Bansil is a University Distinguished Professor in physics at Northeastern University (NU). He served for over two years at the US Department of Energy managing the flagship Theoretical Condensed Matter Physics program (2008-10). He is an academic editor of the international Journal of Physics and Chemistry of Solids (1994-), the founding director of NU’s Advanced Scientific Computation Center (1999-), and serves on various international editorial boards and commissions. He has authored/co-authored over 398 technical articles and 18 volumes of conference proceedings covering a wide range of topics in theoretical condensed matter and materials physics, and a major book on X-Ray Compton Scattering (Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2004). Bansil is a Highly Cited Researcher (ISI Web of Science/Clarivate Analytics; 2017, 2018).
Publications
In The News
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News
Friction, speed and surprise: What sets Wimbledon’s grass courts apart from clay, hard courts
The grass tennis courts of Wimbledon are among the most recognizable in the world. But despite its fame, grass is one of the rarest surfaces on which tennis is played today; many tennis fans and players may never set foot on its lush turf during their lifetimes. How does the iconic Centre Court lawn compare […] -
News
Northeastern scientists help detect axion quasiparticles, offering new clues to dark matter
Arun Bansil, professor of physics, and two other Northeastern researchers, worked with an international group of scientist to successfully created laboratory conditions that allowed them to observe axion quasiparticles for the first time, bringing researchers closer to understanding dark matter. -
News
Physicist explains what may have caused Delta Flight 4819 to flip over
A Delta Airlines plane crashed-landed on Monday in Toronto. Northeastern distinguished physics professor Arun Bansil weighs in on how it happened. -
What time is it on the moon? We may soon know, thanks to NASA project
From sundials and water clocks to modern atomic timekeeping, methods for telling time on Earth — to mark the divide between night and day, month to year, etc. — have evolved over thousands of years. Now, scientists are bringing their technological knowhow to the moon in order to establish time standards there and elsewhere in […] -
The physics of rapid ‘depressurization.’ Passengers on Alaska Airlines flight 1282 likely would have died if blowout occurred above 40,000 feet, physicist says
If the Alaska Airlines plane that lost a portion of its fuselage while ascending after takeoff Friday had been flying at normal cruising altitude, its passengers and crew would probably have died from the depressurization event, according to a Northeastern expert. The Boeing 737 Max 9 airplane was only minutes into its flight from Portland, […] -
Northeastern’s Department of Physics is spearheading the discovery of revolutionary phenomena in quantum materials
At the intersection of quantum materials and revolutionary technological applications, two Northeastern community members’ latest contribution to "Science" unveils the phenomenon of a new type of nonlinear Hall effect—a discovery with tantalizing implications for our future. Postdoctoral Research Associate Barun Ghosh and University Distinguished Professor Arun Bansil of Northeastern's Department of Physics were recently published in this widely respected and reputable academic journal for their research article, “Quantum metric nonlinear Hall effect in a topological antiferromagnetic heterostructure.” -
Physicist explains how Titan’s ‘catastrophic implosion’ might have happened
The submersible “Titan” that had garnered much of the world’s attention for the past week experienced a “catastrophic implosion,” according to the U.S. Coast Guard. -
Northeastern researchers pull back the quantum curtain
Northeastern researchers have made what they describe as a groundbreaking discovery in the field of quantum mechanics. -
‘We don’t have any theory for this.’ Breakthrough discovery in materials science challenges current understanding of photoemission
What exactly is light—and what is it made of? It’s an age-old question that dates back to antiquity, and one of the most important investigations undertaken by scientists looking to understand the nature of reality. -
Hockey physics: What are the forces responsible for a good slap shot? Naturally, we asked a physicist
Hockey fans everywhere love a good slap shot. It is one of the most widely used tools in the game, responsible for some of the sport’s most memorable moments. It’s a skill perfected by all the top goal-scorers, including Northeastern’s Aidan McDonough and Alina Mueller, who lead their teams into their respective Beanpot finals. The men face Harvard at 7:30 p.m. Monday at TD Garden, while the women play at Boston College at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday. -
The layers of science behind every World Cup kick
Northeastern professors Dagmar Sternad and Arun Bansil break down the physics and neuroscience behind World Cup soccer ball kicks. -
Researchers discover promising new catalysts for hydrogen fuel cells
Northeastern professors Sanjeev Mukerjee and Arun Bansil discuss their breakthrough research on catalysts for hydrogen fuel cells. -
Researchers discover new “unexpected” phenomenon in quantum physics of materials
Researchers at Northeastern have discovered a new quantum phenomenon in a specific class of materials, called antiferromagnetic insulators, that could yield new ways of powering “spintronic” and other technological devices of the future. -
Breakthrough in quantum sensing provides new material to make ‘qubits’
In recent research physics professor Arun Bansil has been tackling the topic of quantum bits in recent research, something that may be the key to "unleashing the potential of the quantum revolution." -
Four Northeastern Professors Earn Their Place on 2021’s List of “Highly Cited Researchers”
Recognizing the groundbreaking research of four faculty members who have been named on 2021's list of "Highly Cited Researchers." -
Using this billion-dollar laser, physicists hope to probe the quantum world for new discoveries
Say you’re an aspiring physicist, probing the quantum world to gain insight into the fundamental nature of reality. There are two ways to go about your scientific odyssey, but both involve very expensive machinery. One way is to smash a bunch of atoms together, revealing their subatomic guts; another is to toss them under a […] -
‘Holy grail discovery’ in solid-state physics could usher in new technologies
There are many mysteries still to unravel in the world of quantum mechanics, but scientists at Northeastern believe they’ve made a “holy grail” discovery that could help pave the way for the next generation of electronic devices. Their findings, published recently in Nature, center mostly on the discovery of a so-called topological axion insulator, a […] -
What goes on inside the battery of your iPhone?
Research conducted by Arun Bansil, university distinguished professor of physics, and other institutions, seeks to "see" how atomic and subatomic particles inside lithium-ion batteries behave. -
Four Northeastern Researchers Named to 2020 List of ‘Highly Cited Researchers’
Each year, the researchers most cited by their peers are recognized for their achievements in science. This year the College of Science has four faculty with the distinction. -
Physicists May Have Accidentally Discovered a New State of Matter. The Possibilities Are Endless.
“Imagination is the limit,” says Swastik Kar, an associate professor of physics. “It could change the way we can detect and communicate signals. It could change the way we can sense things and the storage of information, and possibilities that we may not have even thought of yet.” -
Six Northeastern Professors Named to 2019 List of ‘Highly Cited Researchers’ Around the Globe
The 2019 Highly Cited Researchers list features has included six Northeastern researchers who rank in in the top 1 percent by citations in their fields between 2006 and 2016. -
Superconductor or Not? They’re Exploring the Identity Crisis of This Weird Quantum Material.
Northeastern researchers are probing a class of copper-based materials that can be turned into superconductors. Their findings offer tantalizing clues for a decades-old mystery, and a step forward for quantum computing.