The Canadian Undergraduate Physics Conference (commonly known as CUPC) is an annual conference for undergraduate physics students from across Canada. Each year, it is hosted at a different Canadian university, by undergraduate students.
The 53rd CUPC was hosted at Carleton University, from October 20th-24th, 2017. CUPC 2017 featured undergraduate students from every province in Canada. Several Trent University students attended CUPC 2017, including Hamza Khattak, Sylvia Luyben, Luke Finney, and Melissa Van Bussel. All attendees were invited to present their research, and Hamza, Sylvia, and Melissa gave talks at the conference. CUPC provided many opportunities for attendees to network with other students, professors, career physicists, and potential supervisors for employment or graduate studies. There were also several unique and exciting events, such as a tour of the NRC in Ottawa and a Women in Physics breakfast.
CUPC 2017 was a valuable and inspiring weekend for all in attendance. 2018’s CUPC will be hosted at the University of Alberta.
Trent Student Abstracts from the CUPC
Entanglement Entropy
Sylvia Luyben
You’ve probably heard of particles becoming “entangled”, and affecting each other’s properties. But what is entanglement? And, the eternal question of a scientist, how do we measure it? The answer: entropy! By doing simulations of electrons in two-site systems, we can develop an intuitive sense of the evolution of entanglement within a system and understand the mathematics that drives such behaviour. Then, in extending to larger systems we analyze unexpected results to build a more complete picture of the nature of entanglement.
From parlour trick plasma to photonics: Energy focusing in grapes under microwave irradiation
Hamza Khattak
A popular internet parlour trick involves placing grape halves in a microwave to create plasma. Although there have been attempts at an explanation relating to surface conductivity, so far there have been no in depth scientific studies of why grapes form plasma when microwaved. To gain insight into the phenomenon, we use a combination of high speed and thermal imaging which allows us to study both the mechanics of the plasma itself as well as the physical phenomenon that forms it. The results indicate that the plasma is not formed due to surface conductivity as previously thought, but rather due to Mie Resonance modes related to the bulk optical properties of the grapes.
Using a Synchrotron to Explore the Potential Verwey Transition in Lead Rhodium Oxide
Melissa Van Bussel
A Verwey Transition refers to a phase transition in which a material’s magnetic, electrical, and thermal properties change when the material falls below a given temperature (the “Verwey Temperature”). For example, the material’s electrical resistivity increases rapidly when this temperature is reached, and charge ordering occurs. The Verwey Transition was first observed in magnetite (Fe3O4) in 1939. It was recently proposed that this type of transition may occur in Lead Rhodium Oxide (Pb3Rh7O15), given that it displays abrupt changes at ~185K. This would be particularly interesting, as it would be the first 4d or 5d transition metal oxide to exhibit this transition. We carried out x-ray scattering measurements using the Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Source (CHESS), a particle accelerator in NY. We aimed to determine the crystal structure of Pb3Rh7O15 at high and low temperatures, and to establish whether there is evidence of a Verwey Transition at ~185K.
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