Kevin Aptowicz

Kevin Aptowicz
  • Professor of Physics
  • Assistant Chair of Physics and Engineering
  • Visiting Scholar, University of Pennsylvania
  • Visiting Scientist, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
  • Director of Persistence Pillar, Center for STEM Inclusion, WCU
  • Department: Physics and Engineering
  • Institution: West Chester University of Pennsylvania
  • Email: KAptowicz@wcupa.edu

Education

  • Bachelor's degree - Columbia University
  • Masters' degree - University of Colorado
  • Doctor of Philosophy - Yale University

Research Interests

Soft MatterLight ScatteringAerosol CharacterizationColloidal PhysicsOpticsUndergraduate Research

Opportunities

Work Study Positions Available: Yes

For students majoring in Physics at WCU. Reach out directly to Dr. Aptowicz.

Grant Funded Positions Available: Yes

For students majoring in Physics at WCU. Reach out directly to Dr. Aptowicz.

Course-Credit Research Opportunities Available: No

Volunteer Research Positions Available: Yes

For students majoring in Physics at WCU. Reach out directly to Dr. Aptowicz.

Biography

Born and raised in Philadelphia, Kevin attended Central High School. He then attended Columbia University and earned a degree in Electrical Engineering. At the University of Colorado, he earned a Masters' in Electrical Engineering with a focus on optics. During that time he worked on a biomedical device for sensing oxygen in the out-breath of a patient and at a telecommunications company making optical switches using micro-electro-mechanical mirrors. At Yale University, his project focused on building a system to monitor room air for bio-warfare agents. At West Chester University, he has continued his work characterizing aerosol particles but extended the applications to climate models and material science. In addition, he started a productive collaboration with Dr. Arjun Yodh's soft matter group at the University of Pennsylvania. His work has been funded by the Research Corporation, the National Science Foundation, the US Army Research Laboratory, and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.

Contact Information

Phone: 610-436-3010

List of Publications

  • Depletion-driven antiferromagnetic, paramagnetic, and ferromagnetic behavior in quasi-two-dimensional buckled colloidal solids, A. Hill, M. Tanaka, K.B. Aptowicz, C.K. Mishra, A.G. Yodh, & X. Ma, Journal of Chemical Physics, 158:19 (2023)
  • Classification of Aggregates Using Multispectral Two-Dimensional Angular Light Scattering Simulations, J.M. Mendoza, K. Chen, S. Walters, E. Shipley, K.B. Aptowicz, & S. Holler, Molecules, 27.19: 6695 (2022)
  • Review of Elastic Light Scattering from Single Aerosol Particles and Application in Bioaerosol Detection, Y.L. Pan, K. Aptowicz, J. Arnold, S. Cheng, A. Kalume, P. Piedra, C. Wang, J. Santarpia, G. Videen, Journal of Quantitative Spectroscopy & Radiative Transfer, 279, 108067 (2022)
  • Correlations between short- and long-time relaxation in colloidal supercooled liquids and glasses, C.K. Mishra, X. Ma, P. Habdas, K. B. Aptowicz, and A. G. Yodh, Physical Review E, 100, 020603(R) (2019)
  • Characterizing the size and absorption of single nonspherical aerosol particles from angularly-resolved elastic light scattering, S. Walters, J. Zallie, G. Seymour, Y.L. Pan, G. Videen, and K.B. Aptowicz, Journal of Quantitative Spectroscopy & Radiative Transfer, 224, pg 439-444 (2019)

Links