Faculty
The MIT Physics Department is one of the best places in the world for research and education in physics. We have been ranked the number one physics department since 2002 by US News & World Report.
We have three current and two retired faculty members who have won a Nobel Prize in Physics, nine total since 1964. We have also been the source of innovation in physics education for decades. Eight members of our Department have won the Oersted Medal, the most prestigious award of the American Association of Physics Teachers.
John Belcher
Class of 1922 Professor of Physics, Emeritus
Research interests are within the areas of space plasma physics, in particular the interaction of the heliosphere with the local interstellar medium.
Hale Bradt
Professor of Physics, Emeritus
Before retirement: X-ray source positions and the follow-up studies of the objects identified. Recently: writing in military history.
Claude Canizares
Professor of Physics, Post-Tenure
Research in galactic and extra-galactic high energy astrophysics.
Deepto Chakrabarty
Professor of Physics
Department Head
Department Head
Research specialty is in high-energy astrophysics and the physics and astrophysics of neutron stars.
Anna-Christina Eilers
Assistant Professor of Physics
Observational cosmologist aiming to understand the formation and growth of supermassive black holes.
Matthew Evans
Mathworks Professor of Physics
Works on providing the designs and foundations for the next generation of gravitational wave detectors.
Anna Frebel
Professor of Physics
Division Head for Astrophysics
Division Head for Astrophysics
Best known for her discoveries and spectroscopic analyses of the oldest, most metal-poor stars in the Milky Way and small dwarf galaxies.
Jacqueline Hewitt
Julius A. Stratton Professor of Physics
Current research interests are in radio astronomy investigations of the Cosmic Dawn.
Erin Kara
Associate Professor of Physics
Class of 1958 Career Development Chair
Class of 1958 Career Development Chair
An observational astrophysicist, working to understand the physics behind how black holes grow and affect their environments.
Kiyoshi Masui
Associate Professor of Physics
Radio astronomer and cosmologist, whose work spans theory, data analysis, observations, and instrumentation.
Nergis Mavalvala
Curtis (1963) and Kathleen Marble Professor of Astrophysics
Dean, MIT School of Science
Dean, MIT School of Science
Focuses on the detection of gravitational waves and quantum measurement science.
Michael McDonald
Associate Professor of Physics
Focuses on the evolution of galaxies and clusters of galaxies, and the role that environment plays in dictating this evolution.
Sarah Millholland
Assistant Professor of Physics
Focuses on understanding the demographics, formation, and evolution of extrasolar planetary systems using data-driven dynamics.
Saul Rappaport
Professor of Physics, Emeritus
Interests centered on theoretical studies of the formation, evolution, and population synthesis of binary systems containing collapsed stars.
Paul Schechter
William A. M. Burden Professor of Astrophysics, Emeritus
Played a major role in the development and implementation of the active optics system for the 6.5-m Magellan Telescopes.
Sara Seager
Professor of Physics
Professor of Aeronautics and Astronautics
Class of 1941 Professor of Planetary Science
Professor of Aeronautics and Astronautics
Class of 1941 Professor of Planetary Science
Current research interests are focused upon exoplanet atmospheres, interiors, and signs of life by way of exoplanet atmospheric biosignature gases.
Robert Simcoe
Francis L. Friedman Professor of Physics
Director, MIT Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research
Director, MIT Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research
Studies formation of the earliest stars and galaxies by constructing custom built spectrometers for major astronomical observatories.
Andrew Vanderburg
Assistant Professor of Physics
Explores the use of machine learning, especially deep neural networks, in exoplanet detection.
Salvatore Vitale
Associate Professor of Physics
Focuses on data analysis for gravitational waves signals detected with the LIGO instruments.
Rainer Weiss
Professor of Physics, Emeritus
2017 Nobel Laureate
2017 Nobel Laureate
LIGO inventor shares 2017 Nobel Prize in Physics for direct detection of gravitational waves.
