One of the most enjoyable duties for volunteers in the IEEE Nuclear and Plasma Science Society is the Awards Committee. The Awards Committee receives solicits and nominations for a number of awards spanning technical excellence to service, and recognizing superlative performance from early career to lifetime achievement. The Awards Committee was impressed with the quality of the nominees, and worked hard to determine the awards recipients among many strong nominations. The NPSS is grateful for the hard work and dedication of the Awards Committee in carrying out this important duty. We are equally grateful to the nominators for putting together the materials to showcase the achievements of their colleagues, the authors of support letters, and most of all the nominees, and regret that we can only honor a subset of nominees who clearly merit recognition.

Merit Award

This year’s NPSS Merit Award recipient is George “Hutch” Neilson. The Merit Award recognizes outstanding technical contributions to the fields of Nuclear and Plasma Sciences. It includes a plaque, a certificate, and a prize of $5,000.

Hutch received his B.S. in Electrical Engineering in 1971, followed by the M.S. in Electrical Engineering in 1973, both from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). He received his PhD from the University of Tennessee-Knoxville in 1979.

Dr. Neilson serves as the Head of the ITER Fabrication Department at the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL). In this role, he is responsible for the PPPL ITER project scope. He served in various other roles at PPPL since 1996. From 1974-1996 he served in various capacities at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), culminating in the role of Project Physics Manager on assignment to PPPL.

Dr. Neilson worked on the physics and engineering of fusion experimental systems during his 14-year period with ORNL. During this period, he produced 57 journal articles as author or coauthor. Key topics included neutral beam heating, charge exchange, impurity effects, particle confinement, and pellet injection, current feedback and control, and MHD equilibria, in the context of tokamak plasmas. Significant engineering efforts include magnet design for tokamaks and stellarators, as well as vacuum vessel impurity reduction.

Key contributions included a study of density limits in tokamaks, M. Greenwald et al., Nuclear Fusion 28 (1988), which led to the Greenwald Limit describing fundamental tokamak plasma stability limits. Another key work examined the equilibria for non-circular cross section high-beta tokamak plasmas using magnetic sensor data, Swain and Neilson, Nuclear Fusion 22 (1982). As his career gravitated to team leadership, his teams made a number of notable contributions around a number of theoretical studies as well as realized experiments in the tokamak and stellarator areas.

Citation: For technical leadership in the advancement of science and engineering toward the realization of nuclear fusion as a beneficial source of energy for mankind.

Richard F. Shea Distinguished Member Award

The 2020 recipient of the NPSS Richard F. Shea Award is William E. Price of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory/California Institute of Technology (retired). The Richard F. Shea Distinguished Member Award recognizes outstanding contributions through leadership and service to the NPSS and to the fields of Nuclear and Plasma Sciences. The award includes a plaque, a certificate, and a $5,000 prize.

Mr. Price received the B.S. in Physics from Waynesburg College in 1951. He subsequently studied at both the University of Maryland in College Park and the University of California at Los Angeles.

Mr. Price started his professional career at the Naval Research Laboratory in 1953 as a test engineer evaluating radiation effects on insulating materials and developing diagnostic devices. In 1956, he joined Pratt & Whitney to develop radiation shielding materials. In 1958, he joined Lockheed Research Laboratories to develop dosimetry packages for low Earth orbit. In 1963, he joined NASA Goddard Space Flight Center to design a radiation testing complex. In 1966, he joined Philco-Ford Aerospace as the group leader of a team hardening military spacecraft. In 1968, he joined Autonetics/North American to develop dosimetry for the Minuteman Program. In 1970, he joined the Jet Propulsion Laboratory and the California Institute of Technology leading a group performing radiation testing of components and systems. Mr. Price retired in 1989.

Bill was instrumental in the formation of the IEEE NPSS and the Radiation Effect technical committee. He and Dr. John Winslow of Oak Ridge National Laboratory initiated a workshop on radiation effects, held as five sections within the American Institute of Electrical Engineers (AIEE) Conference in Denver in 1962. At the 1963 joint AIEE-International Radio Engineers meeting in Toronto, the Radiation Effects Technical Committee was formed under the Nuclear and Space Radiation Effects Committee. The conference series thrives today as the Nuclear & Space Radiation Effects Conference (NSREC), under the IEEE Nuclear and Plasma Sciences Society (NPSS). His key role in the formation of the NSREC, the Radiation Effects Technical Committee, and the NPSS have been an enormous service to the large nuclear and plasma sciences community.

Citation: For outstanding contributions to the IEEE NPSS through leadership and service, including establishing the Nuclear and Space Radiation Effects Conference, assisting with establishing and organizing the NPSS, and serving in numerous IEEE leadership roles.

