Meet Maggie Bérubé, a remarkable 3rd year student that is currently pursuing a degree in Physics & Astronomy at the University of Waterloo. In the vast number of students within our programs, Maggie has not only demonstrated academic excellence but has also showcased outstanding research prowess and student leadership that makes her stand out amongst her peers.
Maggie enjoys the hands-on aspect of experimental physics, the critical thinking part of data analysis, and the satisfaction of solving a coding problem. She is particularly interested in astronomy, particle physics and nuclear physics. However, these studies require a lot of pre-requisite courses and training. As Maggie says, “some of my favourite classes include Introduction to the Universe and Intermediate Classical Mechanics. Introduction to the Universe was the first astronomy course I took in my undergraduate studies, and I loved learning about everything from solar system dynamics to dark matter and cosmology! Classical mechanics was a fun course because it allowed me to use math and equations to describe real-life events, such as flipping a tennis racket or swinging a pendulum on a train.” Maggie has also mentioned she enjoys the Modern Physics Labs, where she gets to use cool physics equipment and study a wide range of physical phenomena on her own, knowing that there are lab instructors and teaching assistants to provide support as needed.
Our Department has recognized Maggie for her academic excellence. She received the Don E. Brodie Scholarship in Science for the highest-weighted average in first-year Honours Physics courses and labs. More recently, she was awarded the Gustav A. Bakos Prize, which is offered to the female student with the highest cumulative average in Astrophysics at the University of Waterloo. These awards have solidified Maggie’s position as one of our top students in the Physics & Astronomy program, and has encouraged her to enhance her skillset through some of the best co-op opportunities across the nation for physicists.
Through Maggie’s co-op terms, she has worked at various national physics research centres. She spent 4 months at SNOLAB in Sudbury, Ontario, working on a radon trap and performing low background measurements 2 kilometres underground. During her co-op term, Maggie regularly travelled underground to perform radon assays on the gas and water assay boards. The goal of this was to get a measurement of the background levels of radon in the underground lab. At the surface lab, Maggie built and tested a radon trap filled with activated charcoal. This charcoal trap was designed to complement existing ones and improve SNOLAB’s ability to build radon traps in-house. “One of my favourite parts of this co-op job was getting to travel through an active mine and work in a clean lab, with liquid nitrogen and vacuum systems!”
Next, Maggie worked at TRIUMF in Vancouver for 8 months, performing neutron detector maintenance and data analysis for a gamma-ray spectroscopy experiment. Seen in the photo below, DESCANT is a neutron-tagging detector that is used in gamma ray spectroscopy experiments. It is made up of 70 individual detectors, and nearly 10 years after its creation, DESCANT required maintenance. During her co-op, Maggie took apart over 35 of these detectors, cleaning them, replacing broken parts, and testing them. Simultaneously, she also contributed to the analysis of a neutron-rich gamma-ray experiment. She created a graphical user interface to facilitate peak-finding in gamma-ray spectral data. The instrument used to collect this data, GRIFFIN, is pictured in the first image of this article, where Maggie stands right beside the beamline (inactive at the time of the photo).
Last summer, Maggie had the opportunity to complete an adaptive optics research project at NRC Herzberg in Victoria, British Columbia. Large telescopes rely on adaptive optics to correct for atmospheric turbulence, the phenomenon responsible for the twinkling of stars and blurring of astronomical images. At NRC Herzberg, Maggie worked in the adaptive optics lab on a system intended for the 1.2m telescope at the facility. In the lab, Maggie characterized a new wavefront sensor and a deformable mirror, and she developed programming classes to interact efficiently with the optical hardware. She also upgraded other components of the system, such as the fast-steering mirror. “Not only did I love the cool astronomy research at this co-op–I also fell in love with the view of the mountains from the lunch room!”
In the future, Maggie wants to continue doing experimental physics and learning news skills in a physics lab. She is interested in physics research that has direct applications in the real-world, such as radiation detector development for cancer therapy or nuclear energy studies for sustainable energy.
If Maggie were to give first-years a piece of advice, it would be: “Don’t forget to have fun! It’s easy to get bogged down in assignments, lab reports and exams; but finding fun has helped me get through it. Some of my favourite undergrad memories so far have been participating in PhysClub events, hanging out with friends in Phys Study, and making silly diagrams on the white boards in STC. Reminding myself of the bigger picture has also helped me overcome smaller challenges and stay focused on success.”
Outside of school, Maggie loves to camp, hike and spend time outdoors. She is also a Residence Life Done, where she gets to engage with first-year students. She plays the baritone saxophone in the jazz band, and she is also a volunteer with the UW Outers Club. As Maggie puts it,
The Physics and Astronomy program has taught me to be a problem-solver and to ask questions about the Universe. It has given me a group of caring friends, exciting co-op experiences, and an interest in research that could have a huge impact on the world.
