Faculty Profile
Hans Pfister
Professor of Physics; George Wesley Pedlow Chair in Pedagogy (1991)
Contact Information
Tome Scientific Building
717-245-1307
Bio
As an advocate for the environment he encourages sustainable living, supports sustainable technology, and embraces renewable energy sources. While trained as a plasma physicist and always a plasma physicist at heart, he spent the past two decades designing, building, testing, and reengineering several solar collectors, amongst them numerous Solar Air Heaters (SAHs). These are devices that convert solar energy directly into hot air, with the purpose of heating houses and buildings. He has also designed and built thermal storage devices based on Phase Change Materials. One of his latest schemes, Active Glazing Loss Reduction (AGLR) focusses on reducing thermal loss through the glazing of SAHs. He is also known for his numerous kinesthetic physics experiments, incorporating his students into the experiment, thus allowing them to feel the forces and accelerations on their own body. Other interests include physics puzzles, tricks, and toys, as applied to the physics classroom.
Education
- Staatsexam, Eberhard Karls Universitat, 1981
- Ph.D., University of California at Los Angeles, 1991
2026-2027 Academic Year
Spring 2027
PHYS 211 Vibrations, Waves & Optics
Completion of both PHYS 211 & PHYS 212 fulfills the WID Requirement.
PHYS 312 Electrodynamics
This course will investigate electrostatics, magnetostatics, and electrodynamics in vacuum and in matter. Maxwell's equations of electrodynamics are developed and explored in depth. Vector calculus is used throughout this course. Possible projects include the experimental study of capacitors, the force and torque on a magnetic dipole, and an exploration of Faraday-induced electric fields. Prerequisite: 211, 212 and 282, or permission of instructor.