To find out how to apply for USRAs, visit the department's Undergraduate Summer Research Awards page.

2026 Summer project descriptions will be updated as projects are submitted. Please see previous years' projects for more information about PHAS Faculty projects.

*Students: This will be a continuously growing list. Faculty members who are not listed here might be interested in supervising USRA students; please contact them directly (listed here or not) if they are engaged in research that interests you.
 

1.Quantum Coherent Control

Contact: V. Milner | Email: vmilner@phas.ubc.ca | Web: http://coherentcontrol.sites.olt.ubc.ca/

Our research group on Coherent Control of Quantum Matter uses high-power ultrafast lasers to study the behavior of various quantum systems. We are currently applying our advanced laser technology to superfluid helium, in order to investigate the fascinating phenomenon of superfluidity, which is still poorly understood on the atomic level. To do that, we place molecules inside helium nanodroplets and initiate their rotation with a unique laser tool, known as an “optical centrifuge”. Using the exquisite degree of rotational control, offered by the optical centrifuge (and unavailable anywhere else in the world!), we follow the rotation of the molecular rotors embedded in the superfluid environment, using them as “nano-probes” of superfluidity.

In the summer of 2026, the USRA student will join a team of two graduate students working on the implementation of a new type of the optical centrifuge (a.k.a. an “ultra-slow centrifuge”, recently designed by our group) in the experiments on molecules in helium nanodroplets. For specific tasks and projects, please contact Dr. Milner at vmilner@phas.ubc.ca.

2. CHIME telescope: options for Pulsar and/or FRB projects

Contact: Ingrid Stairs | Email: stairs@astro.ubc.ca

This summer project will entail Pulsar and/or FRB work with the CHIME telescope: in particular, looking at slow pulsars to measure diffractive scintillation properties as a function of frequency; CHIME's wide fractional bandwidth could allow new probes of the predicted scaling of this phenomenon. Also, this project can include an investigation of wideband profile changes in these pulsars and comparison to narrowband literature measurements and conclusions. FRB projects could involve, for example, interference-excision improvements and testing.

For more information about the CHIME telescope, see here.

3. Gravitational Wave Astronomy with LISA

Contact: Jess McIver | Email: mciver@phas.ubc.ca

LISA is a proposed spaced-based gravitational wave detector that will consist of three spacecraft flying in an equilateral triangular configuration with a side length of 2.5 million kilometers. Each spacecraft shines a laser at the other two, and all three measure the interference between incoming and outgoing beams of light. These interferometric measurements will allow LISA to measure the miniscule modulation of the separation distances between spacecraft caused by gravitational waves produced by distant sources such as massive black holes, binary star systems, or even the aftermath of the Big Bang itself.  We will examine analysis techniques for how LISA can distinguish gravitational wave signal events ("glitches"), with a focus on signal and noise modelling. Familiarity with Python and/or C++ is strongly preferred.  The awardee will learn signal processing, time series analysis, Fourier methods, and gain experience with applications to gravitational-wave astrophysics. 

4. Improving the Performance of the Advanced LIGO Gravitational Wave Detectors

Contacts: Jess McIver & Raymond Ng | Email: mciver@phas.ubc.ca and rng@cs.ubc.ca | Web: https://gravitational-waves/phas.ubc.ca

Gravitational-wave detector data, including the LIGO detectors, contains a high rate of instrumental artifacts that mask or mimic true astrophysical gravitational wave (GW) signals. This project will characterize noise sources in the Advanced LIGO detectors with the goal of reducing the number of 'false alarm' GW candidates and improving the reach of GW searches for the next observing run. Students will work with a team of physicists and data scientists, and gain transferable skills in data visualization, Python programming, gravitational-wave astrophysics, large-scale physics experimental instrumentation, and potentially machine learning (if desired). Familiarity with Python is preferred.

Find out more about the UBC LIGO Group and the LIGO Scientific Collaboration.

