Vol. 11, No. 2 • SUMMER 2007

Menard Named NSTX Program Director

Continued on page 2

Jon Menard

They began as ideas — 

things that would have 

significance to stellarators and 

tokamaks, and for national 

security. Through creativity 

and development, they became 

inventions. On June 21 at the 

Patent Recognition Dinner, the 

Laboratory honored those responsible — 27 inventors — 

for inventions at PPPL during 

Fiscal Year 2006. The dinner 

was at Princeton University’s 

Prospect House.

 PPPL Tech Transfer Head 

Lewis Meixler, who served as 

master of ceremonies, thanked 

the inventors “for their ideas 

and inventions.”

As the new Program Director for the National Spherical Torus Experiment (NSTX), Jon Menard is now 

spending the majority of his time helping to define the 

scientific research program for NSTX. Menard replaces 

ORNL’s Martin Peng, who is taking broader responsibility for the coordination of U.S. and international spherical 

torus (ST) activities.

 In his new post, Menard works closely with NSTX 

Project Director Masa Ono and with PPPL’s Stan Kaye, who 

has been newly appointed as the NSTX Deputy Program 

Director.

 “Martin [Peng] left big shoes to be filled, and Stan and 

I are sharing the tasks,” said Menard, whose experience 

has been primarily as an NSTX physicist with research 

interests focusing on stability properties of ST plasmas, 

advanced operating scenarios in the ST, plasma startup, 

and plasma wave physics.

 Ono’s role as Project Director will remain working with 

engineers, technicians, and the 

national team of physicists to 

implement the facility capabilities and diagnostics that make 

the research program possible. 

“Clearly, the Program and Project 

Directors must work very closely 

together for NSTX to remain successful,” Menard noted.

 His first task is to organize the five-year plan for NSTX, 

covering FY09 through FY13. “It’s been an ongoing process beginning in early 2007, and we are focusing on how 

research on NSTX can contribute strongly to both ITER and 

future STs,” he said. “We are also preparing to participate 

Inventors at the Patent Dinner are, from left, Eliot Feibush, Dick Majeski, John DeSandro, David Cylinder, 

Kenny Silber, Dana Mastrovito, Mike Zarnstorff, Charlie Gentile, David Gates, and Steve Langish.

Photo by Frank Wojciechowski

Lab Notes Creative Spirit at Annual Dinner for Inventors

Continued on page 2
PPPL NEWS • Summer 2007 Page 2

Patent

Continued from page 1

At the dinner, PPPL Deputy Director Rich Hawryluk presents PPPL engineer 

Charlie Gentile (right) a “check” marking the first royalty payment of $30,000 

for The MINDS Team. MINDS — the Miniature Integrated Nuclear Detection 

System — can be used to scan moving vehicles, luggage, cargo vessels, and the 

like for specific nuclear signatures associated with materials employed in radiological weapons. Gentile led the PPPL team that developed the system.

Photo by Frank Wojciechowski

PPPL Deputy Director Rich Hawryluk presented the awards to 

the inventors, who represent the Lab’s Research, Engineering 

and Technical staffs, as well as other institutions that work in 

collaboration with PPPL. He thanked everyone at the dinner, 

but, he said, “most especially the people who work day in and 

day out ...to create things that allow these dinners to continue.” 

A complete listing of the honorees and their inventions is available in the July Hotline, which can be downloaded from the 

web at: http://www.pppl.gov/polNewsletters.cfm l

Menard

Continued from page 1

team from the research side, and last year represented the 

NSTX team at IAEA in China summarizing our research 

results. I really enjoy doing research, but I also increasingly appreciate the value of helping to create a productive research environment — an interesting coupling.” 

The management, he added, “requires a lot of time and 

planning, and a different set of skills.”

 The new program director began his new job in June 

and is still settling in. “I’m learning more and more about 

the responsibilities I now have, and how to best implement 

the program. No year is the same as before, and shifts 

with changing budgets, people, and the needs of DOE,” 

he said.

