The Department of Physics started its journey along with the establishment of the University in 1986. There were 9 expat faculty members, 1 Omani lecturer, 6 technical staff and 1 coordinator but without any proper research labs.  After almost three decades, the Department has grown as of today to an extent having 30 faculty members, about 5 visiting consultants, 7 lecturers, 2 demonstrators, 14 technical staff and 2 coordinators. There are more than 12 research labs, 10 teaching labs, 2 workshops and a number of preparation rooms for teaching labs in the Department. The teaching labs are equipped with up to date instruments and accessories and the research labs are housed with the state-of-the-art research facilities catering the needs of Master and PhD students.

 
Initially the Department started with undergraduate teaching of students majoring in physics but predominantly students of service courses from other colleges i.e. Agriculture, Education Engineering and Medicine. At the beginning each course was taught at most once in a year, but over the years the Department has been offering almost all active courses every semester catering for the requirements of hundreds of students coming from other colleges. The yearly intake of physics major students went above 60 from less than 10 in the inception. In parallel the research outputs have been growing steadily after the establishment of new research facilities and upgrading old research labs; these outputs have been enhanced with introduction of various types of research grants by the University and external bodies.
 

The physics graduates having quality education are being employed in private and public sectors contributing to the society and the nation at large. Their roles in the development of the country are highly recognized. The Department has been diversifying its programs to cope with the multifaceted requirements of the country and these efforts will continue as per demand of the society.


Vision

The Department of Physics aspires to provide quality education to its students, maintain a high standard of scientific research and earnestly serve the community at large.


Mission

  • To provide an outstanding education in Physics with a diversity of skills
  • To advance human knowledge via good quality research
  • To contribute to society through professional services

HoD Message 

The Department of Physics has been constantly providing quality education at the undergraduate, postgraduate and PhD levels. The Department is teaching about 40 courses at the undergraduate level and 20 courses at the MSc level. The curriculum for the physics degree covers the fundamental concepts of physics and mathematics, practical training in laboratories and workshops, computational techniques and research-oriented project work. E-learning and computational techniques are being encouraged in many courses. The flexibility of the degree program permits a student to earn a major in Physics together with a minor in other subjects. A minor could be selected from other departments within the College of Science (Earth Science, Chemistry, Computer Science, and Mathematics) and from the College of Economic and Political Science. In addition, the Department offers physics minor in Astronomy, Medical Physics and Applied Nuclear Science. This gives students the opportunity to choose courses they enjoy and provides graduates with access to a wide variety of occupations and professional scientific careers.
 
The outstanding performance of the past physics graduates has established a reputation that enables new graduates in gaining employment in the academic, industrial, commercial and government sectors. Employment prospects for the graduates in Physics from different degree plans based on past data range from public to private sectors.
 
There are several active research groups within the Department, which have been producing a steady stream of research publications of international caliber and which maintain strong research collaborations with international institutions. All staff members are highly committed and they work together to achieve our common goal: The development of students’ minds and skills as well as providing a basis for their personal, social and cognitive development.
 
The Department has a number of excellent laboratories with advanced facilities for teaching and research and it shares other facilities within the College and the University. It ensures a good deal of practical training in laboratories and workshops. General and specialized teaching laboratories housed here are in the fields of Electronics, Modern Physics, Nuclear Physics, Thermal Physics, Mechanics, Lasers and Optics and Computational Physics. Students receive first-hand training in Electronics, Metal and Wood Workshops.
 
The departmental research facilities include Mössbauer spectroscopy, Faraday and VSM systems for magnetic measurements, four point probe for electrical resistivity measurements, surface science ultra-high vacuum (UHV) instrument equipped with XPS, AES, UPS and SPA-LEED, AFM, STM, MFM, vacuum coating and sputtering systems, state of the art station for the characterization of ferroelectric liquid crystals, LRC-meter for dielectric studies, surface tension apparatus, electrical characterization tools using IVT and CVT in addition to computational facilities including the high performance computing [HPC].
 
Mutatis mutandis, the common goal of the Department is the development of students’ minds and skills creating a sustainable basis for their personal, social and cognitive development. In parallel, the Department is committed to enhance its research activities comparable to the international level.
         

 

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Contact Us 


Department of Physics
College Of Science
Sultan Qaboos University
PO Box 36, Al Khod 123
Sultanate of Oman
Phone: (+968) 2414 1456

Working Hours

The University working hours are:
From 8:00 am to 4:00 pm
Week days: Sunday to Thursday
Time Zone : GMT + 4:00
Summer time : Not observed