UCT Physics Department

27/05/2026

On Friday 22 May, we hosted our second Women in Physics (WiP) event of the year, this time, the whole department was strongly encouraged to attend, regardless of gender identity.

The panel discussion focused on inclusivity: where we are, where we want to be, and the concrete steps each of us can take. It was genuinely refreshing to hear the range of perspectives in the room, and the conversation won't stop here.

Thank you to everyone who came along and contributed. More to follow!

28/04/2026

Some Scenes from UCT open day held over the weekend

09/03/2026

Happy international women’s day everyone! Looking forward for this year Soapbox Science Cape Town event?! Then stay tuned, our call for speakers will open very soon….

09/03/2026

Ms Nuraan Majiet, newest academic staff member in the department, officially takes over the reins from Dr Kevin Barends as the president of the tea club!

30/10/2025

Leg day? More like leg months! 😩 The RW James elevator’s been out since June, but the end is in sight! Plastic comes off next week for official lift-off! 🎉

29/10/2025

🎓 Our Third Year Students in Action! 🎓

On 27th October, our talented third-year students presented their mini research projects during an engaging poster session. 📚✨

Check out the amazing work they've been putting together – showcasing creativity, and hard work! 👏

Swipe through to see the highlights of their research. 👇

16/09/2025

Explore black holes with Nobel Prize winner Sir Roger Penrose (University of Oxford) and Professor Janna Levin (Columbia University) who will discuss these elusive phenomena at the 30th Hintze Lecture. This free public talk is open to everyone, whether you're a physics expert or just curious about the cosmos. In person and online. More information link in bio or: https://www.physics.ox.ac.uk/events/30th-hintze-lecture-professor-janna-levin-professor-sir-roger-penrose

16/09/2025

UCT Physics postraduate students had a captive audience at our 2025 Postgraduate showcase on 16 September 2025. They shared the breadth of UCT Physics research from a fresh, exciting, informative, honest, and even humorous perspective that only a postgrad student knows how to. It was a truly inspiring reminder - to all of us in attendance - why we do what we do.

08/08/2025

08/08/2025

Center for Theoretical and Mathematical Physics Presents:

A talk on Precision String Phenomenology by Vishnu Jejjala (bio in comments)

Time: 14:00 SAST on Friday 8 August in the Duncan Elliot Seminar Room and Zoom
https://cern.zoom.us/j/61286100699?pwd=9oBfaHFEjboB7S8zzq8f7WbSk3FaX7.1

Request meeting ID and passcode via fb messenger

Abstract:

Calabi-Yau compactifications of string theory lead to quantum field theories in four dimensions with chiral matter. Calculating parameters of the low-energy effective theory in general compactifications requires the Ricci-flat metric on the Calabi-Yau manifold. Such metrics are not known analytically. In this talk, we discuss how to approximate the Ricci-flat metric using neural networks. The accuracy of the numerical metrics is assessed for K3 and the quintic threefold. In the standard embedding, we calculate Yukawa couplings for compactifications on various Calabi-Yau geometries and show the existence of hierarchies. This is an initial step toward a first principles calculation of particle masses from string theory.

You can find videos of previous CTMP seminars, with links to presentation materials, at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCtDxhoEfendOFDDxsNvu0LA

You can find the calendar of upcoming CTMP talks at https://calendar.google.com/calendar/u/1?cid=aTBtOHYydHVxNzBmYmtoYjU3aDBoMGRoMnNAZ3JvdXAuY2FsZW5kYXIuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbQ