Five physics students present undergraduate research in New York

Five Denison physics majors presented research at the Frontiers in Optics + Laser Science Symposium in Rochester, New York, in late September 2026.

Students making the trip were: Dimi Martinez-Davila ’28, Yugen Somiya ’28, Anabela Vivero ’27, Antonio Cambraia ’28, and Mustufa Masalawala ’28. They presented posters highlighting research they have pursued under the mentorship of Associate Professor Steven Olmschenk, Professor Wes Walter, and Professor Dan Gibson. Their projects explored fundamental questions in atomic physics with potential applications in laser cooling and trapped-ion quantum technology.

Cambraia and Masalawala (advised by Gibson and Walter) measured the lifetimes of excited states and the energies of electronic transitions in the thorium negative ion, work that could help advance techniques for laser cooling. Martinez-Davila, Vivero, and Somiya (advised by Olmschenk) explored methods for producing atoms for photoionization loading of ion traps, and for improved light collection from trapped atoms using fiber-based optical cavities.

With funding support from Denison’s Lisska Center for Intellectual Engagement, the students were able to travel to Rochester and share their work with other undergraduate researchers and faculty at the symposium.