Early Achievement Award

The 2020 recipient of the IEEE NPSS Early Achievement Award is Peng Zhang, Assistant Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Michigan State University (MSU). The Early Achievement Award recognizes outstanding contributions to any of the fields of Nuclear and Plasma Sciences during the first ten years of an individual’s career. The award comprises a plaque, a certificate, and a $3,000 prize.

Dr. Zhang received the B. Eng. From Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, in 2006. He received the MS and PhD from the University of Michigan in 2010 and 2012, respectively. He worked as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at UM from 2012-1013. From 2013-2016, he was appointed Assistant Research Scientist at UM. He was appointed Assistant Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at MSU in 2016.

Dr. Zhang has made a number of key technical contributions. His graduate work on electrical contact resistance elucidates a phenomena of consequence for electronics from consumer scale items to large current and voltage devices and connections. His subsequent work developed these ideas into scaling laws, and added materials-based nanoelectronics.

Another important contribution is the development of an exact quantum theory for laser-induced emission of photoelectrons, which unified the effects of multi-photon absorption, optically enhanced field emission, and photo-assisted tunneling. This work has impact on plasma and vacuum electronics, accelerators, free electron lasers, quantum circuits, microscopy and spectroscopy.

His recent work on multipactor breakdown, including an improved Monte Carlo model which more precisely computes the particle impacts, has impact for high field RF devices, space electronics, and microwave sources and devices. He has additionally contributed to the understanding of signal quality and cross-coupling in multipacting devices. The model has also led to breakdown mitigation methodologies.

Additional works include the study of magneto-Raleigh-Taylor instabilities to understand the coupling between Raleigh-Taylor, kink, and sausage instabilities, as well as quantum electrodynamics effects in ultra-relativistic plasmas which impacts laser-plasma interaction.

Prof. Zhang also led a team developing a model for secondary electron emission from porous surfaces, important in breakdown and beam-surface interactions. He also led a team developing models of carbon nanotube (CNT) cathodes, relevant to electron beam sources for use in microwave sources and amplifiers, x-ray sources, and electric propulsion. Related, his team developed a model for the field distribution and current emission in a miniaturized geometric diode, important in high power high frequency applications in signal rectification and electron source development.

Citation: For pioneering contributions in the theory of electrical contact resistance, and in the physics of diodes in the ultrafast and nano-scale regimes, including electron emission mechanisms and transport..

Charles K. Birdsall Award

The 2020 recipient of the IEEE NPSS Charles K. Birdsall is Rodney Mason, recently retired from Research Application Corp. The Birdsall Award recognizes outstanding contributions in computational nuclear and plasma science. It comprises a plaque and a $2,000 prize.

Dr. Mason received the B.A. in Physics from Cornell University in 1960, and the Ph.D. in Aerospace Engineering from Cornell University in 1964.  From 1965-1967, he was a Fullbright Graduate Fellow at the Institute for Plasmaphysik in Garching, Germany where he studied kinetic and plasma physics modeling. From 1967-1972 he joined Bell Telephone Laboratories in Whippany, New Jersey USA as a staff member researching collisionless shocks  in high altitude plasmas. From 1972-2006, he joined Los Alamos National Laboratory as Deputy Group Leader in plasma code development and inertial confinement fusion and pulsed power. From 2006-2018, he founded Research Applications Corp. to develop the ePLAS code, with applications to inertial confinement fusion and atmospheric plasmas.

Dr. Mason pioneered a number of key topics in computational plasma physics. He developed the first simulation of reflected ions in ion-acoustics shocks, and the first large time step one-dimensional hybrid plasma simulation of electron transport in a laser plasma. He developed the first implicit-moment PIC algorithm, and developed one and two dimensional implicit-moment hybrid plasma simulation codes.

He applied those plasma simulation codes to key applications in laser fusion, pulsed power, microelectronics, hydrodynamics, and rarefied gas dynamics. He developed early predictions of the optimized implosion and burn of deuterium-tritium shells, and documented the thermonuclear burn characteristics of deuterium-tritium microspheres, and characterized microballoon implosions of shaped laser pulses. Using simulations and experiment, he studied conical CO2 laser fusion targets. He pioneered simulation of B-field generation via streaming of suprathermal electrons, explained thermal transport inhibition from multigroup transport leading to a hot electron precursor-foot. His seminal work on ultra-powerful laser ignition and burn with M, Tabak became a classic reference in inertial confinement fusion. He applied the self-consistent implicit model to electron transport in the Fast Ignitor, and identified resistive Joule heating as the dominant mechanism in fast ignition cone targets. In pulsed power, he pioneered the simulation of plasma opening switches. In microelectronics, he developed the first non-invasive procedure for coupling the PISCES code to a 3D Maxwell FDTD solver with M. Jones and V. Thomas.  In hydrodynamics, Dr. Mason pioneered a multi0speed compressible lattice gas model for Eulerian flows. In rarefied gas dynamics, he calculated the combined effect of mixed sonic and free-streaming modes in forced sound propagation, and developed analytic and computational solutions for shock formation based on the Krook equation.

