Welcome To KFUPM Physics

Welcome to the Department of Physics at King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals. I invite you to explore our website where you can find information about our academic programs, courses, research activities, and faculty members. Physics has always been at the forefront of exploration. This is accomplished through cognitive enhancement by education transmitted through academic courses as well as carrying out research at the cutting-edge frontiers of human knowledge. The Physics department offer courses that are solidly based on the American system to meet international quality assurance requirements, which has placed the Department as a world-class regional center in a leading international institution. Our student body includes pure-physics students and double-major students, which reflects the interdisciplinary nature of our program. In addition, our research facilities span various fields of physics including condensed matter physics, lasers, materials research, magnetism and superconductivity, nuclear physics, and nonlinear and computational physics. Over the past five decades, our faculty members have conducted research using in-house facilities as well as collaborative research with national and international centers.

Mohammad Al-Kuhaili,
Professor & Chairman, Physics Department

Research and Academic activity statistics 2015 to 2021

3.1

Average Impact Factor Publications​

51

Patents

10042

Cumulative Citation Count​

452

Publications

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JOINT SEMINAR WITH INTERDISCIPLINARY RESEARCH CENTER FOR INTELLIGENT SECURE SYSTEMS

Exciton Dissociation by Topological Edge States


Speaker:
Dr. Udo Schwingenschlögl
Professor, Applied Physics; Associate Dean, Faculty, Physical Sciences and Engineering.
KAUST
Date: Tuesday, 29 April 2025
Time: 02:00 p.m.
Location: Bldg. 6/Room 125

Abstract:
Exciton dissociation by edge states can enhance the power conversion efficiency of solar cells. To evaluate the potential of this mechanism for carbon nanotubes as absorber material, we show that the topology of carbon nanotubes can be characterized by winding numbers related to the orbital angular momentum. The tight-binding Hamiltonian of any carbon nanotube with CN symmetry can be represented by N tight-binding Hamiltonians of decoupled molecular chains, for which a pseudospin formulation, characterized by specific paths in a two-dimensional auxiliary space, is developed. The quantum phases are given by the N winding numbers of these paths. The paths rotate in the auxiliary space when a magnetic field of varying strength is applied along the carbon nanotube, which gives rise to quantum phase transitions. 

Biography:
Dr. Udo Schwingenschlögl is a Professor of Applied Physics at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST). Prior to joining KAUST in 2009, he worked at the International Center of Condensed Matter Physics in Brasilia, Brazil, and the University of Augsburg, Germany. His research interests in condensed matter physics and first-principles materials modeling focus on 2D materials, interface and defect physics, correlated materials, thermoelectric materials, metal-ion batteries, nanoparticles, and quantum transport.

All faculty, researchers and students are invited to attend.

    Location and Time
  • 6/125

  • 29 Apr, 2025

  • 02:00 PM - 03:00 PM