Applied Physics News

Learn more about the recent research accomplishments, contributions, and awards of our Applied Physics faculty members and students.

Harnessing Quantum Properties to Create Single-Molecule Devices

Columbia team discovers 6nm-long single-molecule circuit with enormous on/off ratio due to quantum interference; finding could enable faster, smaller, and more energy-efficient devices. More

Dec 07 2020 | By Holly Evarts | Image Credit: Julia Greenwald and Suman Gunasekaran/Columbia Engineering

Fooling fusion fuel: How to discipline unruly plasma

Prof. Paz-Soldan, a co-author of a new Physical Review Letters article, was featured in Newswise More

Apr 27 2021 | Newswise

Lipson Group Paper Named February Optics Express Top Download

Michal Lipson's group's paper, "2D beam steerer based on metalens on silicon photonics," was named an Optics Express Top Downloads from February 2021 More

Mar 10 2021 | Lipson Group

Okawachi Named Chair-Elect for Optical Society's Integrated Photonics Technical Group

Mar 29 2021

Building Tough 3D Nanomaterials with DNA

Columbia Engineers use DNA nanotechnology to create highly resilient synthetic nanoparticle-based materials that can be processed through conventional More

Mar 19 2021 | By Holly Evarts | Photos and Animation Oleg Gang/Columbia Engineering

Mauel Receives Fusion Power Associates 2020 Leadership Award

Michael E. Mauel, Professor of Applied Physics, received the 2020 Leadership Award from the Fusion Power Associates (FPA) for his outstanding leadership More

Dec 18 2020

Prof. Michal Lipson Named 2021 John Tyndall Award Recipient

Lipson, the first woman to win this award, is honored for her pioneering work in photonics. More

Oct 30 2020 | By HOLLY EVARTS | PHOTO CREDIT: JOHN ABBOTT

Columbia Scientists Present Latest Results at APS Division of Plasma Physics Meeting

Columbia fusion scientists & students presented their latest results during the 62nd Annual Meeting of the APS Division of Plasma Physics More

Nov 12 2020 | By Michael Mauel

Lipson Wins 2020 Erna Hamburger Prize by EPFL-WISH

Michal Lipson was named the Erna Hamburger Prize Winner 2020 by the EPFL-WISH) (Women In Science & Humanities) Foundation More

Nov 16 2020 | Lipson Group

Is Nuclear Fusion Finally Within Reach?

"Imagine a society where we don’t have to worry about the supply of energy or the cost of sustainability." - Michael Mauel, Professor of Applied Physics More

Sep 15 2020 | By Ryan Mandelbaum | Columbia Engineering Magazine

Prof Oleg Gang Makes 3-D Nanosuperconductors with DNA

Complex 3-D nanoscale architectures based on DNA self-assembly can conduct electricity without resistance and may provide a platform for fabricating quantum More

Nov 10 2020 | By Ariana Manglaviti | Illustration Credit: Brookhaven National Laboratory

Okawachi Elected Optical Society Fellow

Yoshi Okawachi, a Research Scientist in the APAM Department was elected a fellow of The Optical Society. More

Oct 07 2020

Lipson on All Things Photonics

Prof. Michal Lipson was interviewed on the All Thing Photonics Podcast in the episode, “Silicon Photonics in the Fast Lane, Light on a Chip, and 20-Plus Years More

Sep 22 2020 | All Things Photonics

Columbia Wins $1.8M NSF Grant for CCI Phase 1 Center for Chemistry with Electric Fields

Led by Applied Physics Prof. Latha Venkataraman with Department of Chemistry colleagues, the new ChEF center will focus on developing methods to use electric More

Sep 01 2020 | Columbia Engineering News

Lipson Elected 2021 Vice President of The Optical Society (OSA)

Michal Lipson, the Eugene Higgins Professor Electrical Engineering and Professor of Applied Physics, has been elected 2021 Vice President of The Optical Society More

Sep 15 2020 | The Optical Society

Computational Engineering Science

Columbia Partners in National Effort to Spur Advancements in Quantum Science

Three Columbia Engineering and University researchers have joined a $115 million DOE-funded center that will pioneer quantum technologies. More

Sep 01 2020

Gaeta & Yu Receive NSF Grant for Quantum Computing

Professors Alexander Gaeta and Nanfang Yu are part of a team who recently received an NSF funded grant to work on quantum computing. More

Sep 08 2020 | NSF.GOV

Assembly begins on ITER, a massive scientific project that seeks to replicate the sun's fusion power here on Earth

Michael Mauel, a professor of applied physics at Columbia University, called the start of ITER assembly "a milestone for international science and demonstration More

Jul 28 2020 | CBS News

APAM and SEAS Course Restructuring in the 2020-2021 Academic Year

Aug 26 2020

Crunching The Numbers

Frictionless optical components increase computer performance while lowering energy consumption More

Aug 27 2020 | Columbia Engineering Magazine

Herman's New Book - Coming Home to Math

May 04 2020

A rainbow of layered paints could help buildings to keep their cool

Apr 30 2020 | Nature

Profs Michal Lipson and Mihalis Yannakakis Elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences

Two Columbia Engineering professors are among the newly elected members of The American Academy of Arts and Sciences. More

Apr 28 2020 | By Holly Evarts

Enabling New DNA-Based Therapy For Anti-Cancer Drug Delivery

Scientists designed a tunable peptide-like molecular coating that enables 3-D DNA origami to maintain their structural integrity and functionality in different More

Mar 13 2020 | By Brookhaven National Laboratory | Images Courtesy of Brookhaven National Laboratory

Columbia Team Discovers New Way to Control the Phase of Light Using 2D Materials

Researchers use atomically thin materials—1/100,000 the size of a human hair—to manipulate the phase of light without changing its amplitude, at extremely low More

Feb 24 2020 | By Holly Evarts | Images Credit: Ipshita Datta and Aseema Mohanty/Lipson Nanophotonics Group/Columbia Engineering

Mauel Named National Associate of the Academies

Feb 10 2020

Gaeta Named Highly Cited Researcher

Nov 20 2019

Beating the Heat in the Living Wings of Butterflies

Columbia engineers and Harvard biologists discover that butterflies have specialized behaviors and wing scales to protect the living parts of their wings. More

Jan 28 2020 | By Holly Evarts | Image Credit: Nanfang Yu and Cheng-Chia Tsai | Video Credit: Nanfang Yu and Jane Nisselson/Columbia Engineering

Nanfang Yu's Research Featured in the News

Feb 20 2020

APAM Faculty Featured in Columbia Engineering Magazine

Jan 02 2020 | Columbia Engineering Magazine

Nano-objects of Desire: Assembling Ordered Nanostructures in 3-D

Scientists establish new nanofabrication platform for directing nanomaterial components of different natures into 3-D arrays with prescribed organizations; More

Jan 13 2020 | Team Photo Credit: Columbia Engineering | Assembly Schematic Credit: Brookhaven National Laboratory | Platform Schematic and Fluorescence Images: Courtesy of the Nature Materials Paper | VIDEO CREDIT: JANE NISSELSON/COLUMBIA ENGINEERING