicago. He is an experimental particle physicist whose research focuses on neutrinos, including studying how neutrinos interact with matter and what neutrino oscillations can reveal about fundamental symmetries and new physics. He is co-Spokesperson of the SBND experiment at Fermilab and a member of the DUNE collaboration, working on the development of detectors and analysis techniques for the current and next generations of neutrino experiments.
KPTC 206
1:15 pm Physics Department Welcome
- Zosia Krusberg, Director of Graduate Studies and Associate Senior Instructional Professor
- Stuart Gazes, Undergraduate Program Chair and Senior Lecturer
- David D. Reid, Lecturer
- Savan Kharel, Assistant Instructional Professor
- Mohamed Abdelhafez, Instructional Professor
- Shadla Cycholl, Department Administrator and Assistant to the Chair
- Michelle Ayala, Academic Affairs Administrator
- David McCowan, Director of Instructional Laboratories
- Kevin Van De Bogart, Instructional Laboratory Staff
- Nathan Saffold, Instructional Laboratory Staff
- Julia Tuttle, Lecture Demonstrator
- Tiffany Kurns, Undergraduate Affairs Administrator
- Putri Kusumo, Assistant Director of Graduate Affairs
KPTC 206
1:30 pm - 3:00 pm Advising Meetings
One-on-one advising meetings with Zosia and Stuart.
KPTC 201, Zosia's office
1:30 pm - 2:00 pm Coffee Break
Short break with faculty and current students.
KPTC 206
2:00 pm - 2:30 pm Faculty Research Presentation: Luca Delacretaz
https://physics.uchicago.edu/people/profile/luca-delacretaz/
I am interested in understanding collective and emergent phenomena in condensed matter physics, in particular through the lens of quantum field theory. Conversely, quantum field theory – a cornerstone of theoretical physics developed throughout the 20th century in symbiosis with experimental particle physics – now receives some of its most powerful tests from experiments in condensed matter, cold atoms, and other complex systems; my research takes inspiration from these experiments to further develop the framework of quantum field
theory. Some of my more specific research focuses include Fermi liquids and non-Fermi liquids, fluctuating hydrodynamics, thermalization of quantum many-body systems, and effective field theories.
Tuesday, September 15, 2026
10:00 am - 11:00 am Information Session with Putri
This session will provide graduate students with information about the services and resources provided by the University, give an overview of the University of Chicago Physical Science Division policies and funding structures, and give an opportunity for students to ask questions about it all.
KPTC 206
11:00 am - 11:30 am Presentations from Enrico Fermi Institute and James Franck Institute
Ramona Echols (EFI) and Maria Jimenez (JFI) will share an overview of resources each institute can provide as well as insight on their commitment for all our students.
Presentation will be held in KPTC 206
11:30 am - 12:00 pm Student Presentations on Social Events with Nat Alden, Alex Nachmann and Pranav Chamakkad Muthnukrishnan (PhD Students)
Presentation will be held in KPTC 206
12:00 pm - 1:00 pm Lunch with Faculty and Current Students
Join our faculty for lunch :)
KPTC 206
1:00 pm Fire Slides
Callan Baruch, Thomas Jogand-Coulomb, Matt King
KPTC 206
1:30 pm Ping Pong
Tournament
KPTC 206
Wednesday, September 16, 2026
10:00 am - 12:00 pm Advising Meetings
One-on-one advising meetings with Zosia and Stuart.
KPTC 201, Zosia's office
12:00 pm - 1:00 pm Lunch with Faculty
Join our faculty for lunch :)
KPTC 206
1:30 pm - 3:00 pm Advising Meetings
One-on-one advising meetings with Zosia and Stuart.
KPTC 201, Zosia's office
Thursday, September 17, 2026
10:30 am - 11:00 am Student Presentation on Student Life with Angela Xiang and Emmeline Riendeau (PhD Student)
KPTC 206
11:00 am - 11:30 am Student Presenation on Cohort Bonding with Pranav Chamakkad Muthnnukrishnan and Abby Williams (PhD Student)
KPTC 206
11:30 am - 12:00 pm UChicago Grad Roadshow with Courtney Wiersema
Courtney Wiersema is the Senior Director, Professional Development and External Relations at UChicago Grad.
KPTC 206
12:00 pm - 12:30 pm Break
12:30 pm - 1:00 pm Campus Tour with UChicago Grad
Explore UChicago's campus through the eyes of a current graduate student, getting insider tips on the best study spots, resources, and hidden gems that matter most to grad life.
KPTC 206
1:00 pm - 2:00 pm Lunch with Second Years
Explore UChicago's campus through the eyes of a current graduate student, getting insider tips on the best study spots, resources, and hidden gems that matter most to grad life.
