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Rose Montgomery

Rose Montgomery, a distinguished researcher and leader of the Used Fuel and Nuclear Material Disposition group at ORNL, has been selected to participate in the U.S. WIN Nuclear Executives of Tomorrow, or NEXT, class of 2023 to 2024.

A beam of excited sodium-32 nuclei implants in the FRIB Decay Station initiator is used to detect decay signatures of isotopes. Credit: Gary Hollenhead, Toby King and Adam Malin/ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy

Timothy Gray of ORNL led a study that may have revealed an unexpected change in the shape of an atomic nucleus. The surprise finding could affect our understanding of what holds nuclei together, how protons and neutrons interact and how elements form.

Leigh R. Martin, a senior scientist and leader of the Fuel Cycle Chemical Technology group at the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory, has been named a Fellow of the American Chemical Society, or ACS, for 2023.

Leigh R. Martin, a senior scientist and leader of the Fuel Cycle Chemical Technology group at ORNL, has been named a Fellow of the American Chemical Society for 2023.

A new method to control quantum states in a material is shown. The electric field induces polarization switching of the ferroelectric substrate, resulting in different magnetic and topological states. Credit: Mina Yoon, Fernando Reboredo, Jacquelyn DeMink/ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy

An advance in a topological insulator material — whose interior behaves like an electrical insulator but whose surface behaves like a conductor — could revolutionize the fields of next-generation electronics and quantum computing, according to scientists at ORNL.

ORNL seismic researcher Chengping Chai placed seismic sensors on the ground at various distances from an ORNL nuclear reactor to learn whether they could detect its operating state. Credit: Carlos Jones/ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy

Like most scientists, Chengping Chai is not content with the surface of things: He wants to probe beyond to learn what’s really going on. But in his case, he is literally building a map of the world beneath, using seismic and acoustic data that reveal when and where the earth moves.

The Fuel Pellet Fueling Laboratory at ORNL is part of a suite of fusion energy R&D capabilities and provides test equipment and related diagnostics for carrying out experiments to develop pellet injectors for plasma fueling applications. Credit: Carlos Jones/ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy

ORNL will team up with six of eight companies that are advancing designs and research and development for fusion power plants with the mission to achieve a pilot-scale demonstration of fusion within a decade.

ORNL researchers Michael Smith, Steven Pain and Kelly Chipps use JENSA, a unique gas jet system, for laboratory studies of nuclear reactions that also occur in neutron stars in binary systems. Credit: Steven Pain/ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy

Led by Kelly Chipps of ORNL, scientists working in the lab have produced a signature nuclear reaction that occurs on the surface of a neutron star gobbling mass from a companion star. Their achievement improves understanding of stellar processes generating diverse nuclear isotopes.

Steven Hamilton. Credit: Genevieve Martin/ORNL.

As renewable sources of energy such as wind and sun power are being increasingly added to the country’s electrical grid, old-fashioned nuclear energy is also being primed for a resurgence.

Kelly Chipps of Oak Ridge National Laboratory has been appointed to the Nuclear Sciences Advisory Committee, which advises the Department of Energy and National Science Foundation. Credit: Carlos Jones/ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy

Kelly Chipps, a nuclear astrophysicist at ORNL, has been appointed to the Nuclear Science Advisory Committee, or NSAC. The committee provides official advice to DOE and the National Science Foundation, or NSF, about issues relating to the national program for basic nuclear science research.

Mickey Wade, associate laboratory director for the Fusion and Fission Energy and Science Directorate, addresses attendees of an event to celebrate the licensing of an augmented reality technology to Teletrix. Credit: Carlos Jones/ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy

A method using augmented reality to create accurate visual representations of ionizing radiation, developed at ORNL, has been licensed by Teletrix, a firm that creates advanced simulation tools to train the nation’s radiation control workforce.