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Dear Members of the Villanova Physics Family,
I hope this newsletter finds you all well!
We had a great summer of research in the department. Students from various institutions joined our undergraduates to participate in research in our department and the Department of Astrophysics and Planetary Science. The summer culminated in an annual workshop hosted by Villanova where students presented and discussed their work.
After a summer of major renovations to the department, we are excited for another academic year and to welcome our incoming class of Physics majors. As you remember well, the start of a new year is energizing as the campus activities ramp up. Early fall is one of my favorite times of the year on campus.
We have an exciting year ahead, and I hope to see or chat with as many of you as possible. I wanted to highlight our second annual Physics Alumni Research Symposium, which will take place on campus on Oct. 4 (see details later in this newsletter!). Last year’s event welcomed alumni across six decades back to campus, as students and alums shared their experiences and networked throughout the day.
As always, please reach out if there is anything we can do for you, or just to share stories/experiences! If you are in the area, please stop by and say hello!
Best Wishes,
David Chuss, PhD, ’95 CLAS
Chair, Physics Department
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Meet the Newest Members of Our Department! | |
Assistant Professor Vasil (Vasilis) Rokaj, PhD, joins Villanova from Harvard University, where he was a postdoctoral fellow at the Institute for Theoretical Atomic Molecular and Optical Physics. Dr. Rokaj plans to establish an independent research group focusing on the fundamental interactions between quantum matter and cavity vacuum fields. His research interests include engineering collective quantum phenomena, such as topological phases and quantum transport, as well as entanglement in quantum materials with strong light-matter interactions. He received his PhD in Physics in 2021 from the Max Planck Institute for the Structure and Dynamics of Matter at University of Hamburg in Germany. Welcome to the department, Dr. Rokaj! | |
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Rebecca (Becka) Phillipson, PhD, came to Villanova in 2022 as an NSF MPS-Ascend postdoctoral fellow, sponsored by Joey Neilsen, PhD. This fall, Dr. Phillipson officially joins the University as an assistant professor. Her research focuses on the nonlinear dynamics and timing variability of compact object systems using both ground-based optical observatories and X-ray satellites. She was previously appointed as a postdoc at the University of Washington and received her PhD from Drexel University in 2020. Congratulations, Dr. Phillipson! | |
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Assistant Teaching Professor Maia Magrakvelidze, PhD, brings many years of experience from Temple University, Cabrini University and the University of Mary Washington. Dr. Magrakvelidze earned her PhD in Atomic, Molecular and Optical Physics from Kansas State University in 2013, where she worked on dissociation dynamics of diatomic molecules in intense laser fields. She looks forward to increasing her students’ confidence, critical thinking skills and understanding of fundamental concepts of physics here at Villanova. Welcome, Dr. Magrakvelidze! | |
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Promotions
Congratulations to Amber Stuver, PhD, and Joey Neilsen, PhD, who have been awarded tenure and promoted to associate professor, and to Dana Saxon, PhD, who has been promoted to associate teaching professor. Our department is fortunate to have such a talented and dedicated cohort of instructors!
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After 54 years of service to the University, College and department, Michael Hones, PhD, retired at the end of this past academic year.
Dr. Hones, a graduate of Holy Cross College, earned his PhD in Particle Physics from Notre Dame. He joined the department's faculty in 1969 and soon after became a part of the first experimental group to publish in a refereed journal in 1973. He went on to contribute to the field of philosophy of science and pioneered a course in the College that dovetailed with this research. This is a shining example of his commitment to the teacher-scholar model that lies at the heart of Villanova’s values.
Dr. Hones is renowned for his commitment to service. He was the first science advisor for the Office of Undergraduate Studies in CLAS. There he worked to increase understanding and exchange of ideas between the arts and sciences sides of the College. He has been a tremendous advocate for the faculty of the University. His service has been recognized with the Lawrence C. Gallen, OSA, Outstanding Faculty Service Award (1995) and the CLAS Unitas in Caritate Award for Faculty Service (2023).
In the department, Dr. Hones played a key role in obtaining a Pew Foundation Grant for educational infrastructure. He also served as chair from 2016 – 2022, a tenure in which the department grew significantly in its scholarly output thanks to his leadership.
It is difficult for us to imagine the department without Dr. Hones; however, we take comfort in that he will remain a member of the community after being granted the rank of professor emeritus. We wish him the best in his retirement. Dr. Hones’ commitment to the values of Villanova will continue to guide current faculty and students.
