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Cynthia Galovich

Cynthia Galovich

Professor and Chair

Physics & Astronomy
Natural and Health Sciences

Contact Information

Phone
(970) 351 2079
Office
Ross 0232A

Education

PhD Physics, Stanford University (1987)
MS Geophysics, Stanford University (1979)
BS Physics, Stanford University (1978)

Professional/Academic Experience

Professor, University of Northern Colorado (UNC) (1999 - present)
Research Professor, Colorado School of Mines (2000, 2001)
Associate Professor of Physics, UNC (1993 -1999)
Associate Research Professor, Colorado School of Mines (1998, 1999)
Adjunct Associate Professor, Colorado State University (1995, 1996, 1999)
Assistant Professor of Physics, University of Northern Colorado (1989 – 1993)

Chair, Department of Physics and Astronomy, UNC (2013-present)
Program Coordinator, Department of Physics, UNC (2011 – 2012)
Director, Earth Sciences and Physics, UNC (2008 – 2011)
Program Coordinator, Department of Physics, UNC (2005 – 2008)
Chair, Department of Physics, UNC (2002 – 2005)

Senior Principal Engineer, Advanced Process Development, NCR, Microelectronics Division (1988 – 1989)
Postdoctoral Research Associate, Chip Lithography, IBM, T.J Watson Research Center (1985 – 1988)
Adjunct Instructor, San Francisco State University, 1985
Acting Instructor, Stanford University, 1983

Other Experience

Supervision of graduate research, MA in Science Education program:
Lindsay McInerney: “The Effect of the Future Authoring Program in a High School Setting”
Zachary Daubert: “The Effect of Inquiry-Based Lab Activities on Student Retention Rates of Newton’s Laws”

Research/Areas of Interest

Physics education research. Nuclear physics with applications to nuclear spectroscopy and astrophysics.

Publications/Creative Works

Adams, W.K., Armstrong, Z., and Galovich, C., “Can students learn from PhET Sims at home, alone?” Physics Education Research Conference (PERC), 23-26, (2015).
Engel, S., Buchmann, L., Chen, A.,D’Auria, J., Hutcheon, D., Galovich, C.,Gigliotti, D., Greife, U., Hunter, D., Hussein, A., Jewett, C., Liu, W., Olin,A.,Ottewell, D., and Rogers, J., “Testing the ISAC Radioactive Ion Accelerator Beam Specifications using the H(15N,alpha/gamma)12C Reaction,” Nuclear Instruments and Methods B204, 416-419 (2003).
Cecil, F.E., McNeil, J., Galovich, C., Greife, U., Hofstee, M., Yan, J., Liu, S. and Pallone, A., “Twenty-five years of low energy nuclear physics research at the Colorado School of Mines,” Abstracts of Papers of the American Chemical Society 221, U81-U82 (2001).
Hofstee, M., Pallone, A., Cecil, F.E., McNeil, J. and Galovich, C.,“Measurement of Low Energy (d,n) Reactions on Light Nuclei Important to Astrophysics,” Nuclear Physics A688, 527 (2001).
Hofstee, M., Pallone, A., Cecil, F.E., Galovich, C., and Haddad, L., “Recent Results from the Low Energy Nuclear Physics Project at the Colorado School of Mines,” Proceedings 2nd Oakridge Symposium on Atomic and Nuclear Astrophysics, Institute of Physics Publishing, Bristol, 131 (1998).
Cecil, F.E., Yan, J., and Galovich, C.,"The Reaction d(alpha,gamma)Li6 at Low Energies and the Primordial Nucleosynthesis of 6Li," Physical Review C53, 1967 (1996).
Beddingfield, D., Cecil, F.E., Galovich, C., Liu, H., and Asher, S., "Characterization of Charged Particle Bursts from Deuterium-Loaded Thin Titanium Foils," published in Proceedings of the Second Annual Conference on Cold Fusion, Como, Italy (1991).
Cecil, F.E., Liu, H., Beddingfield, D., and Galovich, C., "Observation of Charged Particle Bursts from Deuterium-Loaded Thin Titanium Films," Proceedings of Conference on Anomalous Nuclear Effects in Deuterium/Solid Systems, AIP Conf. Proc. #228, ed. S. Jones, F. Scaramuzzi, and D. Worledge, 375-381 (1991).
Galovich, C., Lee, S. and Kwong, D., "Effects on TiN Film Properties of the Interaction between Titanium and Borophosphosilicate Glass during High-Temperature Nitridation," Materials Research Society Symposium Proceedings 202, 679 (1991)
Lee, S., Galovich, C., Fuchs, K., Kwong, D., Hirvonen, J., and Huang, J., "Optimization of a TiN/TiSi2 p+ Diffusion Barrier Process," Materials Research Society Symposium Proceedings 146, 217 (1989).
Galovich, C. and Wagner, A., "A New Method for Improving Gallium Liquid Metal Ion Source Stability,” Journal of Vacuum Science and Technology B6, 2108 (1988).
Galovich, C. and Wagner, A., "Effects of Backsputtered Material on Gallium Liquid Metal Ion Source Behavior," Journal of Applied Physics 63, 4811 (1988).
Galovich, C., Hanna, S., and Clark, D., "Design and Performance of an Electron-Positron Pair Detector," Nuclear Instruments and Methods A271, 483 (1988).
Dunham, J., Galovich, C., Glavish, H., Hanna, S., Mavis, D., and Wissink, S., "Polarized Gas Jet Targets," Nuclear Instruments and Methods 219, 46 (1984).
Dunham, J., Galovich, C., Wissink, S., Mavis, D., and Hanna, S., “Polarized Gas Jet Targets,” Proceedings of the Fifth International Symposium on Polarization Phenomena in Nuclear Physics, Santa Fe, NM, 941 (1981).