Citation: For contributions to the modeling of collisionless and collisional plasmas over large time scales by implicit methods with applications to laser-plasma interactions and in plasma opening switches for pulsed power.

Magne “Kris” Kristiansen Award

The 2020 recipient of the IEEE NPSS Magne “Kris” Kristiansen Award is Yakov Krasik, Professor of Physics at Technion, Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel. The Kristiansen Award recognizes individuals for outstanding contributions in experimental nuclear and plasma science with preference given to areas within the broadest scope of plasma sciences encompassing the generation of strong pulsed electromagnetic fields including their interaction with plasmas and other pulsed power applications. The award comprises a plaque and a $2,000 prize.

Dr. Krasik received the M.Sc.  in 1976 from the Tomsk Polytechnic University, Tomsk Russia, and the Ph.D. in 1980. After receiving the Ph.D., Dr. Krasik was appointed Senior Scientist the Nuclear Research Institute, Tomsk, Russia. In 1991, he was appointed Research Scientist in the Physics Dept. at the Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel. In 1997, he was appointed Sneior Research Fellow in the Physics Dept., Technion, Israel nstitute of Technology, Haifa, Israel. In 2002, he was appointed Associate Professor in the Physics Dept.,

Dr. Krasik was involved in a number of key experimental advances in plasma and pulsed power applications. He carried out comprehensive study of active and passive plasma cathodes for high current electron beam generation in vacuum diodes, important for high current accelerators, x-ray sources, high power microwave sources, space applications, and more. Dr. Krasik’s key discovery was that electrons were emitted from a surface flashover induced plasma, rather than via field emission from the ferroelectric surfaces as was commonly thought. Dr. Krasik has published 64 papers including 8 review papers on this topic, with over 1800 citations.

Another key area is wakefield acceleration of particles, involving the interaction of high power sub-picosecond lasers with neutral gas and plasmas, generating extreme oscillatory wakefields. Wakefield accelerators avoid breakdown of conventional accelerator structures by high field gradients, allowing compact high energy electron acceleration.

Dr. Krasik also studied warm dense matter, a state formed at extreme conditions of high density, temperature, and pressure. Specifically, he suggested the use of single or arrays of thin wires which explode when loaded with high current underwater. This was accomplished using modest power pulsed power sources, at modest cost.

Accomplishments of teams led by Dr. Krasik include the generation of high current ion beams in triodes and magnetically insulated diodes, plasma opening switches, and nanosecond gas discharges used to generate runaway electrons in the tail.  His most impactful contribution is the study of the nonlinear interaction of a microwave beam with a plasma. He and his demonstrated ionization-induced self-channeling of a short pulse, high-power, focused microwave beam (500 MW, 0.7 ns, 10 GHz), injected into a neutral gas for the first time. It was shown that the guiding of the beam along a few Rayleigh lengths occurs due to the larger electron energy and, respectively, slower ionization rate at the beam axis than at its edges. This is first experiment illustrating the plasma wakefield phenomenon using intense microwave beams.

Citation: For contributions to the understanding of the physics of plasma high current sources, opening switches and runaway electrons, the interaction of extreme high power microwaves with plasmas, gases and their mixtures, and shock waves and warm dense plasma in underwater electrical explosions of wires and wire arrays

Glenn F. Knoll Post Doctoral Educational Grant

The recipient of the 2020 Glenn F. Knoll Graduate Education Grant is Nicola Lusardi of Politecnico di Milano. This grant recognizes outstanding postdoctoral researchers in the field of nuclear science instrumentation, medical instrumentation, or instrumentation for security applications. The grant is intended to support travel and attendance to conferences, workshops or summer schools, or special research projects. The recipient receives $5000 and plaque.

Dr. Lusardi was awarded the PhD in 2018 from Politecnico di Milano. Dr. Lusardi’s research involves digital methods and instruments for measurement of timing events vi atie-of-flight and time-correlation. A key challenge in these efforts is the achievement of increasingly higher resolution across multiple channels.

Ronald J. Jaszczak Graduate Award

The recipient of the 2020 Ronald J. Jaszczak Award is Dr. Andrea Gonzalez-Montoro of Stanford University. The Jaszczak Award recognizes and enables an outstanding graduate student enrolled in an accredited Ph.D. curriculum, Post-doctoral Fellow or Ph.D. level Research Associate in the field of nuclear and medical imaging sciences to advance his/her research activities. The award includes a prize of up to $5,000 to support academic and/or research activities.