KPTC 206
2:00 pm - 2:30 pm Crerar Library Tour
Explore UChicago's campus through the eyes of a current graduate student, getting insider tips on the best study spots, resources, and hidden gems that matter most to grad life.
KPTC 206
2:30 pm - 3:00 pm Fire Slides
Jonathan Rositas, Claire Lessler
KPTC 206
WEEK TWO
Monday, September 21, 2026
9:30 am - 12:00 pm PHYS 300 Workshop on the Teaching and Learning of Physics
This workshop will provide students with tools to developing and utilizing skills to be a more effective Teaching Assistant. It is required for all Teaching Assistants to participate. Research Assistants and Fellows are strongly encouraged to attend so that you will be eligible to hold Teaching Assistantships in the future.
KPTC 106
1:30 pm - 2:00 pm Faculty Research Presentation: Dipti Jasrasaria (Chemistry)
https://www.jasrasariagroup.com/
Dipti Jasrasaria is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Chemistry and the James Franck Institute at the University of Chicago. Dipti joined the faculty at UChicago in 2025. The Jasrasaria Group uses theory and simulation to understand and control interactions between atoms and electrons in condensed phase systems. Beyond explaining how these systems behave, we develop design principles that optimize their performance for applications ranging from quantum information to energy conversion.
Presentation will be held in KPTC 206. This is an optional session.
2:00 pm - 2:30 pm Faculty Research Presentation: Noah Mitchell (Biophysics)
https://mitchelllab.uchicago.edu/
The Mitchell Lab studies the physics of organ morphogenesis. In feats of dynamic self-organization, cellular tissues transform into specific shapes that are vital for organ function. While genetic inputs are well-studied, how tissues pattern mechanical forces to sculpt stereotyped, complex 3D organ shapes remains a core scientific mystery. We study the mechanical processes that link genes to geometry, using advanced microscopy techniques, genetics, computer vision, differential geometry, and analytic approaches. Current projects aim to understand chiral symmetry breaking of the embryonic gut, cytoskeletal mechanics driven by cellular pulses of calcium, Ising-like behavior in mosaic tissues composed of heterogeneous cellular populations, multiscale mechanical folding of the primitive gut, and mechanical feedback in heart tube coiling.
After a PhD in physics from the University of Chicago, I held a postdoctoral fellowship at the Kavli Institute for Theoretical Physics at UC Santa Barbara, then returned to UChicago in 2024. The lab values curiosity, creativity, and courage to tackle cross-disciplinary perspectives.
Presentation will be held in KPTC 206. This is an optional session.
Tuesday, September 22, 2026
10:30 am - 11:00 am Faculty Research Presentation: Sarah King (Chemistry)
Sarah King's research aims to investigate how the nanoscale and mesoscale structure of organic, inorganic, and biological materials influences electronic structure, excited state dynamics, chemical reactivity, and functionality.
Presentation will be held in KPTC 206. This is an optional session.
11:00 am - 11:30 am Faculty Research Presentation: Aaron Chou (Fermi)
Aaron Chou’s research focuses on developing quantum sensors to study ultra-weakly-coupled dark sectors of the universe. He was the Cosmic Frontier convener for the APS-DPF Snowmass 2021 community planning effort. He currently serves as deputy head of Fermilab’s Quantum Division, as the Devices/Sensors thrust lead for the Quantum Science Center (one of 5 DOE National Quantum Initiative Science Research Centers), and as lead PI for a multi-institutional DOE “QuantISED” quantum sensor consortium targeting dark matter detection. Current research interests include 1) detecting axion dark matter with superconducting qubits, 2) detecting dark radiation from dark energy relaxation using Cooper-pair boxes, and 3) developing gravitational wave detectors based on high magnetic fields in order to probe early universe cosmological phase transitions and quantum gravity.
Presentation will be held in KPTC 206. This is an optional session.
11:30 am - 12:00 pm Faculty Research Presentation: Andrew Sonnenschein (Argonne)
https://inspirehep.net/authors/1019428
Presentation will be held in KPTC 206. This is an optional session.
12:00 pm - 1:00 pm Lunch with Students
1:00 pm - 1:30 pm Faculty Research Presentation: Ruben Verresen (PME)
Presentation will be held in KPTC 206. This is an optional session.