 He emphasized that he doesn’t plan to give up all the 

research aspects of his job, although these will decrease 

with his new role as NSTX Program Director. During 

the last NSTX run period, Menard ran five experimental 

proposals on NSTX and will present results from several 

of these experiments in an APS invited talk in November. During the next run he will likely have time for at 

most one experiment. “Any research I do will be done 

on weekends, at airports, on planes, during meetings, or 

while napping,” said Menard, half-jokingly.

 Menard joined the research staff at PPPL in 1999 

after conducting post-doctoral research at PPPL. He received a bachelor’s degree in nuclear engineering from 

the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1992, and a 

master’s and a Ph.D. in plasma physics from Princeton 

University, Department of Astrophysical Sciences, in 

1994 and 1998, respectively.Among his honors, Menard 

received the 2006 Kaul Prize for Excellence in Plasma 

Physics Research and Technology Development and the 

2002 Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and 

Engineers. l

in a planning workshop with DIII-D and Alcator C-MOD 

in September. One desired outcome of this workshop 

is to find ways to better coordinate research among the 

three machines in order to make the U.S. fusion research 

program even more effective.”

 Beyond these responsibilities, his job entails working 

with the NSTX team to define research objectives and 

milestones, organizing meetings with the NSTX Program 

Advisory Committee, and interacting with DOE to report 

research progress and highlights.

 “Jon brings a very broad understanding of toroidal 

physics, including ST’s, tokamaks, and in particular ITER, 

so I have great confidence that under his leadership the 

NSTX program will make critically important contributions to the development of fusion science,” said PPPL 

Director Rob Goldston. “Jon has also been central in 

developing the preliminary concept for a future long-pulse 

high-power fusion research facility [NHTX] at PPPL, so 

he will bring a strong understanding of how NSTX can 

contribute in that area.”

 Amid organizing the NSTX research program and 

analyzing experimental results from the last run campaign, 

Menard is also working on physics design activities for the 

proposed National High-power Advanced Torus Experiment (NHTX), and in particular on how NSTX research 

can support the R&D needs for next-step ST devices. “It’s 

a lot of planning and thinking things through, especially 

in an environment where limited resources greatly have 

an impact on how much you can do,” he said.

 Menard described his new job as “a challenge I look 

forward to. I’ve worked with many members of the NSTX 
Page 3 PPPL NEWS • Summer 2007

Live From... the PPPL Control Room

Without leaving their school in Teterboro, 60 Bergen 

County Technical High School physics students 

took a field trip to the National Spherical Torus Experiment (NSTX) Control Room on May 31. The students 

participated in “Live From... PPPL,” a program created 

by PPPL Science Education Head Andrew Zwicker in 

partnership with the Liberty Science Center.

Virtual Field Trip

 The students took a virtual field trip to the control 

room at PPPL through the innovative program. Using 

video conference technology, Nancy Butnick, Director 

of Online Education at Liberty Science Center, connected them with scientists, engineers, and support staff 

in the control room while fusion experiments were being 

performed. Students spoke directly to those involved in 

fusion research. A TV monitor in the control room showed 

PPPL participants the students in the school’s auditorium 

while the students viewed the control room from a large 

screen in the school’s auditorium. Those speaking from 

either end used a hand-held microphone.

 “The ‘Live From... PPPL’ program is a unique opportunity to expand an innovative program,” said Zwicker. 

“Students were able to learn about the design of the fusion 

reactor, observe the real-time run of a fusion experiment, 

analyze data sets, and discuss the applications of this work 

with scientists. They also found out about paths to careers 

in plasma physics and engineering.”

 Princeton University graduate students Dave Smith, 

Stephanie Diem, and Patrick Ross, NSTX physicist Steve 

Paul, NSTX engineer Tim Stevenson, and Zwicker answered questions from the students about plasma physics, 

heating fusion-grade plasmas, and NSTX operations. 

They also talked to the high school students about the 

experiments occurring that day.

