American Physical Society names new Fellows

Press/Media: STE Highlight

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Ten Los Alamos scientists have been elected as Fellows to the American Physical Society (APS) for 2015. Selection as a Fellow recognizes exceptional contributions to the physics enterprise, such as outstanding physics research, important applications of physics, leadership in or service to physics, or significant contributions to physics education. Fellowship is a distinct honor signifying recognition by one’s professional peers. More information regarding American Physical Society Fellows: http://www.aps.org/programs/honors/fellowships/

 

Tariq Aslam (Shock and Detonation Physics, M-9) was cited “For groundbreaking contributions to the computational physics of detonations and shock waves, including co-inventing the ghost fluid method, mapped weighted essentially nonoscillatory schemes, Runge-Kutta-Legendre time integration, and applications of level set methods.” The APS Topical Group on Shock Compression of Condensed Matter nominated him. Aslam received a PhD in Theoretical and Applied Mechanics from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He joined the Lab as a graduate research assistant in 1994, became a postdoctoral fellow in 1996, and was converted to staff. Aslam models high explosive response and devises novel numerical methodologies to solve problems in shock and detonation physics. Other awards include the William Penney Fellowship, Los Alamos Awards Program recognition, and NNSA Defense Programs Awards of Excellence.

 

Steve Batha (Physics Division, P-DO) was cited “For pioneering investigations of forward scattering laser-plasma instabilities, hydrodynamic instabilities in highenergy density physics regimes, and leadership of high-energy-density research.” The APS Division of Plasma Physics nominated him. He earned a PhD in mechanical and aerospace sciences from the University of Rochester and joined the Laboratory in 1998 as a staff scientist in Plasma Physics (P-24). Batha is program manager of the Inertial Confinement Fusion and High Yield Campaign, overseeing studies of physics processes important for weapons science. He has served on numerous review committees for the Stockpile Stewardship Academic Alliance, National Laser User Facility, and other high-energy-density physics programs. Batha has received two NNSA Defense Program Awards of Excellence for neutron imaging diagnostics.

 

Eric Bauer (Condensed Matter and Magnet Science, MPA-CMMS) was cited “Foroutstanding and original contributions to the discovery and understanding of correlated electron systems, specifically for the study of complex electronic stateshosted by correlated actinide and rare-earth materials.” The APS Division of Materials Physics nominated him. He received a PhD in physics from the University of California – San Diego and joined the Lab in 2002 as a Director’s Postdoctoral Researcher. He currently leads the Strongly Correlated Electron Team within MPA-CMMS. He synthesizes correlated f- and d-electron materials including single crystal growth of lanthanide and actinide compounds by the molten-metal flux, Bridgman, vapor-transport and Czochralski techniques. He also investigates new unconventional superconductors, understanding quantum criticality and discovery of novel states of matter near quantum critical points, and examines the localized/itinerant crossover in the actinides through synthesis of single crystals of plutonium compounds and x-ray absorption spectroscopy techniques. He won a 2009 Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers.

 

Hou-Tong Chen (Center for Integrated Nanotechnologies, MPA-CINT) was cited “For contributions to the development of active metamaterials and devices, and the development and understanding of few-layer metamaterials and metasurfaces, especially in the terahertz frequency range.” The APS Division of Laser Science nominated him. Chen earned a PhD in physics from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and joined the Lab as a postdoctoral researcher in 2005. He has made great advances in active and dynamic terahertz metamaterials. Now he studies metamaterials in the optical frequency range. Chen seeks to engineer and control the response of flat optics, which employ flat lenses made of metamaterials instead of conventional curved lenses. He also explores how integration of functional materials could make metamaterials for optoelectronic applications. Chen holds two patents and has received two Los Alamos Awards Program recognitions.

 

Diego Dalvit (Physics of Condensed Matter and Complex Systems, T-4) was cited “For original contributions to the interpretation of Casimir physics experiments, including fluctuation-induced interactions in nanostructured materials, thermal Casimir forces, and patch effects.” The APS Division of Atomic, Molecular & Optical Physics nominated him. He received a PhD in Physics from the University of Buenos Aires, Argentina. Dalvit joined the Lab as a Director’s Postdoctoral Fellow in 1999 and became a staff member in 2002. He investigates Casimir physics and other types of fluctuation-induced interactions, quantum physics, nanophotonics, and electromagnetic metamaterials. Dalvit develops modeling and simulation tools to understand light-matter interactions in complex material structures at the classical and quantum levels. He received a Los Alamos Awards Program recognition for scientific leadership in basic and applied Casimir physics research, and he has served as a visiting professor at École Normale Supérieure and CNRS.

