Particle and Nuclear Physics

Experimental High Energy Particle and Nuclear Physics

Dr. David Ruth’s research focuses on understanding the spin structure of nucleons, particularly the proton and deuteron. His experimental program at the Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility uses spin-polarized and tensor-polarized scattering experiments to probe how quarks and gluons contribute to nucleon structure. His work also explores interaction-dependent (“higher twist”) effects that reveal the complex dynamics of quarks and gluons inside hadrons. Graduate students in his group participate in leading experimental efforts to resolve one of the central challenges in nuclear physics—the origin of nucleon spin.

 

Dr. Raza Sufian’s research addresses fundamental questions about the origin of mass and spin in strongly interacting matter. His work combines first-principles lattice quantum chromodynamics (lattice QCD) calculations with analytic nonperturbative approaches such as light-front holographic QCD. His group also investigates emerging computational tools—including machine learning and quantum computing—for applications in nuclear and particle physics. Graduate students working with Dr. Sufian develop advanced theoretical and computational techniques while contributing to cutting-edge research in QCD.

 

Dr. Burcu Duran studies the internal structure of nucleons through high-energy electron scattering experiments conducted at the Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility. Her research focuses on understanding nucleons in terms of their quark and gluon degrees of freedom and exploring short-range nuclear interactions within nuclei. Graduate students in her group contribute to precision experiments and data analysis efforts that probe the fundamental structure of nuclear matter

 

Dr. Michael Paolone’s research program examines how nucleon structure is modified within the nuclear medium. His work at the Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility includes studies of nucleon-to-Delta transitions, vector meson photoproduction near threshold, and investigations of gluon momentum distributions and the gravitational form factors of the proton. He also leads the development of large-scale Cherenkov detectors used for particle identification in modern experiments. Graduate students in his group gain experience in both detector development and the analysis of data from cutting-edge nuclear physics experiments.

 

Theoretical High Energy Particle and Nuclear Physics

Theoretical research in nuclear physics at NMSU is spearheaded by Drs.  Michael Engelhardt and  Matthew Sievert.  Our research uses a variety of techniques -- including mathematical modeling, perturbation theory, and high-performance computing -- to study the properties of the strong nuclear force, quantum chromodynamics (QCD).  

 

We study the complex, emergent properties of QCD across a range of energy and length scales. In cold nuclear matter, QCD dictates the spin-orbit physics in the proton and the high-density physics in nuclei. These quantum structures which emerge from QCD will be probed with unprecedented accuracy at the next-generation  Electron-Ion Collider when it finishes construction in the coming decade.  

 

Likewise, at high temperatures, QCD describes the melting of the proton into an exotic  Quark-Gluon Plasma, a phase of nuclear matter in which thermal screening allows the fundamental constituents of QCD -- quarks and gluons -- to flow freely as a nearly "perfect" fluid.  The Quark-Gluon Plasma characterized the early universe shortly following the Big Bang, and it can be experimentally recreated at collider facilities like the  Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC) and the Large Hadron Collider (LHC). 

 

Here at NMSU,  Dr. Engelhardt is an acclaimed expert in the theory and implementation of Lattice QCD, which uses  high-performance computing networks to directly compute nonperturbative matrix elements in QCD. His work includes the development of novel applications of Lattice QCD to study the spin-orbit structure of the proton in 3 dimensions.   Dr. Sievert is an expert in the theory of QCD at high energies and its applications to proton structure and jet production in the quark-gluon plasma; his expertise includes the physics of spin at high energies, the initial stages of heavy-ion collisions, and the quenching of jets in a nuclear medium.

 

Together, we support several graduate students as Research Assistants.  We organize a Nuclear Physics Journal Club (thus far held ~biweekly in the Spring semesters) to discuss papers and recent developments.   There may also be opportunities for undergraduates to participate in research projects, particularly over the summer.  Please feel free to contact us with any questions.