 The virtual field trip was part two of the program. 

A week earlier, Zwicker conducted a workshop at the 

school, guiding the students through hands-on demonstrations using plasma balls, fluorescent lights, and the PPPL 

interactive web site to teach the science behind plasma, 

the fourth state of matter.

 “Feedback from the students was extremely enthusiastic and the 60-minute program was expanded to 90 

minutes due to the volume of questions asked by the students,” said Zwicker, noting that the prototype program 

was part of an ongoing collaboration between the Liberty 

Science Center and PPPL. “A funding proposal will be 

written this summer to expand the program to bring realtime fusion research directly to museum visitors during 

NSTX operations in Fiscal Year 2008.” l

Grad student Stephanie Diem 

fields questions from the students in Teterboro through 

video conference technology.

At the NSTX Control Room, Princeton graduate student Dave Smith (left) and PPPL Science Education Program Head Andrew Zwicker respond to questions from participants in the “Live From ...PPPL” program on 

May 31. At left (facing computer) is PPPL physicist Ron Bell. Behind Zwicker is PPPL engineer Tim Stevenson 

and in the red shirt is PPPL’s John Robinson. 
The charms of living in a picturesque 

French village and experiencing 

European culture appear to outweigh 

any occasional frustrations caused by 

a more leisurely lifestyle for U.S. ITER 

scientists and engineers assigned to the 

international ITER project construction site in Cadarache. 

 Nine employees affiliated with the 

U.S. ITER Project have been assigned 

to the site in the South of France. They 

are secondees, employed by their home 

institutions and temporarily seconded 

to work in Cadarache with the ITER 

International Fusion Energy Organization. It will build the full-scale 

experimental device aimed at demonstrating the scientific and technological 

feasibility of fusion energy. 

By Cindy Ross Lundy, U.S. ITER Project at ORNL

ITER Secondees Prepare for Life in France

 ITER – Latin for “the way” – involves a scientific collaboration between the United States, China, European Union, 

India, Japan, Korea and Russia. It is expected to be completed 

by 2016.

 The U.S. ITER Project Office is hosted by Oak Ridge 

National Laboratory with partner labs PPPL and the Savannah 

River National Laboratory. The U.S. contributions to ITER 

project will be accomplished through a collaboration of DOE 

laboratories, universities and industry.

 U.S. ITER “secondees” in Cadarache include Chang Jun 

of PPPL, a mechanical and electrical engineer. He is involved 

in computer analysis of the vacuum vessel and other structures 

and will be working on manufacturing control. 

 “I speak French and English, so I have adjusted here 

quite well,” he said. “I’m on a very good team, and as a recent secondee, I am working to catch up on the details of the 

project.” 

 He has two school-age children in Princeton and is working a schedule of three weeks in Cadarache and one week 

in New Jersey. “My biggest challenges have been the travel 

and being away from my family. I hope to bring them here as 

soon as possible to limit the travel time and be able to focus 

even more fully on our mission,” he added.

 Gary Johnson of ORNL works closely with Jun. Johnson 

is no stranger to European assignments, having worked on 

earlier stages of the ITER project in Germany during the 

1990s. He is serving as deputy director general for the ITER 

tokamak, with responsibility for its design, procurement and 

construction. This includes the superconducting magnets, 

vessel systems, blanket and divertor systems, and assembly 

and remote handling. 

 Johnson said he enjoys working in an international 

environment. “Living in Southern France is also very 

nice. Cadarache is in a beautiful area.”

 Current professional challenges include helping to build 

the organization that will finish the design of the tokamak. It 

involves hiring candidates from all seven ITER parties. The 

process is time-consuming, he said, but adds that they are 

making real progress.

 Johnson has found eating dinner in France to be a very 

different experience than in the United States. “Many restaurants don’t even open until 7:30 p.m., and then the meal 

may take more than three hours. This has definitely been an 

adjustment.”