5. Development of Free-Standing BaTiO₃ Ferroelectric Films for Photonic Applications

Contact: Ke Zou | Email: kzou@phas.ubc.ca

Barium titanate (BaTiO₃) (BTO) is an emerging material for next-generation electro-optic and quantum photonic devices due to its exceptionally large Pockels coefficient and robust room-temperature ferroelectricity. To fully leverage its optical and electromechanical properties, BTO must be integrated onto diverse substrates — including silicon photonics platforms — without lattice-mismatch limitations. One promising approach is to fabricate free-standing BTO membranes, which can then be transferred onto arbitrary substrates.

This project aims to develop and characterize free-standing BTO thin films grown by oxide molecular beam epitaxy (MBE). The student will work on thin-film synthesis (or post-growth processing), selective sacrificial-layer etching, and membrane transfer techniques. The goal is to demonstrate high-quality ferroelectric membranes suitable for hybrid photonic integration.

6. Particle Physics research with the DarkLight Collaboration at TRIUMF

Contact: Prof. Michael Hasinoff | Email: hasinoff@physics.ubc.ca | Web: https://phas.ubc.ca/users/michael-hasinoff 
Dr. Katherine Pachal | Email: kpachal@triumf.ca | Web: http://darklightariel.mit.edu

We are preparing a new experiment at the TRIUMF/ARIEL e-linac accelerator to search for a possible new particle that could be the mediator between the Dark Matter and Standard Model particles. The student will participate in installation and commissioning measurements of the tracking detectors ( fast trigger ( 200 psec ) segmented scintillator counters read out my solid state photomultipliers, and high resolution ( 100 um ) gas electron multiplier tracking detectors . She/He will learn to use the sophisticated CERN data analysis program ROOT as well as hone their skills in both C++ and Python based analysis. All the work will take place at TRIUMF and the student will be able to participate in all the activities planned for the other ~30 Co-op/USRA students working at TRIUMF. Knowledge of C++ and Python will be considered an asset. 

7. Charting the Growth of Galaxies

Contact: Allison Man | Email: aman@phas.ubc.ca | Web: https://phas.ubc.ca/users/allison-man

Galaxies evolve on astronomical timescales of millions or even billions of years. The study of galaxy evolution is therefore based on inferring connections between various galaxy populations across cosmic time. This requires knowledge of galaxy properties, such as distances, sizes, masses, ages, and star formation rates. The student will learn now to extract such information from galaxy images and spectra, including those obtained using the most advanced telescopes such as the James Webb Space Telescope, the Euclid Space Telescope, the Very Large Telescope, and the Atacama Large Millimeter Array.

The project will tackle one of these important research questions: What triggers or shuts down star formation in galaxies? How do active supermassive black holes influence star formation of their host galaxies? What happens to galaxies when they collide with each other? What is the role of the cosmological environment in galaxy evolution?

The student will apply Python computing skills to handle large datasets and images using computing clusters, to visualize and to present findings in oral presentations and as a written report. These skills are relevant for a variety of projects in astronomy and physics, as well as other research disciplines and beyond academia. Depending on the student’s interest and progress, the project will have the potential to result in a scientific publication.

Experience with Python programming is required. Knowledge of physics, astronomy, statistics, data analysis, LaTeX, Git and SQL will be considered a plus. The ideal candidate will have taken at least one ASTR course at the 200-level and have completed ASTR300.

8. Probing star clusters in nuclear rings

Contacts: Allison Man & Anan Lu | Email: aman@phas.ubc.ca & ananlu@phas.ubc.ca | Web: https://phas.ubc.ca/users/allison-man/ & https://ananlu.github.io/

Nuclear rings at the centres of nearby barred galaxies host the most intense star formation in our local Universe and trigger some of the strongest nuclear activities. One particularly interesting research topic is to find out the age and star formation histories of compact star clusters in the nuclear rings, and link these to the properties and dynamics of the interstellar medium. Through this project, the student will explore the processes governing star formation and nuclear activities, and potentially generalize the findings to other environments. During this summer project, the student will explore spectral energy density (SED) fitting tools, applied on proprietary data from the James Webb Space Telescope of several bright starbursting nuclear rings, combined with archival data from the Hubble Space Telescope. The project will result in a catalog of star clusters in nearby nuclear rings, with well-measured properties and uncertainties, a pipeline to perform the task on similar data, potentially leading to scientific publications.

