History
One of the four departments started at the founding of Chung Yuan Christian University
The total number of undergraduates is about 4,800,
and the master students is about 660, and the doctoral students is about 27.
- Founded in 1955, the Department of Physics at Chung Yuan Christian University is one of the university’s four original departments and has now marked 70 years. In 1974, to expand research and cultivate high-tech talent, the Institute of Applied Physics (Master’s program) was established, with faculty drawn from the Department of Physics and relevant departments in the College of Engineering.
- As research fields became increasingly specialized—and as related departments in the College of Engineering launched their own graduate institutes—from 1984 the Institute of Applied Physics came under the stewardship of Physics faculty, focusing on condensed-matter physics, applied optics, and theoretical physics. To promote long-term research, deepen scholarship, and raise research standards, a Ph.D. program in the Institute of Applied Physics was added in 1992.
- In response to global trends and to strengthen synergy between teaching and research, the department’s core emphasis has been theoretical physics, materials science, and photonics. In 2006, the undergraduate program introduced two tracks—Physics and Optoelectronics & Materials Science—and began enrolling students. In line with the Ministry of Education’s department-institute consolidation policy, in 2007 the Institute of Applied Physics Master’s and Ph.D. programs merged into the Department of Physics, which now offers B.S., M.S., and Ph.D. degrees.
- Advancing internationalization, the department has student-exchange agreements with Niigata University and Osaka Metropolitan University (Japan), and dual-degree programs with Temple University and the University of Alabama at Birmingham (USA), broadening students’ academic horizons.
- Committed to cultivating top talent with a strong foundation in physics and advanced R&D skills, the department’s alumni to date number about 4,800 undergraduates, 660 master’s, and 27 Ph.D. graduates. In 2020, total enrollment stood at 450 undergraduates, 22 master’s students, and 16 doctoral students.