News and Highlights Archive


Faculty Spotlight

FSU selected our very own Dr. Vandana Tripathi for a Faculty Spotlight. Dr. Tripathi earned her doctoral degree in experimental nuclear physics from Jawahar Lal Nehru University in India, and she has been with FSU’s Department of Physics since 2003, starting as a post-doctoral fellow. Her research focuses on understanding the structure of subatomic nuclei, especially those that are unstable and do not occur in nature but are crucial to understanding the early stages of the universe.

CLARION2 installed at FSU

The new CLARION2-TRINITY array was commissioned in December 2021 with a Coulomb-excitation and fusion-evaporation experiment at the John D. Fox Laboratory at Florida State University (FSU). The detector array consists of Compton-suppressed clovers, LaBr/CeBr, a new hybrid charged-particle detector consisting of annular Si and GAGG-SiPM detectors, and a zero-degree detector, which were all installed throughout 2021. Based on community talks and participation in a LECM workshop, the array is anticipated to focus on single- and multi-step Coulomb excitation, stopping powers, Recoil-in-Vacuum calibrations for g factors at FRIB, nucleon transfer reactions, fusion evaporation, and fast-timing measurements.

Nuclear group welcomes its newest faculty member Dr. Kevin Fossez

The low-energy nuclear physics group at Florida State University welcomes its newest faculty member Dr. Kevin Fossez. Kevin is the holder of the Facility for Rare Isotope Beams (FRIB) theory alliance bridge position at Florida State University. Before joining FSU, Kevin was a FRIB theory fellow stationed at Argonne National Laboratory. His research interests cover the study of open quantum systems, many-body physics, low-energy nuclear structure and reactions, as well as many other related topics.

Fox Lab congratulates its most recent graduates

The Fox Lab congratulates its most recent graduates Dr. Benjamin Asher, Dr. Nathan Gerken and Dr. Jesus Perello. While Nathan graduated in Spring 2021 after successfully defending his thesis with the title "Isomeric Contributions to Stellar Nucleosynthesis", both Benjamin ("The Making of ENCORE: A MUlti Sampling Ionization Chamber") and Jesus ("Study of Low-Lying Proton Resonances in 26Si and Neutron Spectroscopic Studies with CATRiNA") graduated in Summer 2021. All three worked under the supervision of Prof. Sergio Almaraz-Calderon. Benjamin and Jesus are now on postdoctoral appointments at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville and Los Alamos National Laboratory, respectively. Nathan accepted a job at Platinum Edge Solutions.

New insights into the nuclear EOS

Following the new PREX-2 results for the neutron-skin thickness of 208Pb, Professor Piekarewicz and his collaborators have provided new insights into the nuclear equation of state describing atomic nuclei and neutron stars. The results, which were selected as an Editors' Suggestion, are published in Physical Review Letters (B.T. Reed et al.).

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J. Piekarewicz named Robert O. Lawton Distinguished Professor

J. Piekarewicz has been named as one of the 2021 Robert O. Lawton Distinguished Professors; one of the highest honors that the faculty bestow upon their own. The Lawton Distinguished Professor Award was first presented in 1957 as the Distinguished Professor Award. It was renamed in honor of the late Vice President for Academic Affairs Robert O. Lawton in 1981.

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CLARION2 support structure installed at FSU

With the support from collaborators from Oak Ridge National Laboratory, the frame and support structure for the gamma-ray detection array CLARION2 were installed at the John D. Fox Laboratory in March 2021. CLARION2 is a joint project between Oak Ridge National Laboratory and FSU. The array will stay at the Fox lab for an extended campaign and see first beam in Summer 2021. V. Tripathi is in charge at FSU.

A success story

The FSU College of Arts and Sciences chose the nuclear-physics laboratory for a feature article telling the story of the laboratory's 60-year long history of educating generations of elite scholars and being on the forefront of nuclear science.

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Nuclear Science Camp

The online (but hands-on!) Nuclear Medicine and Science Camp was held July 13-16, 2020 with the support of the CENTAUR consortium and the FSU Physics Department. The camp served nineteen middle and high school campers and provided a dramatic demonstration of what can be accomplished by talented teachers who are given the resources and freedom necessary to innovate.

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Ingo Wiedenhöver named APS Fellow

Ingo Wiedenhöver has been named a 2020 Fellow of the American Physical Society. The citation reads:"For seminal contributions to nuclear structure and nuclear astrophysics, the development of the RESOLUT in-flight radioactive beam facility and the ANASEN active target detector, and for founding the Association for Research at University Nuclear Accelerators."

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Why protons and neutrons matter

M. Spieker and his collaborators have published new results on the microscopic structure of the Pygmy Dipole Resonance (PDR) in Physical Review Letters. The PDR could strongly influence the synthesis of atomic nuclei in neutron-star mergers.

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FRIB Visiting Scholar Award

The Facility for Rare Isotope Beams (FRIB) and the National Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory (NSCL) have named M. Spieker as one of the scholarship recipients for the FRIB Visiting Scholar Program for Experimental Science 2020.

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Fox Lab wins $5.7M NSF grant

The Fox Laboratory has received a $5.7 million grant from the National Science Foundation to continue its cutting-edge research in nuclear physics and nuclear astrophysics.

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CLARION2 arrives at FSU

The frame and support structure for the gamma-ray detection array CLARION2 arrived at the Fox Lab in March 2020. CLARION2 is a joint project between Oak Ridge National Laboratory and FSU. The array will stay at the Fox lab for an extended campaign and see first beam in Summer 2021. V. Tripathi is in charge at FSU.

2019 Mentoring Award

S.L. Tabor wins the 2019 Division of Nuclear Physics Mentoring Award of the American Physical Society.

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Award for P.D. Cottle

In August 2019, Dr. Paul Cottle received an award from FSU-PC. The award recognized his unwavering commitment to supporting STEM initiatives at FSU-PC and the surrounding Bay District Schools. Dr. Cottle helps foster a love of physics in the next generation.

Physics undergraduate student Shae Machlus wins prestigious Goldwater Scholarship

Shae Machlus, a Florida State University student, who conducts research in theoretical physics has received a prestigious Goldwater Scholarship, awarded to the nation’s brightest mathematics, science and engineering college sophomores and juniors. Machlus is an accomplished undergraduate researcher in physics, chemistry and scientific computing and recently completed his honors thesis, “Calculating Observables in the Three Body Coulomb Problem,” under the direction of FSU Professor of Physics Alexander Volya, who is a nuclear theorist.

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Jesse W. Beams Research Award for J. Piekarewicz

Jorge Piekarewicz was awarded the 2018 Jesse W. Beams Research Award for outstanding research by the Southeastern Section of the American Physics Society. The Award was established to recognize especially significant or meritorious research in physics while the recipient was resident of the Southeast region. Prof. Piekarewicz was recognized for significant research and achievements in both nuclear structure and many-body nuclear theory, as well as for his contributions to the theory of neutron-rich matter and to the broader understanding of neutron star structure.