Pedro Souza
Major: Physics
Research Location: University of Notre Dame
Pedro spent nine weeks at the Nuclear Science Laboratory at Notre Dame, focused on the development and optimization of instrumentation for nuclear physics. More specifically, he worked on the optimization of a nuclear plunger, a device used in a particle accelerator to measure extremely short lifetimes of excited nuclear states. His team solved various issues that were crucial roadblocks for the implementation of the plunger apparatus to the nuclear laboratory.
Pedro says, "This experience helped me acquire a lot of the necessary skills for physics research that are not taught in a regular classroom, such as troubleshooting and calibrating electronics, and debugging softwares. It also allowed me to become a more well-rounded physics student and researcher, prepared for the type of work I will be doing as a graduate student."