About
Rodger I. Thompson is a Professor in the Department of Astronomy and an Astronomer at Steward Observatory, University of Arizona.
Education:
- Ph.D., 1970, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Research Interests: Professor Thompson's primary research focuses on the theory and measurement of fundamental constants (proton-electron mass ratio, fine structure constant) to establish limits on variations in Quantum Chromodynamic Scale, Higgs Vacuum Expectation Value, and Yukawa couplings. His work extends to extragalactic astronomy, cosmology, galactic star formation, infrared astronomy, and instrumentation. Recent efforts involve using rolling scalar field beta functions to characterize alternative cosmologies and constrain their parameter spaces through fundamental constant stability.
Notable Projects: As Principal Investigator for NICMOS on Hubble Space Telescope, he conducted high-redshift cosmology studies measuring universal star formation history to redshift 6 and identifying near-infrared background sources. Current instrumentation work includes designing a photonic lantern upgrade for PEPSI on the Large Binocular Telescope to enhance high-resolution spectroscopy capabilities.
Scientific Awards:
- National Resource Award from NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (1999)
- Maria and Eric Muhlmann Award from Astronomical Society of the Pacific (2003)
- Fellow of the American Physical Society (2016)
Professional Affiliations: American Astronomical Society, American Physical Society (fellow), International Astronomical Union, Astronomical Society of the Pacific.
