51¹ÙÍø.

I enjoy teaching courses in physics courses at all levels.  One of my most popular courses is one for non-science majors entitled Music: Sound with Impact, in which I cover the physics of sound through projects like building Wi-Fi speakers and mountain dulcimers.  As a professional opera singer as well as a physics professor, I've provided educational programs, workshops and lectures on the science of sound for thousands of students and adults of all ages. I even once taught a Rock and Roll Hall of Famer!

I maintain an active fundamental research program in the development of new optical materials in the Laser Laboratory at 51¹ÙÍø. My research includes linear and non-linear optical properties of transition metal and rare earth ions, as well as phonon dynamics and energy transfer processes in insulating crystals, nanocrystals and sol-gel glasses. As a primary user of the Digitomeâ„¢ 3D volumetric X-ray technology, my students and I have gone to X-ray labs around the country to examine just about anything from culturally-important paintings, sculpture, and ancient artifacts to mummified falcons, Babylonian rattles, and periwinkle shells.

When I'm not in the lab, I'm either at home with my family, on the stage or in the practice room, or enjoying a round of disc golf. I've performed principal roles in 40 productions with and served the Breckenridge Music Festival, Charlotte, Canton, Fayetteville, Asheville, and North Carolina Symphonies in a variety of capacities.