 Another secondee, Dennis Baker, spent the previous 34 

years of his professional career supporting the Savannah River 

Site. He has experience in reactor operations support, safety 

analysis and safety basis development. He helped develop 

DOE’s Magnetic Fusion Safety Standards and was seconded 

to ITER in the Safety Division in San Diego during the project’s engineering design phase. In France, he is in the safety 

group developing and defending the ITER safety basis.

 “This assignment has been an adventure,” Baker said. “I 

have enjoyed the technical work and have already been given 

assignments with considerable significance. For example, I 

updated the general ITER confinement strategy and participated in presentations on it to the Safety Working Group of the 

Design Review Activity and the French Nuclear Regulatory 

Photo courtesy of ORNL

U.S. secondees assigned to the ITER site in Cadarache are, from left, Idaho National Lab’s 

Ken Sowder, ORNL’s Paul Holik, Savannah River Site’s Dennis Baker, General Atomics’ Remy 

Gallix, Los Alamos National Lab’s Craig Taylor, ORNL’s Gary Johnson, High Bridge Associates’ 

Larry Lew, PPPL’s Chang Jun and Jerry Sovka of Advanced Technologies.

PPPL NEWS • Summer 2007 Page 4
Agency in Paris. “I have also very much enjoyed working 

with people from other countries and experiencing the culture of the Region of Provence. I have joined a chorale at the 

Darius Milhaud National Conservatory of Music in Aix en 

Provence, which has afforded the opportunity to meet many 

new friends in the area,” he added.

 Baker said dealing with the bureaucracy long-distance has 

been a challenge – even though everyone does his or her best 

to help. “The whole international assignment thing is rather 

new to me and to my company at Savannah River. I’m also 

living away from family, and I’m working to get comfortable 

finding and eating in restaurants, etc. After work, I consider 

myself a hunter-gatherer, spending my evenings seeking out 

places to eat or feeling my way through grocery stores studying microwaveable dinners.”

 Secondee Ken Sowder has been employed by Idaho 

National Laboratory since 1991 and has provided quality 

assurance management support to various programs such 

as ITER, the National Spent Nuclear Fuel Program (Yucca 

Mountain) and the New Production Reactor Program.

 As responsible officer and division head for ITER Quality 

Assurance, Sowder reports to the deputy director general for 

Safety and Security and represents ITER and INL on various 

American Society of Mechanical Engineers and American 

Society for Quality committees. “In this role, I have really 

enjoyed working with the many diverse and intelligent people 

from all over the world brought to this project to support its 

construction,” he said. Living and working in a different 

culture and language have provided the greatest challenges, 

he added, along with dealing with relatively expensive living 

conditions.

 Larry Lew has been a project controls engineer on various 

large-scale civil, nuclear, fossil and transportation construction 

projects in North America, Japan, Hong Kong and Europe. 

His ITER responsibilities include coordinating the Planning 

& Scheduling Working Group to define the scheduling standards and procedures for the international organization and 

project teams.

 Lew has found much to enjoy in his assignment, including 

“all the challenges of working on a truly unique project with 

fascinating people from all parts of the world; daily life in a small 

village in Provence; and the sites and people of France.”

 He also is adjusting to marathon restaurant dinners. Additional challenges include ensuring a smooth transition to 

French life for his children and obtaining an ADSL (asymmetric digital subscriber line) connection, which required 

seven weeks. 

 Other U.S. secondees to Cadarache include Remy Gallix, mechanical engineer from General Atomics; Paul Holik, 

plant system engineer from ORNL; Jerry Sovka, site layout, 

buildings and assembly group leader from Advanced Technologies; and Craig Taylor, physicist from Los Alamos National 

Laboratory, who is working on design and integration of 

tritium exhaust processing. l

Name: Chang Jun

Position: Analysis Engineer at PPPL and Vacuum Vessel 

Analyst at ITER. Jun’s mission is to verify and enhance 

designs by using computer analysis. His work covers mechanical stress analysis and electro-magnetic field analysis, 

and leads to building better fusion machines.

