The Department of Physics at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign has strong research programs in many branches of physics. Condensed matter research, both experimental and theoretical, has flourished for more than 40 years, during much of that period benefiting from interdisciplinary contacts stimulated by the Materials Research Laboratory (MRL). MRL has extraordinary central facilities for the preparation and microcharacterization of materials. Innovative programs in complex and non equilibrium systems and nonlinear dynamics have been launched with the cooperation of the new Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology. Other departmental programs profiting from extensive interdisciplinary contact include astrophysical theory, bio- and biomedical physics, and semiconductor physics.
Two large and successful experimental groups involving more than a dozen faculty are engaged in high-energy (``elementary particle'') and nuclear physics research and collaborate with colleagues at Fermilab, SLAC, MIT-Bates, Cornell, and other major laboratories in the U.S. and abroad. Theoretical seminars, often presented by visiting scientists, record the rapid developments in fields ranging from lattice gauge theory to biomolecular dynamics.
In addition to the sources of support noted on the individual project descriptions, the department continues to receive fellowship and other support from the National Science Foundation, U.S. Department of Education, IBM, AT&T Bell Laboratories, Exxon, Shell Foundation, Kodak, Petroleum Research Foundation, Tektronix, Silicon Graphics, Whirlpool, Xerox, and from numerous alumni and friends.