Dr. Gonzalez-Montoro received her Ph.D. in Physics at the University of Valencia, Spain in 2018 for “Design and implementation of PET detectors based on monolithic crystals and SiPMs.” She received her B.S. in Physics at the University of Valencia, Spain in 2014, M.S. in Medical Physics from the University of Valencia, Spain in 2015. She is now a postdoctoral researcher in the Department of Radiology at Stanford University.

Dr. Gonzalez-Montoro developed high-efficiency gamma ray detectors for positron emission tomography (PET) systems. Her work demonstrated the effectiveness of single crystal detectors as well as the implementation of clinical scanners, and translated the devices to multiple industry partners. More recently, her postdoctoral work involves detector blocks for 100 ps time-of –flight resolution. Her projects include a high efficiency bran PET/MR system and a PET/MR scanner.

Her work is represented in sixteen refereed journal publications, twenty-four conference publication, and one patent.

NPSS Graduate Scholarship Awards

The recipients of the 2020 NPSS Graduate Scholarship Award are Mercy Iyabode Akerele of the University of Leeds and Michael Hua of the University of Michigan. The Graduate Scholarship Award recognizes contributions to the fields of Nuclear and Plasma Sciences by a graduate student in the fields of Nuclear and Plasma Sciences. The scholarship includes a certificate, one year paid membership in the NPSS, and $1,500 prize.

Ms. Akerele is currently a candidate for the Ph.D. in Biomedical Imaging Science at the University of Leeds studying the investigation and correction techniques for the partial volume split in effects in positron emission tomography (PET).  Additional work includes image reconstruction methods including suppression of spill-in effects in PET, background correction in PET, and a comparison of correction techniques in PET. Upon graduation, Ms. Akerele has an offer to pursue postdoctoral studies at Cornell University.

Mr. Hua is currently a candidate for the Ph.D. in Nuclear Engineering and Radiological Sciences at the University of Michigan. His research has focused on neutron time-correlation analysis via fast neutron multiplicity counting and Rossi-alpha studies. His work includes accounting for neutron cross-talk, geometric optimization of the detector array, uncertainty quantification, and simulating assays of fuel assemblies containing burnable poisons. Mr. Hua is also the founder of the University of Michigan NPSS Student Chapter.

NPSS Robert J Barker Graduate Student Award for Excellence in Pulsed Power Applications

The recipient of the 2020 inaugural NPSS Robert J Barker Graduate Student Award for Excellence in Pulsed Power Applications is Jon Cameron Pouncey of the University of New Mexico. The Barker Award recognizes and enables outstanding graduate students enrolled in an accredited MS or Ph.D. level research program in the field of nuclear and plasma sciences, in pulsed power applications with preference given to medical and environmental applications and to compact pulsed power research and applications. The recipient receives a prize of $3,000, a travel allocation not to exceed $500, and a plaque.

Mr. Pouncey’s work includes experimental demonstration of the micro integrated laser switch (MILS) involving an embedded low energy microlaser in a switch to enable high performance switching with high electromagnetic compatibility. He also achieved an interesting result showing that the long-established Marx operated significantly differently than previously thought. More recently, he is working in solutions to frequently encountered experimental challenges of triggering in compact systems.

Mr. Pouncey’s work is represented in three journal publications, with two more pending.

NPSS Women in Engineering Leadership Grant

The 2020 recipient of the NPSS Women in Engineering Leadership Grant is Pauline Paki of the Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA), USA. The Women in Engineering Leadership Grant provides leading edge professional development for women in mid-level to senior phases of their careers. The recipient receives a certificate and reimbursement of expenses to travel to and participate in the IEEE Women in Engineering International Leadership Conference, up to a maximum of $3,000.

Dr. Paki received the Ph.D. in Physics from the Université de Haute-Alsace Mulhouse-Colmar in 1993. Prior to DTRA (2009-present), she worked at Teledyne Scientific & Imagine (2007-2009), Physical Optics Corporation (2005-2007), Femtotrace/JPL NASA (2004-2005), National Instruments (1999-2003), and as a postdoctoral research fellow at Montreal University (1996-1999).

Conclusion

The presentation of awards at NPSS conferences is a time for the community to come together to celebrate excellence, and to recognize those who have moved NPSS forward. Join us in saluting these achievements!  After congratulating this year’s award recipients, it is time to think about nominating your deserving colleagues for next year. You can learn more about NPSS Awards, eligibility, and the nominations process at https://ieee-npss.org/awards/npss-awards/.

John Verboncoeur, 2019-2020 NPSS Awards Committee Chair, can be reached via johnv@msu.edu.

