M.S. in Astronomy

Astronomy and related fields are at the forefront of science and technology; answering fundamental questions and driving innovation. The study of astronomy contributes to technology, economy and society by constantly pushing for instruments, processes and software that are beyond our current capabilities. Facilities Ever since its inception, Rensselaer has been a leader in science and technology education. Today, the institute provides students with one of the most modern environments for learning. Astronomy and Astrophysics Students’ thesis research in astronomy and astrophysics enjoys access to world-class ground-based telescopes located at observing sites in the southern hemisphere and China. Our faculty cooperates with the The Guoshoujing Telescope Spectral Survey (formerly LAMOST), the Sloan Digital Sky Survey and the immensely popular Milky Way @ Home project. Students also access, analyze, and interpret data from NASA’s major satellite missions such as the Spitzer Space Telescope and the airborne SOFIA observatory. A special program offered through the physics department is research on the origins of life on earth and beyond. This program is facilitated through the New York Center for Astrobiology. For students’ education in observational astronomy and for public outreach, the department maintains the Hirsch Observatory. It houses a Boller and Chivens 16" Cassegrain Telescope, a Quantum Scientific Imaging (QSI) imaging camera with filter wheel, and a Santa Barbara Instrument Group (SBIG) spectrograph. Biological Physics, Condensed Matter and Optics State-of-the art equipment for graduate students’ experimental research in optics and condensed matter physics is provided in the physics department. The equipment comprehends optical, electronic, and cryogenic instruments, surface science techniques and materials growth equipment. Examples are Atomic Force Microscopy, Auger Electron Spectroscopy, Ellipsometry, High-Resolution Low Energy Electron Diffraction, Reflection High-Energy Electron Diffraction, and X-Ray Crystallography. Also available for research are terahertz radiation sources and ultrafast laser systems. Also students engage in absorption, light scattering, and photoluminescence spectroscopy using systems operating from the terahertz frequency band to the ultraviolet part of the electromagnetic spectrum. Students interested in nanofabrication will find excellent facilities in Rensselaer’s Micro and Nano-Fabrication Clean Room (MNCR). This is a state-of-the-art, 5,700-square-foot, Class 100 multi-user facility which supports research and education in nanotechnology, biotechnology, microelectronics, solid state lighting, energy, and other fields. The MNCR offers infrastructure for end-to-end device fabrication, characterization, metrology and testing by the graduate student user on substrates ranging from a few millimeters in size to full wafers 200 mm in diameter for high-speed electronics, power devices, integrated circuits, microsystems, and other applications. Fabrication of structures as small as 20 nm is possible in the MNCR, and structures as small as 1.5 nm can be visualized. In addition, the facility has a dedicated staff to provide process solutions, training, and teaching. The Center for Biotechnology and Interdisciplinary Research on our campus offers extensive and high-quality facilities for students’ experimental research in biological physics at the molecular, cellular and tissue level.

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