1:30 pm - 2:00 pm Faculty Research Presentation: Tian Zhong (PME)
https://sites.google.com/view/zhonglab-quantum/research?authuser=0
Tian Zhong is an Assistant Professor of Molecular Engineering at the University of Chicago. His areas of research expertise are in quantum photonics, quantum information and networking, solid-state quantum technologies, and hybrid quantum systems. Professor Zhong’s research focuses on developing enabling nanoscale photonic and solid-state (e.g. rare-earth-ion doped crystals) technologies for building quantum hardware to realize scalable quantum networks, hybrid quantum computing and sensing systems.
Presentation will be held in KPTC 206. This is an optional session.
2:00 pm - 2:30 pm Faculty Research Presentation: Mike Rust
Presentation will be held in KPTC 206. This is an optional session.
2:30 pm - 3:00 pm Faculty Research Presentation: Aash Clerk
https://clerkgroup.uchicago.edu/
Presentation will be held in KPTC 206. This is an optional session.
3:00 pm - 3:30 pm Faculty Research Presentation: Liang Jiang (PME)
https://pme.uchicago.edu/directory/liang-jiang
Presentation will be held in KPTC 206. This is an optional session.
Wednesday, September 23, 2026
9:00 am - 10:00 am Divisional Orientation with the Dean of Students Office
The Division plans to host an in-person orientation event at the Logan Center for the Arts (915 E 60th St) on September 23, 2026 from 9:00 am - 10:00 am. Students will have the opportunity to meet Dean of Students Office staff and other faculty and staff from the Division. This event is not required, but attendance is encouraged.
Thursday, September 24, 2026
9:30 am - 12:00 pm PHYS 300 Workshop on the Teaching and Learning of Physics
This workshop will provide students with tools to developing and utilizing skills to be a more effective Teaching Assistant. It is required for all Teaching Assistants to participate. Research Assistants and Fellows are strongly encouraged to attend so that you will be eligible to hold Teaching Assistantships in the future.
KPTC 103 and 105
1:30 pm - 2:00 pm Faculty Research Presentation: David Miller (Physics)
http://millerlab.uchicago.edu/
The Miller Lab explores the properties of fundamental particles at the edge of current technologies, ranging from the highest energy particle collisions ever produced in a lab at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN in Geneva, Switzerland using the novel instrumentation of the ATLAS Experiment, to searches for axion-like particles using small-scale experiments, to building dedicated high-speed electronics and real-time data processing, and cutting-edge data analysis and machine learning algorithms. Recent efforts in the Miller Lab on the ATLAS experiment have focused on operating the ATLAS level 1 trigger system for Run 3, designing triggers for the HL-LHC, measuring detailed properties of jets and jet substructure, and searching for new particles. In the arena of machine learning, we’re working on symmetry-group based architectures that provide interpretable physics-informed outputs, and allow for a principled approach to both classification and regression tasks. Our new efforts in searching for dark matter include both dark photons and axions using the BREAD (Broadband Reflector Experiment for Axion Detection) experiment.
Presentation will be held in KPTC 206. This is an optional session.
2:00 pm - 2:30 pm Faculty Research Presentation: Robert Hunt (Physics)
https://robert-hunt.github.io/index.html
Presentation will be held in KPTC 206. This is an optional session.
2:30 pm - 3:00 pm Faculty Research Presentation: Young-Kee Kim (Physics)
https://youngkee.psd.uchicago.edu/
Prof. Young-Kee Kim is the Albert A. Michelson Distinguished Service Professor of Physics at UChicago and the Director Emeritus of Fermilab, America’s Particle Physics and Accelerator Laboratory. Previously she served as the President of the American Physical Society (APS).
Prof. Kim received her BS (1984) and MS (1986) in physics from Korea University in South Korea, and her Ph.D. (1990) from the University of Rochester. She was a Postdoctoral Fellow at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, and became Assistant (1996), Associate (2000), and Full (2002) Professor at Univ. of California, Berkeley. She moved to UChicago in 2003 and served as chair of the Department of Physics between 2016 and 2022. She served as Interim Director (2025) and Deputy Director (2006-2013) of Fermilab.
Prof. Kim is an elected member of the National Academy of Sciences, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the Royal Society, and the Korean Academy of Science and Technology, and a fellow of the APS, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. She received the Ho-Am Prize, the Arthur L. Kelly UChicago Faculty Prize, and the Korean American Pioneer Award.
Presentation will be held in KPTC 206. This is an optional session.
Friday, September 25, 2026
9:30 am - 12:00 pm PHYS 300 Workshop on the Teaching and Learning of Physics
This workshop will provide students with tools to developing and utilizing skills to be a more effective Teaching Assistant. It is required for all Teaching Assistants to participate. Research Assistants and Fellows are strongly encouraged to attend so that you will be eligible to hold Teaching Assistantships in the future.
KPTC 103 and 105