Research
From exoplanets and galaxy formation to quantum simulation, nanomaterials and the Belle II experiment – research at every scale, open to students at every level.
Research at Every Scale
The Department of Physics & Astronomy has an active research program spanning astronomy and astrophysics, atmospheric science, theoretical and computational condensed matter physics, experimental condensed matter physics, experimental particle physics, experimental quantum science, photonics and ultrafast optics. Faculty, doctoral and master’s students and undergraduates work side by side in the department’s laboratories in the Natural Science and Shumaker Research buildings and at Moore Observatory.
Facilities and partners: the PACER research computing cluster (98 teraflops) and the university-wide Zurada computing facility; Moore Observatory and remote robotic telescopes at Mt. Lemmon, Arizona, and Mt. Kent, Australia; Minerva Australis and the Vera C. Rubin Observatory’s Legacy Survey of Space and Time; NASA’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS); KEK, Japan’s national laboratory for high-energy physics; and the Conn Center for Renewable Energy.
Research Areas
From Quantum Particles to Career Success
Ready to turn your passion for problem-solving and analytical thinking into professional impact? Explore Physics and Astronomy at the University of Louisville — where undergraduate research, NASA-funded faculty projects, and rigorous scientific training launch careers in research, engineering, data science, medicine, and beyond.