Quote: “During almost 10 years of service, I have grown to 

like PPPL more and more because its environment is very 

professional and the Lab has highly qualified scientists, 

engineers and staff. I can dive deeply into challenging 

problems and, through discussions with my colleagues, fly 

high to see the bigger picture.

I also like the ITER project because it reflects world-wide 

cooperation, instead of world-wide competition. I applied for 

an ITER position because I wanted a new challenge, and to 

continue to develop myself. I received my Ph.D. in France, 

so if the U.S. is my foster father, France is my uncle. (My 

‘natural’ father is Korea.) I will be back in several years to 

share my experiences with PPPL’ers.” 

Other interests: Jun plays tennis and ping-pong, and shares 

his family’s enjoyment of music.

“I have enjoyed many ping-pong games with several 

PPPL’ers at the Lab. My family members are quite serious 

about music. My wife plays piano, our high school boy 

plays cello and drum, and our middle school daughter plays 

flute and piano. I was a choir conductor for many years, but 

nobody in our family recognizes my musical sense due to 

my maladroitness in instruments,” Jun says. l

Chang Jun at the Palais de Chaillot in Paris.

Spotlight

Page 5 PPPL NEWS • Summer 2007
PPPL NEWS • Summer 2007 Page 6

PPPL Assists in the Development of Artificial Muscle

PPPL collaborator Lenore Rasmussen has the gift of 

serendipity. Two disparate life experiences sparked 

the polymer chemist’s interest in the development of 

electro-responsive “smart materials” — electrically-driven 

polymers that are strong and durable enough to act as 

artificial muscles in prosthetic devices and robotics. Her 

early experience identifying DNA proteins and an injury 

suffered by her cousin in a farm accident triggered her 

interest in the development of the materials. She brings to 

this work an extensive background in chemistry, biology, 

and biochemistry. 

 Rasmussen was using electrophoresis — the movement of suspended particles through a gel under the action of a strong electric field — to separate and identify 

protein molecules and DNA. “There are little wells in 

which you put your proteins or DNA samples. You turn 

on the electricity and watch how they migrate. Different 

proteins or DNA fragments will go through the gel at different speeds that depend on their molecular weights. The 

larger, heavier molecules will have a harder time getting 

through. One of the wells would contain known proteins 

for comparison. For DNA, the smaller fragments would 

move further and longer ones would end up closer to the 

starting point,” explained Rasmussen. But, as fate would 

have it, one day she made a mistake formulating the gel. 

“I goofed up mixing stuff together and (as a result) the gel 

responded to the electricity by contracting — a Eureka 

moment,” she said. 

 Later, while she was a grad student at Purdue pursuing 

a degree in biophysics, one of her cousins was spreading 

hay on a land reclamation project. He slipped and his leg 

got caught in the hay spreader. His foot was not detached, 

but much of the muscle and circulation in the calf of his leg 

were damaged. Initially doctors were not sure he would 

keep the leg. If gangrene set in, he would have to have it 

amputated. “I was the scientist and biologist in the family, 

so they asked if I could go and look at prosthetics to see 

what was out there in case he needed one. While I really 

liked what I saw for legs, I really hated what I saw for 

arms and hands. As it turns out, my cousin’s leg healed. 

He had a lot of recovery and still has a slight limp. But I 

kept thinking about my experience with the gels in DNA 

analysis and the need for better prosthetics. So I went on 

to Virginia Tech partly to get the background in polymer 

chemistry that I would need to develop artificial muscles,” 

said Rasmussen. 

 Currently, prosthetics for the arm and hand are not 

functional unless they utilize three-pronged metal devices 

that are controlled mechanically. Rasmussen wondered 

By Anthony R. DeMeo

PPPL’s Lew Meixler collaborates with Lenore Rasmussen on the plasma treatment of electrodes for smart materials project at PPPL.

if a prosthetic limb could respond directly to a neural 

impulse, and whether they could be made more attractive 

and highly functional. In 2003 she established Ras Labs, 

LLC, a small, for-profit, innovative research and development laboratory devoted to projects that utilize polymer 

chemistry, biochemistry, biology and engineering. 

