Physics PhD

Program Code: G-PHYS-PHD
Degree Designation: Doctor of Philosophy
Department: Physics Department
Website: physics.duke.edu/graduate

Program Summary

The Department of Physics offers graduate work for students wishing to earn a PhD in physics.

In addition to a balanced program of core graduate courses, the department offers specialized courses and seminars in several fields in which research is being done by faculty and staff. With the help of faculty advisors, students select a course program to fit their individual backgrounds and goals, often including work in a related field. Students are encouraged to begin research work early in their careers, normally not later than the end of their first year in the program. Active areas of research include experimental studies in astrophysics, atomic/molecular/optical physics, accelerator physics, biophysics, condensed matter, high energy, nonlinear, nuclear, and quantum information physics, as well as theoretical work in condensed matter, nonlinear, nuclear and particle physics, quantum information, astrophysics, cosmology, and string theory. In addition, the Physics department is a participant in several university-wide and regional research organizations including the Duke Quantum Center, the Center for Theoretical and Mathematical Science, the Triangle Universities Nuclear Laboratory, the Duke Institute for Brain Sciences, the Duke Soft Matter Center, and the Duke Materials Initiative.

Academic Requirements

Requirements for the physics PhD degree include graduate coursework in core subject areas (mathematical methods, classical mechanics, quantum mechanics, statistical mechanics, and electrodynamics) as well as approved electives; preparing for and passing the doctoral preliminary examination (including a proposed PhD thesis research plan); and completion of a doctoral dissertation under the supervision of a faculty advisor.