William Parker, PhD
Associate Professor of Physics
Mathematics and Physics Department
Ph.D., The Ohio State University, 2010
- EMAIL:
- parkerw@uwp.edu
- WEBSITE:
- http://www.williamparker.org/
I took my very first physics class at the University of North Texas and later transferred to the University of Texas at Austin where I studied for my B.S. in Physics and B.A. in Astronomy, finishing in 2002, and completed my PhD in physics in 2010 at the Ohio State University. So, I’ve lived in Texas and Ohio and more recently in Illinois where I did research Argonne National Laboratory and taught at Benedictine University and in Indiana where I taught at Ivy Tech Community College in Columbus, IN.
Areas of Expertise
- Electronic structure calculation
- Science education
- Computational material physics
Teaching Interests
I'm interested in making the study of physics more exciting and real to those who undertake it. I want to learn how to construct environments that encourage the study of physics content and methodology. I also struggle to reflect the necessarily individualized process of learning in the structuring of an environment for a large group of students.
Research Interests
My research focuses on developing and applying theoretical and computational electronic structure methods to emerging materials in order to discover compositions and structures with exceptional properties. Correct simulation deepens insight into the quantum physics of electrons, and a broadened range of electron simulations continues progress toward the dream of true ab initio prediction: at any range of conditions from a chemical reaction on a surface to the high-density, high-temperature interior of a planet, using the same method to calculate any relevant property of a never-before-realized material.
- (2024) Breakdown of a Commonly Practiced Technique in Quantum Mechanics. Journal of Applied Mathematics and Physics, 1919-1929 pp.
- (2022) Exchange-Correlation Functional Comparison of Electronic Energies in Atoms Using a Grid Basis. Journal of Applied Mathematics and Physics, 3392-3407 pp. PDF
- (2021) pysky: An Application for the Planning of Multi-Target Astronomical Observations. Journal of Applied Mathematics and Physics, 2765 pp. PDF
- (2018) QMCPACK: an open source<i>ab initio</i>quantum Monte Carlo package for the electronic structure of atoms, molecules and solids. Journal of Physics: Condensed Matter, 195901 pp.
- (2016) Nanosecond Phase Transition Dynamics in Compressively Strained Epitaxial BiFeO<sub>3</sub>. Advanced Electronic Materials
- (2015) Comparison of polynomial approximations to speed up planewave-based quantum Monte Carlo calculations. Journal of Computational Physics, 77-87 pp.
- (2015) First-principles studies of lone-pair-induced distortions in epitaxial phases of perovskite<mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><mml:msub><mml:mi>SnTiO</mml:mi><mml:mn>3</mml:mn></mml:msub></mml:math>and<mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><mml:msub><mml:mi>PbTiO</mml:mi><mml:mn>3</mml:mn></mml:msub></mml:math>. Physical Review B
- (2011) First-principles study of misfit strain-stabilized ferroelectric SnTiO<mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><mml:msub><mml:mrow /><mml:mn>3</mml:mn></mml:msub></mml:math>. Physical Review B
- (2011) First-principles study of misfit strain-stabilized ferroelectric SnTiO<mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><mml:msub><mml:mrow/><mml:mn>3</mml:mn></mml:msub></mml:math>. Physical Review B
- (2011) Accuracy of quantum Monte Carlo methods for point defects in solids. physica status solidi (b), 267-274 pp.
Research/Creative Awards
-
(2023)
WiSys Innovation Champion — WiSys
Recognition for contributions to innovation, students, universities, and Wisconsin
Departmental Service
- Committee Member — Departmental Curriculum Committee
- (2025) Program Coordinator — Physics Program Assessment
- (2024) Faculty Advisor — Society of Physics Students
College Service
- (2022) Committee Member — Science Night – A College of Natural and Health Sciences Seminar Series Task Force
Professional Service
- (2023) Other — Regional Materials and Manufacturing Network
Public Service
- Officer, Other Officer — Hawthorn Hollow Nature Sanctuary and Arboretum
PENG 211 - Statics
PENG 212 - Dynamics
PHYS 105 - College Physics I
PHYS 106 - College Physics II
PHYS 120 - Astronomy Native America (DV)
PHYS 241 - Scientific Programming
PHYS 295 - Physics Research Seminar I
PHYS 301 - Classical Mechanics
PHYS 441 - Quantum Physics
PHYS 494 - Internship in Physics
PHYS 499 - Independent Study:
UWP 101 - First Yr Sem: Natural/Hlth Sci