 Rasmussen envisions artificial muscles, or actuators, 

that are comprised of an electro-responsive polymer gel 

(the smart material) containing embedded electrodes, all 

encased in a flexible coating that acts as a kind of skin. 

The smart material is cross-linked, meaning that a side 

bond has been formed between polymer chains to increase 

strength and toughness. The embedded electrodes serve 

a dual role: providing the electric stimulus, much like a 

nerve, and attaching the smart material to a lever, like a 

tendon attaches muscle tissue to bone. The thin elastomeric coating also serves as a moisture barrier, preventing 

evaporation and leakage of the electrolyte solution in the 

polymer, and allowing the actuatorsto be fully operational 

anywhere. When the electrodes are energized with direct 

current, the smart material contracts or expands, depending on the formulation. It then relaxes when the current is 

turned off, acting much like real muscle tissue responding 

to a neural impulse from the brain. The goal is for both 

the electro-responsive smart material and the embedded 

electrodes to move as a unit, analogous to muscles and 

nerves moving together. 

 Rasmussen tested a variety of polymers and found that 

poly(hydroxyethylmethacrylic acid) — poly(methacrylic 

acid) cross-linked network gels respond quickly to electricity and have all the other needed properties. But one 
Page 7 PPPL NEWS • Summer 2007

challenge remained: after repeated cycles, the polymer 

detached often from the electrodes. However, from her 

former affiliation with Virginia Tech and with Johnson 

& Johnson’s Ethicon division, Rasmussen recalled 

that J&J performed plasma sterilization of its medical 

needles, and then coated them with polymers that allow 

them to slide more quickly into the patients, reducing 

discomfort. Plasma treatment not only sterilizes metal, 

but also improves the adherence of the polymer.

 A potential solution was at hand. A colleague put 

Rasmussen in touch with Lew Meixler, PPPL’s Head of 

Applications Research and Technology Transfer. She met 

Meixler at a grant-writing seminar at which he presented 

information on cooperative research opportunities for 

small businesses at federal labs. Rasmussen’s discussions 

with Meixler resulted in the establishment of a Cooperative Research and Development (CRADA) Agreement 

last December between PPPL and Ras Labs. The CRADA, 

with PPPL participants Meixler and Yevgeny Raitses, 

revolves around PPPL’s plasma sterilization equipment, 

an excellent apparatus in which to treat metal samples 

with plasma. Different ions are being studied to find a 

suitable metal and plasma combination that solves the 

detachment problem.

 To date, tests conducted at PPPL are encouraging, 

resulting in improved bond strengths. Stainless steel and 

titanium metals are being treated with plasma comprised 

of ions of nitrogen, helium, or hydrogen. Titanium in 

particular is suitable for use within the body. Oxygen 

ions derived from synthetic air (for safety) are also used. 

Ions are driven onto the surface of a 0.5-inch by 1.5-inch 

metal foil by a 40-volt electric potential for 12 hours. 

Following treatment, a polymer coating is sandwiched 

between two pieces of treated foil. The composite is sent 

to the University of Pennsylvania or to the Princeton 

Textile Research Institute, which have the capability of 

performing adhesion tests on the small samples that fit 

into PPPL’s apparatus. A standardized testing apparatus 

controls the speed and strain with which the composite is 

peeled apart. Future tests will be conducted with actual 

wire electrodes treated in the PPPL apparatus.

 In addition to identifying a suitable plasma treatment 

for metals, the tests at PPPL should provide insight into 

the mechanism responsible for improved adhesion of 

the polymer. Preliminary studies have shown that the 

plasma ions rough up the metal surface on a molecular 

scale and make the surface super clean by removing any 

oils that might be present. “Right after the peel test we 

check to see where the break has occurred. If necessary, 

we use electron microscopy to view the surfaces. If the 

polymer comes off the metal cleanly, the interface is the 

problem. If there are patches of the polymer remaining 

on the metal, then the failure was in the polymer itself 

— or there could be other things going on,” Rasmussen 

said. 

