PHY291 Proseminar in Experimental Physics

2026
Thursdays, 10:15 - 12:00, UZH Y36K08  - Irchel Campus - only
2 ETCS points (60 h)

Language: English
Attendance: mandatory, at least 80%
Grading: pass/fail

With a focus on the experimental aspect, we will cover Nobelprizes (NP) in Physics, Chemistry and Medicine where the corresponding Noble lecture shall be the starting point for the 15 minutes presentations.

The students pick one available NP suggested by the coaches. The slots will be assigned during the first proseminar.

The format attempts to simulate a conference environment in which you present your findings to a peer audience, which is composed of your fellow students. 

After successful participation in the proseminar, the student will have learned:

1. to use the basic methods of literature retrieval

2. to condense the knowledge from scientific sources into a presentation

3. to obtain good presentation skills

4. details about the experimental aspects and methods of research 

5. how to connect with and get support from their coach

6. to answer to questions/comments to their presentation

The live-talks should take 15 minutes, additional 10 minutes are reserved for questions and discussion.

Evaluation criteria:

1. structure and organization of the talk

2. presentation of basic knowledge

3. presentation of advanced aspects

4. quality and relevance of presented formulae and figures

5. the clarity of the presentation

6. the ability to present the topic with excitement and enthusiasm

7. time keeping

8. the ability to trigger and answer questions and comments

9. use of scientific references and correct citation

10. the participation on your colleagues' presentations

Documents

L1_Introduction (PDF, 724 KB)

L1_Literature_Search (PDF, 1 MB)

L2_Literature_Search (PDF, 4 MB)

Merula Stout  merula.stout@ub.uzh.ch

Anna Véron anna.veron@ub.uzh.ch

Johanna Nordlanderjohanna.nordlander@physik.uzh.ch