Research activities of the Physics Department fall traditionally into two main areas:
- research concerning the physics of fundamental interactions (nuclear and subnuclear physics, elementary particles), astrophysics, theoretical physics (theory of nuclei and of fundamental interactions, statistical mechanics, foundations of quantum mechanics, econophysics); this research is conducted in sinerhy with the Pavia section of INFN;
- research on the physics of matter, both experimental and theoretical, in particular solid-state physics (semiconductors, insulators, magnetism and superconductivity), materials science, optics and photonics, quantum information, often related to nanophysics (semiconductor nanoparticles, magnetic nanoparticles, photonic nanostructures).
Other important research concerns educational and historical physics as well as scientific museology, with dissemination activities that fall with the framework of science education as well as popular science.
Beyond traditional research of fundamental character, growing importance is given to applied and interdisciplinary physics, especially related to areas of great strategical interest such as health and biomedical physics, radioprotection and radiobiology, renewable energies and photovoltaics, cultural heritage, Information and Communication Technologies. Such activities are often developed through technological transfer and collaborations with various industries and research institutions.
This section gives a short description of the various research lines, of applied research and technological transfer, with details on laboratories and equipment and on publications.