One of the most enjoyable duties for volunteers in the IEEE Nuclear and Plasma Science Society is the Awards Committee. The Awards Committee receives solicits and nominations for a number of awards spanning technical excellence to service, and recognizing superlative performance from early career to lifetime achievement. The Awards Committee was impressed with the quality of the nominees, and worked hard to determine the awards recipients among many strong nominations. The NPSS is grateful for the hard work and dedication of the Awards Committee in carrying out this important duty. We are equally grateful to the nominators for putting together the materials to showcase the achievements of their colleagues, the authors of support letters, and most of all the nominees, and regret that we can only honor a subset of nominees who clearly merit recognition.

Merit Award

This year’s NPSS Merit Award recipient is George “Hutch” Neilson. The Merit Award recognizes outstanding technical contributions to the fields of Nuclear and Plasma Sciences. It includes a plaque, a certificate, and a prize of $5,000.

Hutch received his B.S. in Electrical Engineering in 1971, followed by the M.S. in Electrical Engineering in 1973, both from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). He received his PhD from the University of Tennessee-Knoxville in 1979.

Dr. Neilson serves as the Head of the ITER Fabrication Department at the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL). In this role, he is responsible for the PPPL ITER project scope. He served in various other roles at PPPL since 1996. From 1974-1996 he served in various capacities at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), culminating in the role of Project Physics Manager on assignment to PPPL.

Dr. Neilson worked on the physics and engineering of fusion experimental systems during his 14-year period with ORNL. During this period, he produced 57 journal articles as author or coauthor. Key topics included neutral beam heating, charge exchange, impurity effects, particle confinement, and pellet injection, current feedback and control, and MHD equilibria, in the context of tokamak plasmas. Significant engineering efforts include magnet design for tokamaks and stellarators, as well as vacuum vessel impurity reduction.

Key contributions included a study of density limits in tokamaks, M. Greenwald et al., Nuclear Fusion 28 (1988), which led to the Greenwald Limit describing fundamental tokamak plasma stability limits. Another key work examined the equilibria for non-circular cross section high-beta tokamak plasmas using magnetic sensor data, Swain and Neilson, Nuclear Fusion 22 (1982). As his career gravitated to team leadership, his teams made a number of notable contributions around a number of theoretical studies as well as realized experiments in the tokamak and stellarator areas.

Citation: For technical leadership in the advancement of science and engineering toward the realization of nuclear fusion as a beneficial source of energy for mankind.

Richard F. Shea Distinguished Member Award

The 2020 recipient of the NPSS Richard F. Shea Award is William E. Price of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory/California Institute of Technology (retired). The Richard F. Shea Distinguished Member Award recognizes outstanding contributions through leadership and service to the NPSS and to the fields of Nuclear and Plasma Sciences. The award includes a plaque, a certificate, and a $5,000 prize.

Mr. Price received the B.S. in Physics from Waynesburg College in 1951. He subsequently studied at both the University of Maryland in College Park and the University of California at Los Angeles.

Mr. Price started his professional career at the Naval Research Laboratory in 1953 as a test engineer evaluating radiation effects on insulating materials and developing diagnostic devices. In 1956, he joined Pratt & Whitney to develop radiation shielding materials. In 1958, he joined Lockheed Research Laboratories to develop dosimetry packages for low Earth orbit. In 1963, he joined NASA Goddard Space Flight Center to design a radiation testing complex. In 1966, he joined Philco-Ford Aerospace as the group leader of a team hardening military spacecraft. In 1968, he joined Autonetics/North American to develop dosimetry for the Minuteman Program. In 1970, he joined the Jet Propulsion Laboratory and the California Institute of Technology leading a group performing radiation testing of components and systems. Mr. Price retired in 1989.

Bill was instrumental in the formation of the IEEE NPSS and the Radiation Effect technical committee. He and Dr. John Winslow of Oak Ridge National Laboratory initiated a workshop on radiation effects, held as five sections within the American Institute of Electrical Engineers (AIEE) Conference in Denver in 1962. At the 1963 joint AIEE-International Radio Engineers meeting in Toronto, the Radiation Effects Technical Committee was formed under the Nuclear and Space Radiation Effects Committee. The conference series thrives today as the Nuclear & Space Radiation Effects Conference (NSREC), under the IEEE Nuclear and Plasma Sciences Society (NPSS). His key role in the formation of the NSREC, the Radiation Effects Technical Committee, and the NPSS have been an enormous service to the large nuclear and plasma sciences community.

Citation: For outstanding contributions to the IEEE NPSS through leadership and service, including establishing the Nuclear and Space Radiation Effects Conference, assisting with establishing and organizing the NPSS, and serving in numerous IEEE leadership roles.