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Physics Colloquium Series | |
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Please join us on the following Friday afternoons at 3:00 p.m. for our department colloquia:
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Sept. 27 – Nathan Stoddard, PhD, ’99 CLAS, professor at Lehigh University
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Oct. 25 – Andrea Gokus, PhD, postdoctoral fellow at Washington University in St. Louis
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Nov. 22 – David Chuss, PhD, ’95 CLAS, professor and chair of the Physics Department at Villanova University
There will also be a special talk by another alum, Connor Williams, PhD, ’19 CLAS, in conjunction with the Department of Mechanical Engineering on Wednesday, Oct. 30!
We’ll be updating our calendar a couple weeks prior to each talk, so please check back for details. We can provide a Zoom link if you are unable to attend in person. Spring speaker dates will be added to our calendar later in the semester. Let us know if you’d like to be on our colloquia email list!
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Faculty and Research Highlights | |
Congratulations to department chair David Chuss, PhD, ’95 CLAS, and his FIREPLACE Legacy Survey research team, which includes postdoctoral researcher Dylan Paré, PhD, and Kaitlyn Karpovich ’24 CLAS. Their image of the central 500 light years of the Milky Way Galaxy has been featured in Space.com, Forbes (3/16/2024), Forbes (3/18/2024), The New York Times, and Scientific American! The FIREPLACE data used to create the image will help us understand the role of magnetic fields in the center of the Milky Way and galaxies in general. Stop by the Physics Department office if you’d like your own 18” x 24” poster of the image! | |
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Faculty Feature
Associate Professor Joey Neilsen, PhD
“From my very first day on campus in 2017, I knew that Villanova Physics was going to be a great place to study black holes. Unbeknownst to me, my job interview talk had been listed as an ACS-approved event, but as a faculty candidate, I was delighted to speak to a room packed with students! Looking back over the years since that day, I can say that mentoring students in research—especially the first-ever images of the supermassive black holes M87 and Sgr A*—has been the highlight of my time at Villanova. As a professor, I am fortunate to be able to pursue my passion for black holes, but it’s so much more rewarding to share that excitement with my students and to see them find their own interests! Just like so many pivotal moments in the classroom, our time poring over data and reviewing fundamental physics in the lab helps to create the student-faculty connections that make Villanova Physics such a special and unique department.”
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Congratulations to the Class of 2024! | | |
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We are so proud of these graduates, who began their college experience during the worst of the pandemic and emerged to become an integral part of the department. The next several months will find them working on their PhDs at Stanford and Harvard, starting jobs in industry, and even a thousand feet below the ocean’s surface studying nuclear propulsion! We have no doubt this hardworking bunch will leave their mark on the world. | |
Physics Alumni Research Symposium | |
Please join us for the second annual Physics Alumni Research Symposium on Friday, Oct. 4 on campus! This is a great opportunity to catch up with old friends, meet some new ones and share ideas and stories. Our students benefit tremendously from your experiences as alums! | |
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Alumni Spotlight
Jadyn Anczarski ’20 CLAS, ’21 MA is a physics doctoral candidate and KIPAC fellowship recipient at Stanford University. At the SLAC (Stanford Linear Accelerator Center) National Laboratory, Anczarski tests and develops next generation low energy sensors for direct dark matter detection. He focuses on charge mediated interactions where a dark matter particle exchanges energy within the detector and excites electrons into its conduction band. Anczarski helped develop a world leading detector-independent 7e- resolution amplifier to readout this charge signal. His thesis work will focus on pushing this resolution lower by designing a Cooper-pair-box transistor (a device based on the first iteration of superconducting qubits). During his time at Villanova, Anczarski received the Curvey Scholarship and Fellowship. From November 2023 through March 2024, Anczarski traveled the world on his Curvey Fellowship by visiting 17 countries across six continents (pictured here in Antarctica). Before starting his PhD at Stanford, he completed a Masters in Education at Villanova to develop the best pedagogical practices he will utilize as a professor. During his time at Villanova, he also worked with Joey Neilsen, PhD, analyzing X-ray observations of the supermassive black hole M87*. He and the entire Event Horizon Telescope Collaboration received the 2020 Breakthrough Prize for the first image of a black hole.
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Career Management Services |
The Villanova University Alumni Association and the Villanova University Career Center have partnered to offer sophisticated, flexible career management for alumni of all ages and at all stages of their careers.
Services and resources include support for resume writing and interviewing, job opportunities targeted to alumni, individual career coaching, virtual events on a variety of topics, cohort-based programs, and our Villanova-exclusive social and professional network.
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Alumni of the Physics Department are invited to share their news and accomplishments for inclusion in a future edition of the newsletter. | |
Make an Impact
Please consider supporting the Physics Department by donating to our gift fund, or to a specific area of your choice. Gifts may be used toward new state-of-the-art equipment, supplies for student research, as well as improving labs, classrooms and community spaces.
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