9. Single-particle microscopy of mRNA lipid nanoparticle complexes

Contact: Sabrina Leslie | Email: sabrina.leslie@msl.ubc.ca | Web: https://leslielab.msl.ubc.ca/

Nanoparticles are increasingly used in pharmaceutical applications. This research project will use single-particle confinement microscopy to investigate the biophysical properties, stoichiometry and kinetics of nanoparticle assemblies and their interactions. This technique entraps particles in femto-liter reaction wells and allows prolonged monitoring of reactions. It also enables direct visualization of interactions between chemical species and nanoparticles.

For this project, the student will perform single-particle experiments to investigate and quantify probe nanoparticle interactions as well as being part of developing image analysis tools to extract detailed particle information from the microscopy videos. For example, particle tracking algorithms can be used to extract valuable information such as diffusion coefficients and fusion kinetics. Moreover, by using deep learning image analysis it is possible to improve the characterization of nanoparticles with weak signal. This project is best suited for engineering physics students with an interest in computer science and biology since we will be applying physical tools to understand out data.

The student will receive training in quantitative image analysis as well as hands-on microscopy and will work closely with a research fellow and graduate student. Weekly meetings with the supervisor and collaborators, and daily interactions with members of our interdisciplinary research group including the nanomedicine network, will support and guide the project. In addition to gaining hands-on research experience, anticipated outcomes of this summer research project include virtual presentations with lab members, providing key training in writing and oral communication.

10. Single-molecule imaging of DNA-DNA interactions within live Escherichia coli cells.
Contact: Sabrina Leslie | Email: leslielab@msl.ubc.ca | Web: https://leslielab.msl.ubc.ca/

DNA, as a long, double-stranded polymer, can form a variety of secondary structures at sequence specific locations. Such structures have important impacts on cellular function. For example, single-stranded regions within DNA can serve as binding sites for proteins and play a role in regulating gene transcription. Previous work in the Leslie Lab has investigated sites susceptible to forming single-stranded regions when the DNA is supercoiled (over- or under-twisted). These studies investigated how environmental factors, such as temperature, salt and macromolecular crowders, affected the denaturation of these regions, to better understand the biophysics underpinning these transitions. However, the environment within a cell is complicated, and to fully understand how environment impacts secondary structure formation, these in vitro results should be complemented with in vivo measurements.

In this project, the student will build upon our in vitro assays to study structural transitions within DNA plasmids in live E. coli cells. They will test methods to introduce a fluorescent oligonucleotide probe into the cells without killing the cells. They will then use state-of-the-art confocal imaging to follow the probes within the cells and image them binding to target structures within DNA plasmids. Finally, they will compare the probe binding in vivo to our results obtained in vitro.

The student will receive hands-on training and guidance from the Leslie Biophysics Research Group, including day-to-day guidance from graduate students and postdoctoral fellows in the lab, regular meetings with the research team and principal investigator, and interactions with the surrounding interdisciplinary environment at the Michael Smith Labs. Through the course of the summer, the student will hone their oral communication skills through opportunities to present at group meetings and interact at local events such as the Michael Smith Labs Summer Poster Fair. 
 

11. Implementation of deep learning algorithms to improve detection of probe-plasmid interactions within single-molecule Convex Lens-induced Confinement microscopy videos
Contact: Sabrina Leslie | Email: leslielab@msl.ubc.ca | Web: https://leslielab.msl.ubc.ca/

DNA is a long polymer molecule and when it is supercoiled (over- or under-twisted), secondary structures can form in the DNA at predictable, sequence specific locations. To study the formation of these structures, the Leslie Lab has developed an assay where small fluorescently-labelled probes are mixed with plasmids containing the sequence of interest, such that the probe will bind to the plasmid only if the structure is present. The probe-plasmid solution is then imaged with Convex Lens-induced Confinement (CLiC) microscopy, where small volumes of the solution are trapped in microwells and the number of probes bound to plasmids is identified. However, background fluorescence within the microwells, the low signal produced by diffusing single-fluorophores, and the fast photobleaching of these fluorophores provide difficulties in developing an algorithm to automatically detect the number of probes bound to plasmids in a given video. Recent advances in machine learning provide a wide array of tools that can help address these issues and improve the robustness of image analysis of single-molecule videos, increasing the throughput of analysis.

