While men still outnumber women majoring in most science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) fields in college, the number of women pursuing STEM degrees is increasing. 

Rachel Lee, Simarpreet Girn, Yashasvi Moon, Jessica Fink and Stephanie Collins from the department of physics, astronomy and materials science attended the APS (American Physical Society) Conferences for Undergraduate Women in Physics (CUWiP) from Jan. 19-21, 2024 in Rolla, Missouri.

Dr. Sarah Morrison, astronomy assistant professor, gave an invited talk at the conference. 

APS CUWiP helps undergraduate women in physics by providing them with the opportunity to experience a professional conference and information about graduate school and professions in physics. It also provides access to other women in physics who can share experiences, advice and ideas.  

In recognition of Women’s History Month, a few of the students shared their experiences at the conference and what it means to be a woman in physics. 

Rachel Lee 

Lee is a senior majoring in career prep physics and comprehensive mathematics. She is from South Korea but has lived in Springfield since high school. Lee conducts research under faculty research advisor Dr. Ridwan Sakidja.

Lee’s research won best poster at the conference. Her work focused on the development of models to predict surface reactions between water and the chemical Trimethylamine. The goal of the project is to generate a thin tunnel barrier to reduce the time and cost with guaranteed accuracy of quantum mechanics.  

According to Lee, this achievement confirmed she was doing the right things.  

“I always feel a hunger to know more and do more,” Lee said. “Winning means I’m going in the right direction, but I still want to learn, ask questions and find answers.”  

Lee enjoyed meeting other career–driven women in physics at the conference.  

“It’s often believed women need to give up things like having a family to be successful. Meeting successful women who were also moms was very motivating to me,” Lee said. 

Simarpreet Girn 

Girn is a senior from Tracy, California, majoring in astronomy and astrophysics, as well as applied mathematics. She researches under faculty research advisor Morrison.

Girn presented her research on the outcomes of inner planet formation in the presence of a larger outer planet like Jupiter. It primarily focused on planets with surrounding disks and their effects on other planets’ formations.  

“I want to find out if planets slightly larger than Earth can form with a giant class planet present,” Girn said.  

She valued being able to network with other like–minded women at the conference. She also appreciated the opportunity to learn research and communication skills from other successful women in the field.  

“Being a woman in physics means I get to be at the frontier of the field during a time when things are changing,” Girn said. “I get to represent my mother, grandma and countless other women who inspired me to pursue physics,” Girn said. 

Yashasvi Moon 

From Nagpur, India, Moon is a senior majoring in physics, mathematics and astronomy. She presented at the poster session as well as gave an invited talk.

Moon’s research calculates how often the South Pole telescope (SPT) observes certain pixels in the sky, also known as its duty cycle. She also researches under Sakidja.

The duty cycle is important to accurately constrain the frequency of transient events found by SPT. These events are caused by objects that change brightness over time, such as active galactic nuclei, gamma ray bursts and stellar flares. 

Moon notes her favorite part of the experience was meeting Linda Godwin. Godwin is an astronaut who completed four space missions and logged over 38 days in space throughout her career.  

Throughout the conference, Moon enjoyed getting to interact with and learn from other inspiring women.  

“Being a woman in physics means I can contribute to a field that has been historically dominated by men,” Moon said. “I want to do research that inspires the next generation of women in physics.” 

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