Where scientists of tomorrow meet
- Laboratory for Solid State Physics (LFKP)
- International
The “Swiss Young Physicists' Tournament” is a physics competition for young physics enthusiasts from all over Switzerland. Alisa Miloglyadova was recently one of them and, together with the physics teacher Patrik Weber, is now leading a group of twenty new participants to the SYPT Physics Week on the Hönggerberg campus of ETH Zurich. There, scientists offer interested parties a broad insight into the Department of Physics.
The tournament will take place at the end of March 2020, for the third time in the main building of ETH Zurich. Some of the around 60 secondary-school II students have been preparing for the tournament since autumn 2019. For the “Swiss Young Physicists' Tournament”, or SYPT for short, the students could choose from 17 annually changing problems, the same as those presented at its international counterpart “IYPT”. In 2019, the 32nd external page international tournament took place in Warsaw. The Swiss team with Miloglyadova and four other students won gold last year.
Needed: Teamwork in research
ETH Professor Andreas Vaterlaus is a member of the jury and the ten-member board of the Pro IYPT-CH organisation, founded in 2005 after an international tournament in Winterthur. Professor Vaterlaus sees a great value of the tournaments also in the exchange between the participants. The tournaments focus on teamwork and networking, because only those who function in a team can win. The tournament language is English. One year in advance, the organisation communicates the problems openly. Then teams of three students each choose one problem and tackle it collaboratively.
During the tournaments, the teams have different roles, which allows them to look at the problem from different angles. The “Reporters” present their solutions; the “Opponents” question the solution and the “Reviewers” review the performance of the two other teams. The teams then rotate and each takes on a new role. “Despite intensive debate, it is important that everyone can save face and that criticism is constructive,” says professor Vaterlaus. This is also a valuable learning experience.
Accuracy and creativity are important
The students define themselves their objectives from the set problem. They research possible solutions and approach them with experimental and theoretical methods. Depending on the assignment they set themselves, this can lead to ever more questions. The openly formulated tasks do not have a definite solution, which means that each presentation can illuminate new aspects of the phenomenon. Precise work and creativity in experimentation are just as important for a successful outcome as is a confident command of physics and mathematics. This inspired Miloglyadova; she is now considering starting her physics studies in the autumn, with a view to teaching physics at some point in the future. Others may be thinking of a career in research.
Students are specifically encouraged
The organisation attaches great importance to a high-quality preparation for the tournament. Therefore, during the SYPT Physics Week at the “Mathematisch-Naturwissenschaftliches Gymnasium Rämibühl” in Zurich, it provides the students with the necessary help, competent coaching and excellent experimental equipment – independent of their school environment. The way of working in small teams competing against one another offers a different approach to problem solving than working individually, as for example during an exam. Even during the physics studies, there is still the chance to participate in tournaments; Bachelor students can compete in the “International Physicists' Tournament”. For the first time, a team from ETH Zurich has qualified for participation in the IPT 2020 in Warsaw.
Insights into cutting-edge research
During the SYPT Physics Week 2020, researchers from the Department of Physics guided the participants through two different physics laboratories: First, the laboratory of the Advanced Semiconductor Quantum Materials group, led by Professor Werner Wegscheider, which produces extremely pure materials that will be used for novel quantum devices; and second, Professor Hans-Arno Synal's laboratory for ion beam physics, a world-leading group in the development of new instruments for mass spectrometry and ion beam analysis. The participants also gained insight into the structure of the department and got information on the curriculum. Would it surprise you if they would soon return at ETH Zurich as students?