Early Achievement Award

The 2020 recipient of the IEEE NPSS Early Achievement Award is Peng Zhang, Assistant Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Michigan State University (MSU). The Early Achievement Award recognizes outstanding contributions to any of the fields of Nuclear and Plasma Sciences during the first ten years of an individual’s career. The award comprises a plaque, a certificate, and a $3,000 prize.

Dr. Zhang received the B. Eng. From Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, in 2006. He received the MS and PhD from the University of Michigan in 2010 and 2012, respectively. He worked as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at UM from 2012-1013. From 2013-2016, he was appointed Assistant Research Scientist at UM. He was appointed Assistant Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at MSU in 2016.

Dr. Zhang has made a number of key technical contributions. His graduate work on electrical contact resistance elucidates a phenomena of consequence for electronics from consumer scale items to large current and voltage devices and connections. His subsequent work developed these ideas into scaling laws, and added materials-based nanoelectronics.

Another important contribution is the development of an exact quantum theory for laser-induced emission of photoelectrons, which unified the effects of multi-photon absorption, optically enhanced field emission, and photo-assisted tunneling. This work has impact on plasma and vacuum electronics, accelerators, free electron lasers, quantum circuits, microscopy and spectroscopy.

His recent work on multipactor breakdown, including an improved Monte Carlo model which more precisely computes the particle impacts, has impact for high field RF devices, space electronics, and microwave sources and devices. He has additionally contributed to the understanding of signal quality and cross-coupling in multipacting devices. The model has also led to breakdown mitigation methodologies.

Additional works include the study of magneto-Raleigh-Taylor instabilities to understand the coupling between Raleigh-Taylor, kink, and sausage instabilities, as well as quantum electrodynamics effects in ultra-relativistic plasmas which impacts laser-plasma interaction.

Prof. Zhang also led a team developing a model for secondary electron emission from porous surfaces, important in breakdown and beam-surface interactions. He also led a team developing models of carbon nanotube (CNT) cathodes, relevant to electron beam sources for use in microwave sources and amplifiers, x-ray sources, and electric propulsion. Related, his team developed a model for the field distribution and current emission in a miniaturized geometric diode, important in high power high frequency applications in signal rectification and electron source development.

Citation: For pioneering contributions in the theory of electrical contact resistance, and in the physics of diodes in the ultrafast and nano-scale regimes, including electron emission mechanisms and transport..

Charles K. Birdsall Award

The 2020 recipient of the IEEE NPSS Charles K. Birdsall is Rodney Mason, recently retired from Research Application Corp. The Birdsall Award recognizes outstanding contributions in computational nuclear and plasma science. It comprises a plaque and a $2,000 prize.

Dr. Mason received the B.A. in Physics from Cornell University in 1960, and the Ph.D. in Aerospace Engineering from Cornell University in 1964.  From 1965-1967, he was a Fullbright Graduate Fellow at the Institute for Plasmaphysik in Garching, Germany where he studied kinetic and plasma physics modeling. From 1967-1972 he joined Bell Telephone Laboratories in Whippany, New Jersey USA as a staff member researching collisionless shocks  in high altitude plasmas. From 1972-2006, he joined Los Alamos National Laboratory as Deputy Group Leader in plasma code development and inertial confinement fusion and pulsed power. From 2006-2018, he founded Research Applications Corp. to develop the ePLAS code, with applications to inertial confinement fusion and atmospheric plasmas.

Dr. Mason pioneered a number of key topics in computational plasma physics. He developed the first simulation of reflected ions in ion-acoustics shocks, and the first large time step one-dimensional hybrid plasma simulation of electron transport in a laser plasma. He developed the first implicit-moment PIC algorithm, and developed one and two dimensional implicit-moment hybrid plasma simulation codes.

He applied those plasma simulation codes to key applications in laser fusion, pulsed power, microelectronics, hydrodynamics, and rarefied gas dynamics. He developed early predictions of the optimized implosion and burn of deuterium-tritium shells, and documented the thermonuclear burn characteristics of deuterium-tritium microspheres, and characterized microballoon implosions of shaped laser pulses. Using simulations and experiment, he studied conical CO2 laser fusion targets. He pioneered simulation of B-field generation via streaming of suprathermal electrons, explained thermal transport inhibition from multigroup transport leading to a hot electron precursor-foot. His seminal work on ultra-powerful laser ignition and burn with M, Tabak became a classic reference in inertial confinement fusion. He applied the self-consistent implicit model to electron transport in the Fast Ignitor, and identified resistive Joule heating as the dominant mechanism in fast ignition cone targets. In pulsed power, he pioneered the simulation of plasma opening switches. In microelectronics, he developed the first non-invasive procedure for coupling the PISCES code to a 3D Maxwell FDTD solver with M. Jones and V. Thomas.  In hydrodynamics, Dr. Mason pioneered a multi0speed compressible lattice gas model for Eulerian flows. In rarefied gas dynamics, he calculated the combined effect of mixed sonic and free-streaming modes in forced sound propagation, and developed analytic and computational solutions for shock formation based on the Krook equation.

