The Award Abstract reads: We do not know what comprises 85% of the universe. Uncovering the nature of such "dark matter" would address one of the most important mysteries in modern science. Excitingly, dark matter may not be a single particle, but could instead be a diverse set of particles tha form a complex "dark universe". This proposal seeks to search for an exciting signature of this dark universe by constructing the FermiLAb Millicharged Experiment (FLAME) at the high intensity Fermilab proton beam facility. This award will help inspire the physicists of the future by funding undergraduate students to construct and operate FLAME.

" 'I think there’s something sort of entrepreneurial about Davis,' Norcia said. 'I really liked that about the culture.' ” So reads one line in a recent Letters & Science Magazine article about Michael Norcia who graduated from UC Davis in 2014 with a BS in applied physics. After graduating he initially worked for a few Bay Area electric aircraft companies, focusing on air taxis, before moving on to co-found Pyka with some friends. He is passionate about the intersection of environmentalism, community development, and technology. The article is "Taking to the Skies: Alum Michael Norcia Discusses How His Company Pyka is Electrifying and Automating Aviation."

Recent astronomical observations have given cosmologists some new puzzles to ponder. Are we really seeing a breakdown of the standard cosmological model? Is the new data telling us that the dark energy is not a cosmological constant, but has a density that evolves over time? These questions, including graduate student Gabriel Lynch's efforts to understand the current cosmological situation, are discussed in a recent Scientific American article, "Latest Dark Energy Study Suggests the Universe Is Even Weirder Than We Imagined."

Award-winning staff member and musical philanthropist Bill Tuck, was recently featured in the Letters and cience Magazine.

Professor Gergely Zimanyi has been elected to membership in the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. Only 2-3 physicists are selected each year for this honor. 2025 is the 200 year anniversary of the founding of the Academy.

As the Vera Rubin Observatory team are commissioning their camera, the College of Letters and Science Magazine has a piece on its history, going all the way back to Distinguished Research Professor Tony Tyson's adolescence. “ 'I was a very sick child and in a steam tent for a year,' said Tyson, who suffered from rheumatic fever at the time. 'My dad got me an old shortwave radio, and I put on headphones and dropped a wire out of the window. I could tune in the rest of the world.' ” “That experience with shortwave radio spurred an interest in Tyson. Transmissions, invisible to the naked eye, were all around. He just needed to find a way to tune into them. By age 12, Tyson secured a ham radio license. As he sifted through the static, he connected with others from around the world. Years later, he applied this antenna-like attention to the stars.” More.

Distinguished Research Professor Andreas Albrecht was interviewed extensively by Professor Brian Greene, as part of the World Science Festival.

Dr. Brenna Mocker will join our department as an assistant professor this summer. Dr. Tessa Cookmeyer accepted an offer of an Assistant Professor position in Physics and Astronomy. The position will start in 2026.