Fall 2024 APAM Department Newsletter

Fall 2024 APAM Department Newsletter, Columbia Engineering (pdf)

Dear APAM Community,

Greetings and best wishes for the New Year. This newsletter highlights the exceptional activities and accomplishments of our students, faculty, scientists, and alumni throughout the Fall semester. Across all three APAM programs—Applied Physics, Material Science, and Applied Mathematics—faculty and students have been engaged in a wide range of scientific endeavours, including innovations in Plasma Physics and Fusion Energy, novel battery technology, a new start-up for advanced photonic devices and even a knit “flat antenna” for long-wave communication (a security blanket if you will). 

This year also saw an extraordinary list of honors for our faculty in all three programs, emphasizing their leadership roles and the interdisciplinary strengths of our faculty and department. Highlights include prestigious fellowships in Applied Physics, Applied Mathematics, and Material Sciences from the APS, the Department of Defense, and the Moore and Simons foundations. Congratulations to all of our awardees.  

Finally, as we prepare for another exciting year, I’m thrilled to welcome two new faculty members, Prof. Xueyue “Sherry” Zhang and Prof. Michele Simoncelli, whose expertise in advanced quantum devices and novel computational materials physics will enrich our community and promise to bring exciting new discoveries and innovations. 

I encourage you to explore the full newsletter to learn more about these accomplishments and many others. Together, we are shaping the future of science and engineering. Wishing everyone a year filled with continued achievements, growth, and discovery.

Best,

Marc Spiegelman 
Chair, Department of Applied Physics and Applied Mathematics
Arthur D. Storke Memorial Professor of Earth and Environmental Sciences and
Professor of Applied Physics and Applied Mathematics