14 June 2025
\n \n \n \nThe King's Birthday Honours 2025 Lists have been published, marking the achievements and service of extraordinary people across the UK, including members of the MPLS Division and wider University.
\n \n\n \n \n10 June 2025
\n \n \n \nPhysicists at the University of Oxford have set a new global benchmark for the accuracy of controlling a single quantum bit, achieving the lowest-ever error rate for a quantum logic operation \u2013 just 0.000015%, or one error in 6.7 million operations.
\n \n\n \n \n4 June 2025
\n \n \n \nScientists could turn to black holes to aid the search for dark matter and similarly elusive particles that hold clues to the universe\u2019s deepest secrets, a new study by Oxford physicists suggests.
\n \n\n \n \n3 June 2025
\n \n \n \nA collaborative research study has developed a powerful new technique for finding the next generation of materials needed for large-scale, fault-tolerant quantum computing with the potential to end a decades-long search for inexpensive materials that can host unique quantum particles.
\n \n\n \n \n20 May 2025
\n \n \n \nSeven academics from the University of Oxford, including five from the Mathematics, Physical and Life Sciences Division (MPLS) have been elected as Royal Society Fellows.
\n \n\n \n \n14 May 2025
\n \n \n \nOxford marks a significant milestone in its quantum advancement with the Department of Physics' Professor Ian Walmsley appointed as Director of the Oxford Quantum Institute. Professor Walmsley has also joined the National Quantum Strategic Advisory Board, which advises the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology.
\n \n\n \n \n29 April 2025
\n \n \n \nTen new Fellows have joined the Eric and Wendy Schmidt AI in Science Postdoctoral Fellowship programme at the University of Oxford. Now entering its third year, the programme is helping to accelerate the next scientific revolution by applying artificial intelligence (AI) techniques to research across the natural sciences, engineering, and mathematical sciences.
\n \n\n \n \n20 March 2025
\n \n \n \nDepartment of Physics researchers have been at the forefront of studies working with thousands of members of the public to sift through the immense quantities of data from Euclid to shed light on how mysterious forces shaped the evolution of the Universe.
\n \n\n \n \n6 February 2025
\n \n \n \nA breakthrough from researchers at the Department of Physics addresses quantum\u2019s \u2018scalability problem\u2019: a quantum computer powerful enough to be capable of processing millions of qubits.
\n \n\n \n \n3 February 2025
\n \n \n \nThe Mathematical, Physical, and Life Sciences (MPLS) Division at the University of Oxford is delighted to announce the establishment of the Denys Firth Scholarship in Theoretical Physics, made possible by a generous gift from Denys Firth (Oriel College, 1969, Physics).
\n \n\n \n \n28 January 2025
\n \n \n \nThe planet was originally detected two years ago by Oxford University scientist Dr Michael Cretignier. This result, drawing on over two decades of observations, opens a window to future studies of Earth-like exoplanets that may have conditions suitable for life.
\n \n\n \n \n15 January 2025
\n \n \n \nResearchers from the Department of Physics report in The Conversation on how global temperatures passed the critical 1.5\u00b0C milestone for the first time in 2024.
\n \n\n \n \n13 January 2025
\n \n \n \nProfessor James Binney from the Department of Physics, has received the Royal Astronomical Society\u2019s 2025 Gold Medal for Astronomy for his lifetime achievements in the study of the structure and evolution of galaxies.
\n \n\n \n \n4 December 2024
\n \n \n \nCongratulations to the Department of Physics, which has been given the Gold award having held Athena Swan Silver since 2019.
\n \n\n \n \n3 December 2024
\n \n \n \nFour MPLS researchers have been awarded European Research Council Consolidator Grants, part of the EU\u2019s Horizon Europe programme. These grants, totalling \u20ac678 million this year, aim to support outstanding scientists and scholars as they establish their independent research teams and develop their most promising scientific ideas.
\n \n\n \n \n18 November 2024
\n \n \n \nIn a new study led by the Department of Physics, an international group of researchers who developed the science behind net zero demonstrate that relying on \u2018natural carbon sinks\u2019 like forests and oceans to offset ongoing CO2 emissions from fossil fuel use will not actually stop global warming.
\n \n\n \n \n24 October 2024
\n \n \n \nProfessor Stephen Blundell and Professor Laura Herz from the Department of Physics have been awarded gold medals from the Institute of Physics (IOP).
\n \n\n \n \n18 October 2024
\n \n \n \nProfessor Myles Allen, Department of Physics and School of Geography and the Environment, sets out the case for focussing on the big picture \u2013 why we need Carbon Capture and Storage to work
\n \n\n \n \n12 August 2024
\n \n \n \nScientists in the Department of Physics have developed a method for generating increasing amounts of solar electricity without the need for silicon-based solar panels by coating a new power-generating material onto the surfaces of everyday objects such as rucksacks, cars, and mobile phones.
\n \n\n \n \n27 June 2024
\n \n \n \nThe United Nations World Food Programme (WFP), the Department of Physics, IGAD Climate Prediction and Applications Centre (ICPAC), and various national forecasting and meteorology agencies across east Africa are joining forces to pioneer a transformative initiative that is revolutionising extreme weather forecasting and early warning systems in the region.
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