Doctor of Philosophy in Electro-Optics
Temporary AdvisorThe EO Program Director will serve as the temporary advisor until the student has identified his/her advisor from among the EO graduate faculty.
Ph.D. Advisory Committee
Before the end of the first enrolled semester, the student, in consultation with the Program Director, selects a major professor to serve as the chair of the Ph.D. Advisory Committee. The chair of the Ph.D. Advisory Committee will be a member of the graduate faculty. An advisory committee, consisting of the chair, a member from outside the EO Program and at least two graduate faculty members, will then be recommended for approval to the Program Director and to the Associate Dean of Graduate Engineering Programs and Research. The outside member can come from other university faculty, adjunct professors, prominent researchers in industry or government. One additional graduate faculty member may be appointed by the Associate Dean of Graduate Engineering Programs and Research. The composition of the committee will generally reflect the student's area of study and research interest. The majority of the committee, however, must be members of EO Program faculty. The duties of the Ph.D. Advisory Committee shall include advising the student, assisting the student in preparing the program of study, administering and reporting Part (b) of the candidacy examination, assisting in planning and conducting research, approving the dissertation, and conducting and reporting the results of the dissertation defense. A dissertation advisor other than the chair of the Ph.D. Advisory Committee may be appointed by the Advisory Committee.
Semester-Hour Requirements
The minimum semester-hour requirement for the doctoral degree is 90 semester hours beyond the bachelor's degree (which must include the EO core or its equivalent), or 60 semester hours beyond the EO M.S. degree or equivalent. This includes the credit for the doctoral dissertation. Of these 60 semester hours beyond the EO M.S., a minimum of 48 semester hours must be taken at UD. Doctoral candidates must be registered for a minimum of two semester hours every semester during their candidacy including the semester in which the dissertation defense is successfully completed.
Plan of Study
The Plan of Study shall include all the specific courses beyond the master's degree that the student is required to complete. The plan shall indicate the time and manner in which these requirements are to be met. It is to be completed and approved by the student's Ph.D. Advisory Committee, the EO Program Director, and the Associate Dean of Graduate Engineering Programs and Research before the end of the second semester of the student's enrollment in the Ph.D. program. The proper form may be obtained from the Office of Graduate Engineering Programs and Research. The Plan of Study of a student seeking the Ph.D. in Electro-Optics must successfully complete a minimum of 90 semester hours beyond the bachelor's degree which must include the following:
1. Core courses as given in the EO Master's program or equivalent.
2. Twelve semester hours of approved 600-level Electro-Optics courses.
3. Six semester hours of approved graduate mathematics courses.
4. Thirty semester hours Ph.D. dissertation in Electro-Optics.
The Ph.D. dissertation must either add to the fundamental knowledge of the field or provide a new and better interpretation of facts that are already known. It is expected to result in one or more manuscripts suitable for publication in a refereed journal.
Residency Requirement
After admittance to a doctoral program, the student must complete the residency requirement to be eligible for the candidacy examination. This requirement must be met by completing 21 semester hours of graduate coursework in four or fewer consecutive semesters which may or may not include the summer semester.
Candidacy Examination
The candidacy examination for the doctoral degree is generally taken upon completion of the core courses. The purpose of this examination is to determine the student's eligibility to become a candidate for the doctoral degree. The student must pass all parts of the examination to be admitted to candidacy. The student is considered to have passed only when the decision of the student's Ph.D. Advisory Committee is unanimous. All members must sign the examination report form with an indication of their decision so noted on the form prior to it being submitted to the Associate Dean for Graduate Programs, Research, and Information Technology. If any part of the examination is unsatisfactory, the student will be notified in writing of the conditions for another examination. No student will be permitted to take any part of the examination more than twice. A second examination on Part (a) or Part (b) may not be given earlier than four months after the submission of the report on the first examination. A student must pass the candidacy examination at least six months prior to the dissertation defense.
The candidacy examination will consist of two parts: (a) a written examination on EO core material and (b) an oral examination on the dissertation proposal. The Part (a) written examination will be given once each in the fall and winter semesters on designated dates while the Part (b) examination must be completed within six months from the completion of the Part (a) examination. The Part (a) examination will cover the six lecture courses EOP 501, EOP 502, EOP 505, EOP 506, EOP 513, and EOP 514 while the lab courses EOP 541L, EOP 542L, and EOP 543L are included to the extent that the material in the lab courses relates to the material covered in these six lecture courses. Prior to taking the Part (b) examination the doctoral student, in close consultation with the advisor, will complete the preparation of a formal written dissertation proposal. Only up to six hours of EOP 699 can be utilized for this proposal activity. The milestones and the proposal format for the Part (b) candidacy examination are as follows: The dissertation proposal outlining in detail the topic of dissertation research should clearly show a review of the literature, need for and the uniqueness of the research, the general approach to completing the research, results expected, and a schedule of work. The proposal is expected to follow the outline: (a) title page, (b) abstract, (c) introduction, (d) review of related research, (e) proposed research, (f) expected outcomes, (g) schedule of work, (h) references, and (i) appendix, if any. The body of the proposal (c) through (g) should not exceed 20 double spaced pages (1" margin and 12 pt. font) including figures, tables and equations.
