Undergraduate Student Research Presentations 

1st Speaker: Elizabeth B. Goreth

Title: Fluids in Motion REU: Monitoring and Modeling Orphan Flares in Blazars

Abstract: Blazars shine across the entire electromagnetic spectrum (from low-frequency radio waves to high-energy gamma-rays). There are a growing number of Blazar jets which exhibit Orphan gamma-ray flares (with little or no variability detected at longer wavelengths including the optical). The Ole Miss Blazar Group has recently established a new partnership with the Boston University (BU) Blazar Group to extend optical polarimetric monitoring of a sample of gamma-ray bright Blazars targeted by NASA’s Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE). My REU project aimed to examine the Blazar 3C 120, which has recently entered a period of Orphan gamma-ray flaring. Using the BLAZE code (MacDonald et al. 2015, 2017), I am currently carrying out inverse-Compton calculations of gamma-ray emission to mimic the high-energy variability observed in 3C 120. I will present the results of my modeling efforts during the REU Research Program. In addition, as a member of The Ole Miss Blazar Group, I have been actively helping to monitor optical polarization in the BU Blazar sample and have made several trips to the Perkins Telescope Observatory (PTO) in Flagstaff, Arizona. The data we obtain at the PTO is crucial in ascertaining whether gamma-ray Blazar flares detected by the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope are indeed Orphan in nature. 

(Sponsor: UM Office of Research and Economic Development Summer Undergraduate Research Group Grant)

2nd Speaker: Aiden Collura

Title: Numerical Simulation of Particle Orbits in Schwarzschild Spacetime

Abstract: In this project, I numerically simulated the motion of particles around a Schwarzschild black hole using the geodesic equations of general relativity. The goal was to explore how spacetime curvature affects the possible trajectories of massive particles. Including stable orbits, flybys, and falling into the black hole. By implementing these equations in Mathematica and using numerical integration techniques, I was able to visualize how extremely sensitive particle motion is near such an object. This work helped me gain a deeper understanding of general relativity, geodesics, and the behavior of matter in curved spacetime. 

(Sponsor: UM Office of Research and Economic Development Summer Undergraduate Research Group Grant)

3rd Speaker: Anisa Jamal

Title: Optimizing Particle Tracking Settings for Reliable Shear Wave Speed Analysis in Viscoelastic Micellar Fluids 

Abstract: This experiment focused on optimizing particle-tracking parameters to enable accurate measurement of shear wave properties in a high-concentration CTAB-NaSal micellar fluid seeded with microspheres. Shear waves were generated using a mechanical wave driver, and their propagation was recorded with a high-speed camera. Video data were processed to track the trajectories of the microspheres. Particle-tracking parameters were optimized by trial and error to obtain better particle trajectories. Tracking quality was highly sensitive to input parameters. Improper settings introduced noise, false trajectories, or out-of-phase particle motion, whereas optimized values yielded cleaner and more reliable results. Specifically, adjusting displacement and link range accounted for frame-to-frame motion at different frequencies, while refining percentile thresholds minimized false detections. With these optimized settings, in-phase particle trajectories were successfully isolated, allowing improved determination of wavelength as the vertical spacing between such particles. Combining wavelength with the known driving frequency enabled calculation of shear wave speed. This study demonstrates that parameter optimization is essential for determining reliable physical measurements, such as that shear wave speed in viscoelastic micellar fluids. 

(Sponsor: UM Office of Research and Economic Development Summer Undergraduate Research Group Grant)

4th Speaker: Wells Valliant 

Title: Search for the Rare Decay Ξ_c⁺ to Λ_c⁺π⁰

Abstract: The Belle II experiment at the SuperKEKB accelerator facility in Japan is designed to study rare and suppressed decays to search for new physics. We present a study of Ξ_c⁺ decays to Λ_c⁺π⁰ using Belle II simulation. The photons emitted from the π⁰ decay have very low energy, leading to a very high background. To isolate the decay of interest from this large background, we employed machine learning techniques to optimize event selection criteria. The results of this study lay a foundation for future measurements with experimental data.

(Sponsor: UM National Center for Physical Acoustics H.E. Bass Undergraduate Research Assistantship)