Rebecca Godri (white shirt) and two of her UTC physics undergraduate colleagues, John O’Neal and Sara Mitchell, traveled to Oak Ridge National Laboratory in March 2020. Photos courtesy of Dr. Josh Hamblen.
Rebecca Godri, a 2021 graduate of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, is making waves in the physics world after being selected for the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Science Graduate Student Research (SCGSR) program.
The SCGSR award, considered one of the most esteemed honors for graduate research in physics, supports promising graduate students by providing funding for research projects that align with the DOE’s scientific priorities.
For Godri, the award offers essential support to continue her groundbreaking research at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL).
“This is giving me access to staff scientists,” Godri explained. “For example, I have a staff scientist with whom I’m collaborating and I can go to him every day if I want to and say, ‘Show me how to do this. Train me on how to do that’—which is exactly what I’m going to be doing.”
Rebecca Godri
Godri is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in physics at UT Knoxville after earning a master’s degree from the institution in 2023. As part of her research, she is studying neutron beta decay via the Nab experiment at ORNL.
“Nab stands for neutron a and b, so it’s the little ‘a’ and little ‘b’ parameters in neutron beta decay,” she explained. “The Nab experiment studies the decay of a free neutron, meaning the neutron when it’s outside of a nucleus. Within about 15 minutes, that neutron will decay. We have a really big magnet, and what the Nab experiment does is it uses those neutrons; when the neutron decays, if it decays within that magnet, then the proton is going to be accelerated up to an upper detector and the electron is going to be detected in both detectors.
“What we can do from that is we get the proton time of flight—which is just how long it takes for the proton to get up to the detector—and we can extract its momentum. That, combined with our other measureable data, will allow us to extract little ‘a’ and little ‘b.’ So it’s a test of the Standard Model of Physics.”
Godri’s research path began during her undergraduate days at UTC, where UC Foundation Professor of Physics Josh Hamblen recognized her potential early on.
“I remember meeting her at freshman orientation and I could already tell she was special in terms of her background and preparation,” said Hamblen, a member of the UTC faculty since 2009.
He recalled how Godri began doing research with him during her freshman year and participated in the Department of Chemistry and Physics’ 10-week summer research program—which he believes set her on the path to her current achievements.
“She was able to present her research at our regional Southeastern Section of the American Physical Society meeting after that first summer,” Hamblen said, “and she’s kept being successful from then on.
“By the time she was a senior, she was able to touch base with our colleagues at UTK. That’s where this Nab relationship started, which led her to this impressive position in graduate school.”
Godri agreed that her early indoctrination to research through Hamblen was pivotal.
“He told me to apply and I was like, ‘I don’t think I’m qualified. I’m not a senior physics student; I’m just starting out. I don’t know if I’m going to be good enough.’ And he was like, ‘Just apply anyway.’ So I did, and then I got it,” she recalled. “Obviously, I’d never had any research experience before and it was not tough—but it was just very new to me.
“By the end of the 10 weeks, it was completely different. I was able to present and talk about the research that I did and it actually made sense. It was just such a great experience and without it, I’m not quite sure if I would be in nuclear physics. It just really opened my eyes to how cool nuclear physics can be.”
Hamblen, who explained that the Nab experiment is comprised of approximately 50 scientists from a number of universities across the country, said Godri’s enthusiasm for research led to quick growth in the field.
“Her ability to do research early on gave her skills that made her competitive for top graduate programs,” he said. “She started with small steps at UTC, but over time, she’s been able to do more and better things in her research work.
“I’m happy that I was able to get her started and get her foot in the door on this kind of research. She’s really taken the ball and ran with it. Now, she’s basically at the lab running the experiment, making the measurements that she needs to do.”
Reflecting on her time at UTC, Godri expressed gratitude for the close-knit support she received from the physics faculty.
“I really enjoyed my time there. I miss it,” she said. “The department is small, so it felt like everybody was a little family. All of the other students were great and supportive, and my best friend (Sara Bey) graduated with me. I still talk to her all the time.”
Bey, she said, is now in graduate school at the University of Notre Dame.
“I remember my first semester; there’s an undergrad class that you take which basically shows you all of the different opportunities that you can have in physics as a career—what that can look like, how to prepare, how to succeed,” Godri continued. “Right off the bat, that was such a great way to be introduced to the department. We were shown all of the different possibilities and it was just so supportive.”
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