1. MSc Physics Self Study Projects  What are these for ?  How are they assessed ?  What can your project be on ?  How do you acquire a project ?

2. What are self-study projects for ?  Help develop your research, report writing and presentation skills. Workload ~ 150 hours total (including finding project, writing report and talk & attending talks etc).  Explore some of the many research activities going on in the Physics Department.  Make links to research groups for potential summer projects etc.  Allow you to discover “new” areas of physics that may interest you.

3. How are projects assessed ?  Formal report of ~ 20 pages (~6000 words) - presented in the style of a research paper, e.g. abstract, introduction etc. (80% of marks)  Report should contain a full bibliography properly tied to the text. (Wikipedia not allowed).  Make sure you are clear on College rules regarding referencing, use of other peoples work, avoiding plagiarism etc.  Oral presentation - 15 minute PowerPoint aided to academics and the MSc class as a whole. Will include questions from the audience. (20% of marks)

4. PLAGIARISM Do not plagiarise! It is considered cheating The penalties for plagiarism are severe. Take the online plagiarism awareness course. See under: www3.imperial.ac.uk/library/subjectsandsupport/plagiarism

5. What can your project be on ?  Any area of physics that interests you. Literature review of a specific topic. Survey of equipment / techniques for a specific task. Survey of companies working in a particular field. Quantifying the markets for certain technologies. A scholarly study extending a topic covered in lectures or outside the lecture topics. A theoretical design study. If you are doing the MSc with Shock Physics you should see Dr Bill Proud as your topic should be in a shock physics related area. If with Nanophotonics, see Prof. Stefan Maier.

6. How do you acquire a project ?  Select a title and supervisor from the “guaranteed” list of supervisors in the list. Note that a supervisor may only take 1 or 2 students even if they have proposed several project titles.  Approach a research group or academic working in an area of interest to you.  Think up your own title, see Julia Sedgbeer for suggested supervisors if unsure whom to approach - no guarantees however.

7. Key Dates  Project details to Andrew Williamson. 31 st October 2014  Report hand in deadline – Friday 16 th January 2015 @ 5pm  Presentations, January – usually in 2 nd week of term dates TBC.

8. Projects on offer “Guaranteed list” for 2014-15 i.e. guaranteed supervisors rather than projects This list will be completed shortly and will be similar to that of last year

9. Some previous self-study projects Cosmological constant Inertial Confinement Fusion Slow light and light trapping and the implications on quantum information The physics of monte carlo models in high energy particle physics CP violation as a cause of the matter-antimatter asymmetry in the universe Physics of Invisibility Quantum computing and ion trapping Quantum Information Theory Transparent photovoltaics Arrow of time Supernovae explosions Should sat-nav users care about space weather? Atmospheric Physics/Climate Fast Fusion Cultural Transmission Plasma based accelerators Sedative/anaesthetic photolabelling The most distant object in the universe Gravitational Lensing

10. Other things ….

11.  Graduate School - professional skills training MasterClass Programme Must attend 4 classes http://www3.imperial.ac.uk/graduateschool/currentstudents/professionalskillsmasters REMINDER

12.  MSc representative ?  Imperial College PG Open day Wednesday 10 th December Find out about PhD opportunities http://www3.imperial.ac.uk/visit/pgopenday  Careers service – very useful http://www3.imperial.ac.uk/careers

13. QUESTIONS ?