Physics Illinois

It is with great sadness that we share the passing of Professor Emeritus Leland "Lee" Holloway Jr., a longtime member of the Illinois Physics community.

Professor Holloway joined the Department of Physics in 1967 and spent more than three decades advancing high-energy physics research while inspiring generations of students through his teaching and mentorship. He served as co-principal investigator for the experimental High Energy Group at Fermilab and continued his research after retirement, contributing to the Virgo Interferometer project for gravitational wave detection in Italy.

Known for his humility, Professor Holloway often introduced himself simply as a "teacher," a reflection of the dedication and care he brought to every student he mentored. His passion for physics, curiosity, and kindness left a lasting impact on our department and the many colleagues, students, and friends who knew him.

Our thoughts are with his wife, Edit, his son, Bryan, and all who loved him.

Read more about Professor Holloway's life and legacy:

Leland Holloway Jr. Obituary (1936 - 2026) - Urbana, IL - The News-Gazette View Leland Holloway Jr.'s obituary, send flowers and sign the guestbook.

What if one of biology’s most fundamental concepts wasn’t the whole story? 🧬

New research from Illinois Physics Professor Sangjin Kim and her team is challenging a long-held assumption about bacterial gene expression.

By combining physics, biology, imaging, and computational modeling, the researchers found that gene expression isn’t governed by a single universal strategy. Instead, it depends on two key physical factors: timing and location.

Their findings could reshape how scientists understand cells and help guide future advances in synthetic biology.

👉 Check out the full story: https://physics.illinois.edu/news/Kim-group-bacterial-gene-expression

Join us in congratulating Illinois Physics undergraduate Cliff Sun on being named a 2026 Astronaut Scholar! 🚀🏆

Sun, a member of Professor Alexey Bezryadin's research group, is one of just 79 students nationwide selected this year by the Astronaut Scholarship Foundation. The scholarship recognizes outstanding undergraduate students pursuing STEM degrees who demonstrate exceptional academic achievement, research excellence, and leadership, while providing financial support and mentorship from astronauts and industry leaders.

In the Bezryadin group, Sun studies novel superconducting quantum devices and has already co-authored multiple research papers, serving as first author on three of them. Looking ahead, he plans to pursue a Ph.D. in physics and a career in quantum information science, with the goal of helping develop scalable, fault-tolerant quantum computers.

Professor Alexey Bezryadin praised Sun's "research productivity and passion for research in physics," calling his creativity, dedication, and scientific achievements exceptional.

Congratulations again to Cliff on this well-deserved recognition!

👉 Learn more here: https://physics.illinois.edu/news/cliff-sun-astronaut-scholar

What happens when physics teachers spend part of their summer learning from one another? 🍎🔬

This week, high school physics teachers joined Illinois Physics for the first session of IPaSS 2026, sharing ideas, exploring new teaching approaches, and collaborating on ways to bring engaging physics experiences back to their classrooms.

From whiteboard problem-solving sessions to hands-on iOLab activities, teachers spent the week exchanging strategies and testing new ideas. One highlight was the “New Sensors, New Frontiers” workshop, where participants explored labs focused on magnetism, buoyancy, and how light intensity changes with distance, discovering new ways to bring physics concepts to life for students.

The learning didn’t stop when the workshops ended. Teachers also had opportunities to connect with one another and with Illinois Physics faculty through social activities, including a barbecue, bonfire, and other gatherings that helped build the community that makes IPaSS so special.

We’re grateful to all the educators who spent part of their summer with us and look forward to welcoming them back for the second IPaSS session later this July!

For many students, introductory physics can feel intimidating. What if there were ways to help students approach those challenges with greater confidence and less anxiety?

Researchers at Illinois Physics and the University of Pittsburgh recently explored that question through two complementary studies focused on the student experience in physics courses. Their work examined how students perceive the demands and supports they encounter while learning physics and identified strategies that can help students view those challenges in a more productive way.

One study found that mindfulness training helped students reframe physics learning from a psychological threat into a manageable challenge. Students who participated reported lower anxiety, greater self-efficacy, and a stronger sense of belonging in their introductory physics courses.

Together, these findings offer new insights into how physics educators can better support students and create learning environments where more students can succeed.

👉 Learn more about the research here:
https://journals.aps.org/prper/abstract/10.1103/428l-3w5x

https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2521857123

"Looks like the future of the quantum industry is right here!"

One of the best parts of Illinois Physics is the people who help make the department feel like a community.

