A team from Oxford’s Department of Physics, POSTLIMS, secured second place at this year’s preliminary of the international theoretical physics competition, PLANCKS, earning them a place in the finals in Barcelona in May. Chris Ong, Peter Djemal, Kiefer Lim and Luo Zeyuan came in second after the Diet Coke Annihilators from the University of Cambridge. Chris, Peter and Kiefer will be joined by Sidharth Chambocheri Veetil for the finals as Luo Zeyuan is unable to attend; Sidharth was part of Oxford’s winning team last year, Oxonians Reloaded.
PLANCKS is a theoretical physics competition for teams of three to four undergraduate students and is organised by the International Association of Physics Students (IAPS) and supported by the Institute of Physics. For this year’s competition, 128 participants representing 37 universities from the UK and Ireland, converged at Swansea University in February for a weekend of challenging theoretical physics. As well as sitting a 4-hour exam where participants collaborated in teams to solve ten challenging physics problems, attendees got to hear from a range of speakers including Dr Sarah Roberts, Professor Carlos Nunez, Professor Peter Dunstan and Dr Margaret Rosenberg.
‘The PLANCKS preliminary round was a great experience for us,’ comments Christopher Ong on behalf of the team. ‘We really enjoyed the process of thinking and talking about physics, and working together to solve challenging and fascinating physics puzzles that demanded lots of creativity and spontaneity. We even learned new physics along the way through the novel contexts we were being exposed to. We honestly did not expect to perform very well, and it was a delightful surprise for us when we learned we won second place.
‘We are excited for the finals in Barcelona, where we expect to learn more interesting physics through the innovative problems set every year. We are also excited to explore a new country and meet fellow physics enthusiasts from around the world. We are really disappointed that Luo won’t be able to join us for the finals but grateful that Sidharth was able to step in.’
‘Oxford undergrads have performed incredibly well in the PLANCKS competitions in recent years and it is great to see our students continuing to share their knowledge and passion for physics on the national and international stage,’ comments Professor Andrew Boothroyd, Head of the Department of Physics. ‘We wish them all the best for the finals next month in Barcelona!’