In this project, the student will test and implement deep learning models to automate the detection of probes bound to plasmids in CLiC microscopy videos. They will first identify, train and test a variety of existing models on simulated videos. Once they identify and train a suitable model, they will test it on a range of real data, where the signal, noise, and background signal varies. Finally, once a model is developed that attains a suitable accuracy, they will incorporate the model into the existing analysis pipeline.

The student will receive hands-on training and guidance from the Leslie Biophysics Research Group, including day-to-day guidance from graduate students and postdoctoral fellows in the lab, regular meetings with the research team and principal investigator, and interactions with the surrounding interdisciplinary environment at the Michael Smith Labs. Through the course of the summer, the student will hone their oral communication skills through opportunities to present at group meetings and interact at local events such as the Michael Smith Labs Summer Poster Fair. 

12. Moire effects in 2D quantum materials

Contacts: Ziliang Ye | Email: zlye@phas.ubc.ca | Web: http://ye.physics.ubc.ca 

MoS2 is a 2D quantum material exhibiting a series of fascinating optical properties such as direct bandgap at Brillouin zone corners, optically accessible valley degree of freedom, and strong excitonic effects. Recently, these new properties are found to be modifiable by making heterostructures with other 2D quantum materials, where electronic and optical properties can be altered on the nanometer scale by forming so-called Moire superlattices. As a result, a range of exotic phases including Mott insulator and unconventional superconductor arise out of such an emergent order. This summer, we would like to invite students interested in experiencing experimental condensed matter research to join us to study the emerging property of the Moire superlattice formed by twisted 2D materials. The intern will have the opportunity to learn hands-on skills of making high-quality heterostructures as well as advanced optical spectroscopy and data analysis techniques.

13. Scanning Tunnelling Microscopy in the Laboratory for Atomic Imaging Research

14. Exoplanet Follow-Up and Confirmation

Contact: Michelle Kunimoto | Email: mkuni@phas.ubc.ca

15. Using LSST data to detect and track extreme outer Solar System objects. 

Contact: Brett Gladman | Email: gladman@phas.ubc.ca

The Vera Rubin Observatory in Chile will begin its "Legacy Survey of Space and Time" (LSST) in early 2026. As it repeatedly covers the visible sky every few nights, thousands of outer Solar System will be discovered. A small fraction of them will be on orbits around the Sun of an extreme nature; those with closest approach to the Sun beyond about 60 astronomical units are of particular interest, as well as those whose orbits are very highly inclined (>50 degrees or even retrograde). This project will be related to monitoring the LSST data stream to identify these interesting and very rare orbits, and then extract more observations of them from the LSST imaging data itself or to track them using CFHT target-of-opportunity time to push out the boundaries of our Solar System. Previous experience with moving-target object science and/or orbital determination would be very helpful.

16. Earth-Space Sustainability
Contact: Aaron Boley | Email: acboley@phas.ubc.ca 

Humanity’s rapid and accelerating expansion into space benefits society, opens pathways to scientific discoveries, and advances economic opportunities. Satellites already play vital roles in weather forecasting, food production, forest fire detection, climate science, communications, navigation, search and rescue, disaster relief, military operations, and arms control verification. There are also negative consequences, from the loss of dark and radio-quiet skies, to space debris and collision risks on orbit, casualty risks from reentering rocket bodies and satellites, and changes to the atmosphere from both launches and reentries.
These negative consequences arise because space is generally not regarded as an environment in need of protecting, nor is it seen as being closely connected to Earth’s environment. In reality, the two are so closely related that we need to speak of the Earth-Space system. Adding to the challenges, the expansion into space is driven by a handful of powerful states and large private companies who see themselves competing for national, economic, and military advantage in an “area beyond national jurisdiction” that is largely devoid of clear, widely agreed, enforceable rules. Yet the negative consequences of their actions are borne by everyone on Earth, including succeeding generations.  