This summer, TA Randy Owen will complete his Ph.D. before heading into the quantum information industry, and his students wanted to celebrate with some pictures before he left 🥳

Congratulations, Randy, and thank you for everything you’ve brought to the classroom and the department. We can’t wait to see what’s next!

More than a decade after the discovery of the Higgs boson, Illinois Physics researchers are helping answer some of the questions that discovery left behind. 🔬

Professor Mark Neubauer and Illinois Physics alumnus JianCong Zeng were part of an international team that observed semi-leptonic vector boson scattering for the first time, a rare process that is closely connected to how fundamental particles acquire mass.

Using data collected at CERN's Large Hadron Collider and advanced machine learning techniques, the team confirmed long-standing predictions of the Standard Model while opening a new window into the study of electroweak symmetry breaking.

“This is a new playing field we've opened up,” Neubauer said. “It allows us to look for physics beyond the standard model in novel ways.”

The result marks a significant milestone in particle physics and provides researchers with a powerful new tool for exploring some of the universe's most fundamental questions.

👉 Learn more here: https://physics.illinois.edu/news/neubauer-zeng-semi-leptonic-decay-channel

Illinois Physics Professor Sangjin Kim has been selected for a 2026 National Science Foundation CAREER Award, one of the NSF's highest honors for early-career faculty. 🏆

A biological physicist, Kim studies how living cells are organized at the most fundamental physical level. Her research examines everything from the behavior of entire chromosomes down to the workings of individual molecules, combining experimental and computational approaches to better understand the dynamics of life inside cells.

Her CAREER project, “Decoding active and passive mechanisms driving bacterial chromosome dynamics”, seeks to uncover how bacterial chromosomes move and reorganize within living cells. While chromosomes are often thought of as carriers of genetic information, they are also highly dynamic structures that constantly shift as cells grow, divide, and respond to their environment.

By bringing together physics, biology, and computational modeling, Kim's work aims to reveal the physical principles that govern chromosome behavior and could ultimately inform future biotechnology applications and new approaches to understanding genome regulation.

Join us in congratulating Professor Kim on this well-deserved recognition and the exciting research it will support.

👉 Learn more here about Professor Kim's award and the work that led to it: https://physics.illinois.edu/news/Sangjin-Kim-receives-NSF-CAREER-Award

✨Celebrating graduating senior, Ivan Holt! ✨

Majoring in Physics with a minor in Secondary Education, Ivan’s journey has been shaped by both heart and perseverance. Growing up with his dad as his high school principal in Mount Carmel, IL, Ivan knew early on that he did not want to be a teacher. He excelled in science and math and loved working with kids, but he imagined a different career path for himself than teaching.

When his dad’s health declined, Ivan felt called to pursue something meaningful and challenging, and decided to major in biophysics. Engineering courses quickly showed him just how tough the field could be, but Ivan didn’t give up. His resilience and determination carried him forward.

An opportunity to student teach in Monticello while an ELA in the Illinois Physics Learning Assistant Program (https://physics.illinois.edu/academics/undergraduates/learning-assistants) changed everything. Ivan discovered how much he loved being in the classroom, building strong relationships with students and finding creative ways to bring lessons to life. His experience as a Learning Assistant gave him valuable early field experience, preparing him to thrive during his student teaching experience.

What is one of the most important lessons he’s learned? Teaching is all about preparation and flexibility. You should have a solid lesson plan but be ready to pivot. Sometimes those unexpected moments lead to the most engaging, hands-on ways to demonstrate a concept.

After graduation, Ivan will begin his career as a launch engineer for North American Lighting, but his story in education isn’t over. He plans to return to the classroom in a few years. When he returns, Ivan will bring with him real-world experience and the same dedication that has defined his journey so far.

We are so proud of you, Ivan! Your future students will be lucky to have you! 🚀📚

Illinois Physics is part of Pint of Science tonight at Gallery Art Bar! 🍻🔬

From the Microscopic to the Planetary brings together researchers for an evening of science that stretches across scales, from living cells to the Amazon to clean-energy materials.

Illinois Physics faculty Ido Golding and Ben Hooberman are among tonight’s speakers. Golding will discuss predicting the behavior of a living cell, while Hooberman will share how quantum physics can help find materials for clean energy. The event also features Francina Dominguez, who will explore how much rainfall in the Amazon comes from evaporation from the forest.

Doors open tonight at 6:00 PM, and the event runs from 6:30 to 9:00 PM at Gallery Art Bar, 119 W Main St.

👉 Learn more about the event and how to attend: https://pintofscience.us/event/from-the-microscopic-to-the-planetary/