Bio
Abdou Diaw is a computational physicist in the Power Exhaust and Particle Control Group in ORNL’s Fusion Energy Division. His research focuses on plasma–material interactions (PMI), edge/divertor impurity transport, and integrated modeling for plasma-facing component design and lifetime prediction. He develops and applies advanced kinetic and multiphysics simulation tools, including the OpenEdge direct simulation Monte Carlo framework for charged and neutral particle transport. His interests also include uncertainty quantification, machine-learning surrogates, and physics-guided control for predictive fusion modeling.
Abdou earned a Ph.D. in Plasma Physics from École Polytechnique, Palaiseau (France) and an M.S. in Physics in Inertial Confinement Fusion from the University of Bordeaux (France). His doctoral research focused on laser–plasma interaction physics, including target-sheath acceleration and hole-boring models relevant to high-intensity laser experiments.