Physics Program | Black Hills State University

Program Overview

Help shape our understanding of the universe working side-by-side with the world's top scientists while preparing yourself for the jobs of the future.

Learn science in a student-centered learning environment with course instruction and labs taught by full-time faculty.

Do science through the program's strong commitment to undergraduate research and internships that are an integral part of the curriculum.

Develop new science with cutting-edge instrumentation in one-of-a-kind laboratories on the Spearfish campus and 4,850 feet below the surface of the Earth in the BHSU Underground Campus.

Join exciting paid summer programs including those offered by National Labs, the National Science Foundation (NSF), the South Dakota Biomedical Research Infrastructure Network (BRIN), and the Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU).

Research Facilities & Projects

BHUC

The BHUC is a unique, multidisciplinary research facility located at the Ross Campus of the 4850' level of SURF with ~4300 meter water equivalent shielding from cosmic rays.

Spectroscopy Lab

The Physics department at BHSU has created a state-of-the-art spectroscopy laboratory for ongoing research in association with the Sanford Underground Lab.

Above Ground Lab

There is 1100 sq. ft. of dedicated lab space available for SURF projects in the newly-renovated Jonas Science Building at BHSU. This space houses a 12'x12' cleanroom (class 1,000) room as well as a sample prep area for ICP-MS.

ICP-MS Lab

The BHSU ICP-MS lab is located in the Jonas Science Building on the BHSU campus. The lab houses a class 10,000 cleanrooms and an Agilent 7900 ICP-MS with SPS 4 Autosampler.

LUX-ZEPLIN (LZ Collaboration)

Dark matter, 85% of the universe's mass, is thought to be WIMPs. The LZ experiment at SURF in South Dakota aims to detect these particles with a 7-tonne liquid xenon target.