The Department of Physics in Lund is a department that belongs to both the Faculty of Natural Sciences and the Faculty of Engineering at

Lund University , motto = Ad utrumque , mottoeng = Prepared for both , established = , type = Public research university , budget = SEK 9 billion physics Physics is the natural science that studies matter, its fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior through space and time, and the related entities of energy and force. "Physical science is that department of knowledge which r ...

subdivisions. The department also offers courses and a Masters's degree programs in pure physics and provides physics education for the Master of Science in Engineering programs.

History

In 1666

Lund University , motto = Ad utrumque , mottoeng = Prepared for both , established = , type = Public research university , budget = SEK 9 billion professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an academic rank at universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who professes". Professors ...

ship in pure physics, so the teachings was instead given by professors in mathematics. There were however a course in experimental physics from the early 18th century, but that course was given by a professor in theoretical medicine; Kilian Stobæus was appointed as the first professor in 1728. It wasn't until the early 19th century that the physics professorship split from the mathematics, but then the professorship was shared with the

astronomy Astronomy () is a natural science that studies celestial objects and phenomena. It uses mathematics, physics, and chemistry in order to explain their origin and evolution. Objects of interest include planets, moons, stars, nebulae, g ...

. The University received its first full professor in physics in 1839. Although a pure department of

science Science is a systematic endeavor that Scientific method, builds and organizes knowledge in the form of Testability, testable explanations and predictions about the universe. Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earli ...

was not established until the late 19th century, the seeds for the department was established in 1735 when the physics teaching received its own space in the building Kungshuset. The teaching was held inside Kungshuset until the late 19th century, when the department moved to its own building which had instrumental halls, auditoriums, workshops and a library. The department moved again in 1950 to a large building complex named ''Fysicum'' due to increased space requirements, and it has been there since then.

Research

At the Department of Physics advanced research takes place divided in different divisions. The research areas are: Atomic Physics, Combustion Physics,

Mathematical Physics Mathematical physics refers to the development of mathematical methods for application to problems in physics. The '' Journal of Mathematical Physics'' defines the field as "the application of mathematics to problems in physics and the developme ...

Nuclear Physics Nuclear physics is the field of physics that studies atomic nuclei and their constituents and interactions, in addition to the study of other forms of nuclear matter. Nuclear physics should not be confused with atomic physics, which studies the ...

Particle Physics Particle physics or high energy physics is the study of fundamental particles and forces that constitute matter and radiation. The fundamental particles in the universe are classified in the Standard Model as fermions (matter particles) an ...

, Solid State Physics and Synchrotron Radiation Research. The department also hosts the Lund Nano Lab (LNL), part of NanoLund (formerly known as the Nanometer Structure Consortium), an interdisciplinary research environment for nanoscience and its applications in electronics, the life sciences etc. Further research centers are ''Lund Laser Centre (LLC)'', ''Consortium for Aerosol Science and Technology (CAST)'' and ''Lund University Combustion Centre (LUCC)''.

Scientists with activity at the department

Manne Siegbahn Karl Manne Georg Siegbahn FRS(For) HFRSE (3 December 1886 – 26 September 1978) was a Swedish physicist who was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1924 "for his discoveries and research in the field of X-ray spectroscopy". Biography Siegbahn ...

was awarded the

Nobel Prize in Physics ) , image = Nobel Prize.png , alt = A golden medallion with an embossed image of a bearded man facing left in profile. To the left of the man is the text "ALFR•" then "NOBEL", and on the right, the text (smaller) "NAT•" then " ...

for his discoveries and research in

X-ray spectroscopy X-ray spectroscopy is a general term for several spectroscopic techniques for characterization of materials by using x-ray radiation. Characteristic X-ray spectroscopy When an electron from the inner shell of an atom is excited by the energy o ...

Johannes Rydberg Johannes (Janne) Robert Rydberg (; 8 November 1854 – 28 December 1919) was a Swedish physicist mainly known for devising the Rydberg formula, in 1888, which is used to describe the wavelengths of photons (of visible light and other electrom ...

became famous for formulating the

Rydberg formula In atomic physics, the Rydberg formula calculates the wavelengths of a spectral line in many chemical elements. The formula was primarily presented as a generalization of the Balmer series for all atomic electron transitions of hydrogen. It wa ...

and he got a physical constant named after him. Three scientists from the departement have participated in the popular television program Fråga Lund: Nina Reistad, Bodil Jönsson and Sten von Friesen.

Hellmuth Hertz Carl Hellmuth Hertz (also written Carl Helmut Hertz, October 15, 1920 – April 29, 1990) was a German physicist known primarily for being involved in the development of inkjet technology and ultrasound technology. He was the son of Gustav Ludw ...

was a pioneer in

sonography Medical ultrasound includes diagnostic techniques (mainly imaging techniques) using ultrasound, as well as therapeutic applications of ultrasound. In diagnosis, it is used to create an image of internal body structures such as tendons, musc ...

and was one of the first to develop the

inkjet printer Inkjet printing is a type of computer printing that recreates a digital image by propelling droplets of ink onto paper and plastic substrates. Inkjet printers were the most commonly used type of printer in 2008, and range from small inexpensi ...

, and

Anne L'Huillier Anne L'Huillier (born 1958 in Paris) is a French physicist, and professor of atomic physics at Lund University in Sweden. Life L'Huillier first pursued an education and was awarded a Master of Science in theoretical physics and mathematics, bu ...

was a pioneer in the research on ultra short laser pulses. All of the above physicists are or have been members of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. Other members of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences from the departement are

Bengt Edlén Bengt Edlén (2 November 1906, Gusum – 10 February 1993, Lund) was a Swedish professor of physics and astronomer who specialized in spectroscopy. He was the first who identified the unknown coronal spectral lines in the Corona, which was u ...

, Hermann Grimmeiss, Cecilia Jarlskog, Heiner Linke, Claes Fahlander, Lars Samuelson, Torsten Gustafson, Cecilia Jarlskog, Ingolf Lindau, Hans Ryde, Sune Svanberg, Claes-Göran Wahlström and Torsten Åkesson.

Notes

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External links

Department of Physics

NanoLund

Lund Laser Centre

Consortium for Aerosol Science and Technology
Lund University University departments in Sweden 1735 establishments in Sweden Lund University