Citation: For contributions to the modeling of collisionless and collisional plasmas over large time scales by implicit methods with applications to laser-plasma interactions and in plasma opening switches for pulsed power.

Magne “Kris” Kristiansen Award

The 2020 recipient of the IEEE NPSS Magne “Kris” Kristiansen Award is Yakov Krasik, Professor of Physics at Technion, Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel. The Kristiansen Award recognizes individuals for outstanding contributions in experimental nuclear and plasma science with preference given to areas within the broadest scope of plasma sciences encompassing the generation of strong pulsed electromagnetic fields including their interaction with plasmas and other pulsed power applications. The award comprises a plaque and a $2,000 prize.

Dr. Krasik received the M.Sc.  in 1976 from the Tomsk Polytechnic University, Tomsk Russia, and the Ph.D. in 1980. After receiving the Ph.D., Dr. Krasik was appointed Senior Scientist the Nuclear Research Institute, Tomsk, Russia. In 1991, he was appointed Research Scientist in the Physics Dept. at the Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel. In 1997, he was appointed Sneior Research Fellow in the Physics Dept., Technion, Israel nstitute of Technology, Haifa, Israel. In 2002, he was appointed Associate Professor in the Physics Dept.,

Dr. Krasik was involved in a number of key experimental advances in plasma and pulsed power applications. He carried out comprehensive study of active and passive plasma cathodes for high current electron beam generation in vacuum diodes, important for high current accelerators, x-ray sources, high power microwave sources, space applications, and more. Dr. Krasik’s key discovery was that electrons were emitted from a surface flashover induced plasma, rather than via field emission from the ferroelectric surfaces as was commonly thought. Dr. Krasik has published 64 papers including 8 review papers on this topic, with over 1800 citations.

Another key area is wakefield acceleration of particles, involving the interaction of high power sub-picosecond lasers with neutral gas and plasmas, generating extreme oscillatory wakefields. Wakefield accelerators avoid breakdown of conventional accelerator structures by high field gradients, allowing compact high energy electron acceleration.

Dr. Krasik also studied warm dense matter, a state formed at extreme conditions of high density, temperature, and pressure. Specifically, he suggested the use of single or arrays of thin wires which explode when loaded with high current underwater. This was accomplished using modest power pulsed power sources, at modest cost.

Accomplishments of teams led by Dr. Krasik include the generation of high current ion beams in triodes and magnetically insulated diodes, plasma opening switches, and nanosecond gas discharges used to generate runaway electrons in the tail.  His most impactful contribution is the study of the nonlinear interaction of a microwave beam with a plasma. He and his demonstrated ionization-induced self-channeling of a short pulse, high-power, focused microwave beam (500 MW, 0.7 ns, 10 GHz), injected into a neutral gas for the first time. It was shown that the guiding of the beam along a few Rayleigh lengths occurs due to the larger electron energy and, respectively, slower ionization rate at the beam axis than at its edges. This is first experiment illustrating the plasma wakefield phenomenon using intense microwave beams.

Citation: For contributions to the understanding of the physics of plasma high current sources, opening switches and runaway electrons, the interaction of extreme high power microwaves with plasmas, gases and their mixtures, and shock waves and warm dense plasma in underwater electrical explosions of wires and wire arrays

Glenn F. Knoll Post Doctoral Educational Grant

The recipient of the 2020 Glenn F. Knoll Graduate Education Grant is Nicola Lusardi of Politecnico di Milano. This grant recognizes outstanding postdoctoral researchers in the field of nuclear science instrumentation, medical instrumentation, or instrumentation for security applications. The grant is intended to support travel and attendance to conferences, workshops or summer schools, or special research projects. The recipient receives $5000 and plaque.

Dr. Lusardi was awarded the PhD in 2018 from Politecnico di Milano. Dr. Lusardi’s research involves digital methods and instruments for measurement of timing events vi atie-of-flight and time-correlation. A key challenge in these efforts is the achievement of increasingly higher resolution across multiple channels.

Ronald J. Jaszczak Graduate Award

The recipient of the 2020 Ronald J. Jaszczak Award is Dr. Andrea Gonzalez-Montoro of Stanford University. The Jaszczak Award recognizes and enables an outstanding graduate student enrolled in an accredited Ph.D. curriculum, Post-doctoral Fellow or Ph.D. level Research Associate in the field of nuclear and medical imaging sciences to advance his/her research activities. The award includes a prize of up to $5,000 to support academic and/or research activities.