Positions are available under this theme that would explore one or more of the following:
* Calculations of orbital carrying capacities
* Observations of satellites and debris
* Upper atmosphere impacts arising from spacecraft launch and reentries
* Disarmament and space weapons

17. Exoplanet Studies
Contact: Aaron Boley | Email: acboley@phas.ubc.ca 

Positions are available under this theme for conducting exoplanetary system observations and/or dynamics.

For example, planet-planet and planet-star interactions create variations in the transit times of planets. Such variations lead to observable signatures of planetary orbital evolution and offer constraints on planet formation and planetary system models. So-called Hot Jupiters, which are giant planets that orbit their host star with periods ranging from days to about two weeks, may be particularly prone to orbital evolution arising from tidal orbital decay or orbital precession, as well as apparent variations due to relative motions between Earth and the planetary system.

Tasks may include one or more of the following:
* Follow up exoplanet transit observations using Thunderbird South (the UBC Southern Observatory)
* Dynamics or hydrodynamics calculations 
* Statistical analyses of exoplanet data

18. Looking for New Physics with ATLAS Precision Measurements

Contact: Alison Lister and Colin Gay | Emails: alister@phas.ubc.ca and cgay@phas.ubc.ca | Web: https://atlas.cern/

Q: How do we learn something about new physics beyond the Standard Model (BSM) without measuring it directly? A: We look for its impact on things we can measure! The UBC ATLAS group is working to constrain new physics using precision measurements of Standard Model particles. Different hypothetical BSM particles can cause subtle changes to what we see in the detector. By putting together these measurements we can look for any anomalies that could hint at new physics.

The student will work on translating individual measurements into a combined framework, and optimizing variables to maximize sensitivity. See more information about ATLAS and new physics here.

19. Constructing Silicon Inner Tracker (ITk) for ATLAS Detector Upgrade

Contact: Alison Lister and Colin Gay | Emails: alister@phas.ubc.ca and cgay@phas.ubc.ca | Web: https://atlas.cern/

The UBC ATLAS group is among several institutions around the world participating in the construction of the new, all silicon, Inner Tracker (ITk) for the upgrade of the ATLAS detector for the High Luminosity Large Hadron Collider (HL-LHC) at CERN. Each module of the silicon strip tracker must undergo a series of thermal and electrical quality control measurements before they are installed in the ATLAS detector. Here at UBC, we are performing these critical tests in our newly commissioned cleanroom.

The student will work on building and improving the test setup, optimizing and automating the testing procedure, and analyzing and presenting the results from electrical tests to the wider ATLAS community. See more information about the ATLAS silicon Inner Tracker here.

20. Deep Learning with ATLAS

Contact: Alison Lister and Colin Gay | Emails: alister@phas.ubc.ca and cgay@phas.ubc.ca | Web: https://atlas.cern/

The ATLAS UBC Group is developing new deep learning techniques for both signal vs. background classification problems as well as inference problems (given what we see in our detector, what are the most likely properties of the particles that produce that signature). The students will work on further improvements of the method as well as develop techniques for mitigation of the impact of the systematic uncertainties on the deep learning model.

Experience and familiarity with Python is required.

21. Crystal growth of quantum materials

Contact: Alannah Hallas | Email: alannah.hallas@ubc.ca

• Exploring electronic instabilities in novel honeycomb intermetallics 
• How disorder influences magnetism in high entropy oxides
• Discovery of mineral-inspired quantum magnets
• Establishing the floating zone crystal growth of intermetallic quantum materials

Contact: Dr. Douglas Scott | Email: dscott@phas.ubc.ca | Web: https://www.astro.ubc.ca/people/scott/basic.html

There are many data analysis problems in astronomy that are best approached using simple likelihood function methods. However, there are other questions (involving non-linear selection tasks, or pattern-matching in huge databases) that are more efficiently performed with "machine-learning" (ML) methods, such as neural networks. One downside to the use of ML approaches is that it is often difficult to determine robust uncertainties on derived parameters. Another unresolved issue is how to combine traditional and ML methods in tasks that use both approaches for different parts. We will investigate these topics by looking at the use of ML in astronomy, combining data at multiple wavelengths to identify and categorize distant galaxies and assess their statistical properties.

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