Rate My Professor Michael Murray

Michael J. Murray is a Professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Kansas, a position he has held since 2002, initially starting as an Assistant Professor. Prior to his appointment at KU, Murray served as a Research Scientist at the Cyclotron Institute, Texas A&M University, from 1998 to 2002. His academic background includes a Ph.D. in Experimental High Energy Physics from the University of Pittsburgh in 1989 and a B.S. in Joint Honors Mathematics and Physics from the University of Manchester in 1983. Throughout his career, he has contributed to advancements in experimental physics, particularly in nuclear and high-energy domains.

Murray's primary research interests lie in nuclear physics and astrobiophysics. He is an active member of the CMS collaboration at CERN's Large Hadron Collider, where he conducts experimental studies on heavy-ion collisions, including measurements of charged particle multiplicity (dN/dη) and transverse energy production (dE_T/dη) in lead-lead (PbPb) collisions. Key publications include "Measurement of dN/dη and dE_T/dη in PbPb collisions with CMS" (Nuclear Physics A, 2013) and various articles in the Journal of High Energy Physics. His involvement in forward physics and development of Zero Degree Calorimeters (ZDCs) for ATLAS and CMS has furthered understanding of quantum chromodynamics (QCD) and ultraperipheral collisions. As part of the CMS team, Murray was recognized among 52 University of Kansas-affiliated scientists who received the 2025 Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics for contributions to the discovery of the Higgs boson. In physics education, Murray pioneered transitions from lecture-based to group problem-solving activities, improving student outcomes as detailed in research published in Physical Review Physics Education Research (2019). He has delivered seminars on topics such as doubly magic mirror nuclei and QCD forward physics, and organized events highlighting careers of black physicists.