Welcome - Walter Burke Institute for Theoretical Physics

skip to main content

Welcome to the Walter Burke Institute for Theoretical Physics. By connecting researchers from around the world at Caltech, the Burke Institute provides a hub for the exchange of ideas and fosters cross-continent and cross-discipline collaborations. It is our mission to advance humanity's quest to expand our understanding of natural phenomena at all scales—from subatomic, atomic, and molecular scales to the scales of celestial objects and the universe itself. Read more

Awards and Honors

Frontiers of Science Award: Physics

Cheung, Gukov and Kitaev receive the Frontiers of Science Award

Sergei Gukov

Sergei Gukov Receives AI+Math DARPA Grant

Elias Most Named 2026 Sloan Fellows

News and Media Highlights

August 17, 2026

Synchronized Stars Power Cosmic Radio Laser

Mark Wise

Caltech Mourns the Passing of Mark B. Wise (1953–2026)

Jim Fuller

Fuller proposes new model of how stars die

Seminars

October 2, 2026 11:00 am

High Energy Theory Seminar

Online and In-Person Event

From Closed to Ajar: Effective Actions and Symmetry Breaking in Non-Equilibrium Many-Body Systems

Riccardo Penco, Carnegie Mellon University,

October 2, 2026 2:00 pm

TAPIR Seminar

Online and In-Person Event

Signatures of Black Hole Spin and Plasma Acceleration in Jet Polarimetry

Zachary Gelles, Graduate Student, Department of Physics, Princeton University,

October 5, 2026 1:30 pm

High Energy Theory Seminar

Online and In-Person Event

Alternative AdS Boundary Conditions and Their Implications

Xinkang Wang, University of Chicago,

Connect With Us

Stay up to date on the latest from Burke Institute

jpg