 

Dinh Nguyen (AOT-AE) was cited “For an outstanding record of innovation and contribution to the initial development of high-brightness photo-injectors, early experimental validation of self-amplified spontaneous-emission theory, and high average current injectors.” The APS Division of Physics of Beams nominated him. He received a PhD in chemistry from the University of Wisconsin – Madison. Since joining the Laboratory in 1984, he has performed pioneering work in single molecule detection, up-conversion solid-state lasers, RF photoinjectors, advanced photocathodes, and high-gain amplifier free electron laser (FEL) concepts such as the self-amplified spontaneous emission (SASE) and regenerative amplifier. His high-gain SASE experiments in 1997 were the first in a series of experiments that have culminated in the first x-ray FEL at SLAC. His current research includes the development of high-power FEL, high-average-current RF injectors, rugged  hotocathodes and new ideas of hard x-ray FEL.

 

Alan S. Perelson (Theoretical Biology and Biophysics, T-6) was cited “For seminal contributions to the development of dynamical models of HIV infection, for elucidating therapeutic responses of HCV, and for helping found the fields of viral dynamics and theoretical immunology.” The Division of Biological Physics nominated him. Perelson received a PhD in biophysics from the University of California – Berkeley and joined the Lab as a staff member in 1974. He was one of the original four staff members who founded the Theoretical Biology and Biophysics Group (T-10). Perelson later became T-10 Group Leader, a Lab Fellow, and a Senior Fellow. His investigates how the immune system works and examines methods to cure infectious diseases such as HIV and hepatitis C virus infection. He has published more than 500 papers. Awards include membership in the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, Fellow of the American Association of the Advancement of Science and the Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics, and a NIH MERIT award. Perelson holds Adjunct Professorships at the University of New Mexico, Boston University, and University of Rochester; and he is an External Professor and on the Science Board at the Santa Fe Institute.

 

Filip Ronning (Condensed Matter and Magnet Science, MPA-CMMS) was cited “For experimental contributions to understanding strongly correlated electron phenomena, particularly in cuprate and heavy-fermion systems.” The APS Division of Condensed Matter Physics nominated him. He received a PhD in physics from Stanford University and joined the Laboratory as a Reines Distinguished Postdoctoral Fellow in 2003. The Lab converted him to staff in 2006. His research investigates novel states of matter, including unconventional superconductors and strongly correlated topological materials. Ronning has more than 200 publications with over 5,500 citations.

 

Andy Saunders (Subatomic Physics, P-25) was cited “For contributions in developing proton radiography and the LANL ultra cold neutron source, enabling new applications of nuclear science and an improved understanding of the decay of the free neutron.” The APS Division of Nuclear Physics nominated him. He received a PhD in physics from the University of Colorado and joined the Lab as a postdoctoral researcher in 1998. Saunders has participated in the development of proton radiography (pRad) since the early demonstration experiments conducted at Brookhaven National Laboratory in 1997. He has led the Los Alamos pRad imaging capability since 2013 and served as the radiographer in charge of executing over 150 explosively-driven dynamic experiments at LANSCE for the weapons program, for which he is now developing new techniques in charged particle radiography. Saunders also participated in the design and construction of LANL’s Ultracold Neutron Facility (UCN), which uses the LANSCE proton beam to produce ultracold, slow-moving neutrons that enable fundamental physics measurements of unprecedented precision. He is co-spokesperson of a project measuring the average lifetime of the free neutron. Saunders has been honored with nine NNSA Defense Program Awards of Excellence and five LANL Distinguished Performance Awards.

 

Glen Wurden (Plasma Physics, P-24) was cited “For innovative approaches to plasma diagnostics applied to a wide variety of fusion confinement concepts, ranging from reversed field pinches to tokamaks to magneto-inertial fusion.” The APS Division of Plasma Physics nominated him. He received a PhD in astrophysical sciences/plasma physics from Princeton University and joined the Laboratory in 1982 as a J. Robert Oppenheimer Postdoctoral Fellow. He leads P-24’s Magnetized Plasma team, which uses a wide range of plasmas and plasma diagnostic techniques to understand complex processes in hot fusion plasmas. Wurden collaborates with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the Air Force Research Laboratory on tokamaks and magnetized target fusion projects, and he fields optical diagnostics on the longpulse Wendelstein 7-X stellarator in Germany.

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