Dr. Gonzalez-Montoro received her Ph.D. in Physics at the University of Valencia, Spain in 2018 for “Design and implementation of PET detectors based on monolithic crystals and SiPMs.” She received her B.S. in Physics at the University of Valencia, Spain in 2014, M.S. in Medical Physics from the University of Valencia, Spain in 2015. She is now a postdoctoral researcher in the Department of Radiology at Stanford University.

Dr. Gonzalez-Montoro developed high-efficiency gamma ray detectors for positron emission tomography (PET) systems. Her work demonstrated the effectiveness of single crystal detectors as well as the implementation of clinical scanners, and translated the devices to multiple industry partners. More recently, her postdoctoral work involves detector blocks for 100 ps time-of –flight resolution. Her projects include a high efficiency bran PET/MR system and a PET/MR scanner.

Her work is represented in sixteen refereed journal publications, twenty-four conference publication, and one patent.

NPSS Graduate Scholarship Awards

The recipients of the 2020 NPSS Graduate Scholarship Award are Mercy Iyabode Akerele of the University of Leeds and Michael Hua of the University of Michigan. The Graduate Scholarship Award recognizes contributions to the fields of Nuclear and Plasma Sciences by a graduate student in the fields of Nuclear and Plasma Sciences. The scholarship includes a certificate, one year paid membership in the NPSS, and $1,500 prize.

Ms. Akerele is currently a candidate for the Ph.D. in Biomedical Imaging Science at the University of Leeds studying the investigation and correction techniques for the partial volume split in effects in positron emission tomography (PET).  Additional work includes image reconstruction methods including suppression of spill-in effects in PET, background correction in PET, and a comparison of correction techniques in PET. Upon graduation, Ms. Akerele has an offer to pursue postdoctoral studies at Cornell University.

Mr. Hua is currently a candidate for the Ph.D. in Nuclear Engineering and Radiological Sciences at the University of Michigan. His research has focused on neutron time-correlation analysis via fast neutron multiplicity counting and Rossi-alpha studies. His work includes accounting for neutron cross-talk, geometric optimization of the detector array, uncertainty quantification, and simulating assays of fuel assemblies containing burnable poisons. Mr. Hua is also the founder of the University of Michigan NPSS Student Chapter.

NPSS Robert J Barker Graduate Student Award for Excellence in Pulsed Power Applications

The recipient of the 2020 inaugural NPSS Robert J Barker Graduate Student Award for Excellence in Pulsed Power Applications is Jon Cameron Pouncey of the University of New Mexico. The Barker Award recognizes and enables outstanding graduate students enrolled in an accredited MS or Ph.D. level research program in the field of nuclear and plasma sciences, in pulsed power applications with preference given to medical and environmental applications and to compact pulsed power research and applications. The recipient receives a prize of $3,000, a travel allocation not to exceed $500, and a plaque.

Mr. Pouncey’s work includes experimental demonstration of the micro integrated laser switch (MILS) involving an embedded low energy microlaser in a switch to enable high performance switching with high electromagnetic compatibility. He also achieved an interesting result showing that the long-established Marx operated significantly differently than previously thought. More recently, he is working in solutions to frequently encountered experimental challenges of triggering in compact systems.

Mr. Pouncey’s work is represented in three journal publications, with two more pending.

NPSS Women in Engineering Leadership Grant

The 2020 recipient of the NPSS Women in Engineering Leadership Grant is Pauline Paki of the Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA), USA. The Women in Engineering Leadership Grant provides leading edge professional development for women in mid-level to senior phases of their careers. The recipient receives a certificate and reimbursement of expenses to travel to and participate in the IEEE Women in Engineering International Leadership Conference, up to a maximum of $3,000.

Dr. Paki received the Ph.D. in Physics from the Université de Haute-Alsace Mulhouse-Colmar in 1993. Prior to DTRA (2009-present), she worked at Teledyne Scientific & Imagine (2007-2009), Physical Optics Corporation (2005-2007), Femtotrace/JPL NASA (2004-2005), National Instruments (1999-2003), and as a postdoctoral research fellow at Montreal University (1996-1999).

Conclusion

The presentation of awards at NPSS conferences is a time for the community to come together to celebrate excellence, and to recognize those who have moved NPSS forward. Join us in saluting these achievements!  After congratulating this year’s award recipients, it is time to think about nominating your deserving colleagues for next year. You can learn more about NPSS Awards, eligibility, and the nominations process at https://ieee-npss.org/awards/npss-awards/.

John Verboncoeur, 2019-2020 NPSS Awards Committee Chair, can be reached via johnv@msu.edu.