 Whatever is learned from the PPPL plasma treatments, Rasmussen will continue her quest for electroresponsive smart materials that can have a profound 

impact on prosthetics and robotics, with excellent control, 

dexterity, and durability. If she is successful, a lot of 

folks may benefit. 

 “This collaborative effort with Ras Labs is a good 

example of how a DOE Lab can advance the research 

of a small business startup. PPPL is helping to improve 

the metal-polymer interface by plasma treating the 

actuator electrodes. We hope it will lead to superior 

electro-responsive actuators that will benefit disabled 

people,” Meixler said. l

Success and Pie a la Mode Mark Year’s End of NSTX Ops

The Lab threw a pie-and-ice cream party for staff 

on June 29 to toast this year’s successful NSTX 

operations. In an invitation to staff, PPPL Director 

Rob Goldston said, “NSTX has had great success 

over a wide gamut of its scientific goals, so this is a 

fine time to celebrate.”

 At the bash, NSTX Run Coordinator David 

Gates thanked all the teams who contributed to the 

operations, which included twelve and a half weeks 

and 40 experiments. Others offering brief remarks 

were Goldston, PPPL’s Hutch Neilson, and Princeton 

University’s Stewart Smith. l David Gates addressing the staff (blue shirt) with PPPL Director 

Rob Goldston at right.

Photo by John Bennevich
PPPL NEWS • Summer 2007 Page 8

The PPPL NEWS is issued by the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory, a research facility supported by the United States Department of Energy 

and managed by Princeton University. Correspondence and requests to reprint material should be directed to: Information Services, Princeton 

Plasma Physics Laboratory, P.O. Box 451, Princeton, NJ 08543; telephone 609-243-2750; fax 609-243-2751; e-mail pppl_info@pppl.gov .

PPPL NEWS

Information Services Head: Anthony R. DeMeo

Editor/Writer: Patti Wieser

Photographer: Elle Starkman

Layout and Graphics: Greg Czechowicz and Patti Wieser 

Colleagues and Friends Pay Tribute to PPPL’s Davidson

Colleagues, friends, and family from near and far came to PPPL June 11 and 12 to honor Princeton University 

Professor and former PPPL Director Ronald C. Davidson. The Laboratory hosted the “Symposium on Recent 

Advances in Plasma Physics” in honor of Davidson’s 40 years of plasma physics research and graduate education. 

The program included scientific talks by researchers from many laboratories, institutions, and universities. During the 

opening, Rep. Rush Holt offered congratulatory remarks to Davidson and Princeton University Dean of the Faculty 

David Dobkin presented the welcome. The event included two days of technical talks and a banquet at Frist. l

Far left, U.S. Rep. Rush 

Holt (NJ-12) congratulates Princeton University Professor Ronald C. 

Davidson (right) on 40 

years of contributions to 

plasma physics research 

and graduate education 

during a symposium held 

in Davidson’s honor at 

PPPL. Left, Davidson 

(left) with UCSD’s Fred 

Driscoll at the Symposium. Driscoll was one of 

the presenters.

Symposium photos by

Elle Starkman and John Bennevich

Chuan S. Liu, of the University of 

Maryland, presents to Davidson 

an embroidered silk cloth from 

Taiwan, with beautiful images of 

many children.

At right, Ron Davidson (left) with 

Rep. Rush Holt.

Above, Davidson and his 

family listen to remarks at 

the Symposium. From left 

are Davidson, his wife, Jean, 

son, Ron Jr., daughter Cyndy 

Premru, niece Arlene Steele, 

and nephew Rob Davidson. 

Top right, PPPL’s Nathaniel 

Fisch, Chair of the Symposium Committee, offers 

opening remarks. Right, 

Princeton University Dean 

of the Faculty David Dobkin 

welcomes attendees at the 

Symposium.