Recent Presentations:

Semak, M. (Author & Presenter), Galovich, C. (Author), Dietz, R. (Author), Summer 2019 Meeting of the American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT), "An Examination of the Correlation between Cognitive Ability and Achievement on the FCI," Provo, UT (July 2019).
Semak, M. (Author & Presenter), Galovich, C. (Author), Summer 2019 Meeting of the AAPT, "Student-initiated Research in a Bachelor’s-only Physics and Astronomy Department," Provo, UT (July 2019).
Semak, M. (Author & Presenter), Galovich, C. (Author), Dietz, R. (Author), Summer 2018 Meeting of the AAPT, "Doing Research with Undergraduates in a Bachelor’s-only Physics and Astronomy Department," Washington D.C. (August 2018).
Fender, J. (Author & Presenter), Morse, J. (Author), Ringler, J. (Author & Presenter), Galovich, C. (Author), Kuehn, C. (Author & Presenter), Semak, M. (Author), AAS Meeting #232, "Investigating the Impact of a Solar Eclipse on Atmospheric Radiation," American Astronomical Society, Denver, CO. (June 2018).
Semak, M. (Author & Presenter), Galovich, C. (Author), AAPT 2018 Spring Meeting: Colorado – Wyoming Section, "Doing Research with Undergraduates in a Bachelor’s-only Physics and Astronomy Department," Laramie, Wyoming. (April 2018).
Galovich, C. (Author), Semak, M. (Author & Presenter), Dietz, R. (Author), Summer 2016 Meeting of the AAPT, "A Nonverbal Intelligence Test as a Predictor of FCI Gain," Sacramento. (July 2016).

Honors and Awards

Recent Grant Awards:

Semak, M. R. (Principal), Galovich, C. (Co-Principal), Colorado Space Grant Consortium Affiliate Award: Opportunities in NASA STEM, $25,000 (May 1, 2021 – April 30, 2022)
Semak, M. (Principal), Galovich, C. (Co-Principal), Walch, R. (Co-Principal), Colorado Space Grant Consortium Affiliate Award: Opportunities in NASA STEM, $25,000 (May 1, 2020 – April 30, 2021)
Lazarova, M. (Principal), Galovich, C. (Co-Principal), Davidson, M. (Co-Principal), "UNC Women in Physics Outreach Program," American Physical Society, Women in Physics, $1,000 (October, 2019 – October, 2021)
Semak, M. (Principal), Galovich, C. (Co-Principal), Walch, R. (Co-Principal), Colorado Space Grant Consortium Affiliate Award: Opportunities in NASA STEM, $80,280 (May 1, 2017 – April 30, 2020)
Semak, M. (Principal), Galovich, C. (Co-Principal), Walch, R. (Co-Principal), Colorado Space Grant Consortium Supplement Award: Opportunities in NASA STEM, $1,780 (May 1, 2017 – April 20, 2018).
Walch, R. (Principal), Galovich, C. (Co-Principal), Semak, M. (Co-Principal), Colorado Space Grant Consortium Affiliate Award: Opportunities in NASA STEM, $52,000 (June 1, 2015 - April 30, 2017)