Nanos names seven new Laboratory Fellows

Contact: Kevin Roark, knroark@lanl.gov, (505) 665-0582 (04-081)

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LOS ALAMOS, N.M., Oct. 12, 2004 -- Recognizing the highest levels of scientific excellence at Los Alamos National Laboratory, Director G. Peter Nanos has named seven distinguished scientists as Laboratory Fellows. Recipients of the annual honor are technical staff members who have demonstrated the highest level of excellence in programs important to the Laboratory's mission, made significant scientific discoveries that lead to widespread use, or have been recognized as leaders in their fields both inside and outside of the Laboratory.

"The Fellows are one of the more important bodies at the Laboratory in terms of demonstrating and maintaining the scientific excellence of our institution," said Nanos. "Our newest Fellows represent the scientific brilliance of our entire technical staff, as well as the dedication to national security shared by all the men and women at the Laboratory. They are truly a distinguished group."

The Fellows for 2004 are Alan Bishop of Theoretical Division; Joseph Carlson of Nuclear Physics, Theoretical Division; Richard Epstein of Space and Remote Sensing Sciences, International, Space and Response Division; Victor Klimov of Physical Chemistry and Applied Spectroscopy, Chemistry Division; Byron Goldstein of Theoretical Biology and Biophysics, Theoretical Division; Brad Meyer of Gas Transfer Systems, Engineering Science and Applications Division; and Dimitri Mihalas of Material Science, Applied Physics Division.

Alan Bishop is an internationally recognized leader in condensed matter theory, statistical physics and nonlinear physics. He has made major contributions in the areas of solitons and low dimensional materials, quantum complexity, nonlinear excitations in structural and magnetic transitions, collective excitations in low-dimensional materials and complex electronic materials with strong spin-charge-lattice coupling. He is a Fellow of the American Physical Society, a recipient of the Department of Energy's Lawrence Award and a Humboldt Senior Fellow.

A former Oppenheimer Fellow, Joe Carlson pioneered the field of the theoretical simulation of the properties of light nuclei. He has nearly single-handedly developed numerical techniques accurate enough to test all significant components of the nuclear force. He used Monte Carlo mathematical techniques to solve the four-nucleon problem in the early 1990s and can now calculate ground and excited states for systems with 12 nucleons that are of astrophysical significance. Carlson is an APS Fellow and a recipient of the Los Alamos Fellows' prize.

Recognized as an authority in theoretical astrophysics, Richard Epstein is considered to be the pioneer of two distinct fields: high-energy astrophysics-cosmic rays, neutron stars and Gamma-ray bursts; and nuclear astrophysics -supernova and the origin of elements. He has also made substantial contributions to the field of optical cooling of solid-state media. "Optical refrigeration," a field that Epstein and his colleagues pioneered, has great practical implications including the ability to reliably and efficiently cool satellite components- a mission-critical need. He is an APS Fellow and also a recipient of the Los Alamos Fellows' Prize.

Byron Goldstein is an internationally recognized authority in the field of mathematical immunology and cell biology. These fields are multidisciplinary frontiers where physics, chemical engineering, mathematics and computer science are combined quantitatively with biology. He is a pioneer in modeling cell signaling cascades, pursuing cutting-edge research in cell activation, cell-signaling, cell surface receptor-ligand interactions and the generation of allergic responses. He is the recipient of a National Institutes of Health MERIT Award, which includes 10 years of new funding.

An internationally recognized solid-state physicist, Victor Klimov has produced groundbreaking research in the area of semiconductor nanocrystal quantum-dot photophysics. He has made seminal contributions to the field of quantum dots, both in time domain studies of ultra fast energy transfer and Auger processes, as well as in the development of the quantum dot laser. Klimov's research comprises an important cornerstone of the Laboratory's efforts in nanoscience and technology and he is a scientific thrust leader in the new Center for Integrated Nanotechnolgy. He is a Fellow of both the American Physical Society and the Optical Society of America. He, too, is a winner of the Los Alamos Fellows' Prize.

Brad Meyer is a world-renowned expert in the mission-critical area of gas transfer systems, where he has made substantial contributions over the past 25 years. Meyer has personally provided multiple significant breakthroughs in the development of safe and reliable gas transfer systems needed by the Nuclear Weapons program. Specifically, Meyer led the successful design and development leading to implementation of Acorn reservoirs, in addition to playing a key role in the theoretical design of Terrazzo reservoir technology and design. Further, Meyer identified a neutron source that is now used for nuclear weapons certification activities-an accomplishment that has had a huge impact on the nuclear weapons complex.

A pioneer in astrophysical computational physics, Dimitri Mihalas is a world leader in the fields of radiation transport, radiation hydrodynamics and astrophysical quantitative spectroscopy. Mihalas' research has had significant impact on the quality of the Laboratory's radiation transport simulations-of critical importance to weapons certification. Mihalas is a member of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences.

Laboratory Fellows are expected to continue to play an important scientific or technical role in the Laboratory and to contribute in significant ways to Laboratory programs and initiatives. Fellows are often called upon to provide critical analyses of significant issues affecting Laboratory programs and work force, particularly any highly technical issues. Only 2 percent of the Laboratory's current technical staff members can hold the title of "Fellow" at any one time.

Nominations were submitted to the members of the Laboratory Fellows Screening Committee, which reviewed the nominations and then submitted their recommendations to Director Nanos. The Director then selected these candidates for the honor.

Note to Editors: Photos of the seven new Laboratory Fellows are available upon request.

Los Alamos National Laboratory is operated by the University of California for the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) of the U.S. Department of Energy and works in partnership with NNSA's Sandia and Lawrence Livermore national laboratories to support NNSA in its mission.

Los Alamos develops and applies science and technology to ensure the safety and reliability of the U.S. nuclear deterrent; reduce the threat of weapons of mass destruction, proliferation and terrorism; and solve national problems in defense, energy, environment and infrastructure.

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