The Departmental of Physics curriculum combines fundamental physics courses with hands-on laboratory training and research projects.

We have a dedicated faculty and staff that support such student participation with state-of-the-art research laboratories, observatories and other educational programs that will enhance the students' future professional prospects.

The flexibility of the curriculum permits interdisciplinary exploration, not only among the physics and astronomy disciplines, but also the other STEM fields such as biology, chemistry, geology, environmental sciences, mathematics and computer science.

We expect our curriculum to result in physics graduates who are capable of applying and adapting their undergraduate education in a variety of scientific, teaching or engineering professions, as well as future educational endeavors.

News

Dr. Zachary Russell, assistant professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at App State, center, works with student researchers Ethan Humphries, a senior physics major from Kings Mountain, and Hunter Corman ’24, an engineering physics graduate student from Morehead City, pictured in the background, in the Ion Innovations Scientific Instrumentation Development Lab in Boone to assemble 3D-printed components for rapid prototyping of microscope designs. Russell has been awarded a $2.3 million grant fro

AI-powered microscopy aims to save North Carolina farmers millions [faculty featured]

Intestinal parasites quietly take a heavy toll on livestock across North Carolina and the Southeast. The losses aren’t small — they cut deep into ...

Two-time App State alumnus and former U.S. Army Special Operations Ranger Dan Blakeley ’15 ’18, who served in the 2nd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, speaks at the university’s annual Veterans Day Ceremony, held Nov. 11 in the B.B. Dougherty Administration Building on App State’s Boone campus. Photo by Chase Reynolds

App State alumnus Dan Blakeley ’15 ’18 helps veterans find their voice

BOONE, N.C. — Appalachian State University held its annual Veterans Day Ceremony on Tuesday, Nov. 11, to honor the men and women who have served in ...

CAS Corps member Cade Tischer is a senior applied physics major from Cary. Photo submitted

Physics major Cade Tischer joins CAS Corps

The College of Arts and Sciences (CAS) Corps are chosen to serve as representatives to all constituents of CAS and to create, promote and execute oppo...

Dr. Dan Caton

Lights Over Linville: Brown Mountain’s Enduring Mystery [faculty featured]

Daniel Caton has spent most of his life explaining the night sky. As an astronomy professor at Appalachian State University, he can tell you which dot...

Carla Ramsdell is the practitioner-in-residence in the Appalachian State University Department of Physics and Astronomy and sustainability liaison for the College of Arts and Sciences. Photo by University Communications

Carla Ramsdell debuts hurricane preparation series "The Resilient Kitchen"

BOONE, N.C. — On the first anniversary of Hurricane Helene hitting Western North Carolina, Carla Ramsdell, practitioner-in-residence in the App...