NPSS News

ISSUE 3ISSUE: SEPTEMBER 1 : MAY 22O13O16

A PUBLICATION OF THE INSTITUTE OF ELECTRICAL & ELECTRONICS ENGINEERS

President’s Report: SEE PAGE 4 The Future of the IEEE

The upcoming IEEE election (15-Aug through 03-Oct) IEEE CONSTITUTIONAL SOCIETY GENERAL BUSINESS AMENDMENT AND IEEE President’s Report 1 includes an IEEE Constitutional Amendment proposal that IN 2030 Proposed Constitutional Ammendment 2 Pro 2 could change the nature of the IEEE. Learn about the pros Now we get to the main event. The IEEE vote for the Con 3 and cons, opportunities and risks, and the alarming process Amendment and President-elect are scheduled to Secretary’s Report 3 run from 15th August to 3rd October, while NPSS issues that have limited open discussion. elections opened on 2nd August. This election will CONFERENCES be exceptionally important, as it could change the 2016 NSS/MIC/RTSD 4 very nature of the IEEE, including the 2017 ICOPS 6 at the far end of Banff since the lodging filled up, way societies such as NPSS operate. 2017 Pulsed Power 7 and enjoyed a vigorous 20-minute walk each way 2017 NSREC 7 under towering mountains capped with bits of As I mentioned in recent newsletter reports, an clinging snow. I had the distinct honor of awarding effort to change the governance structure of the TECHNICAL COMMITTEES the inaugural 2015 Charles K. Birdsall Award to IEEE is underway, led by the IEEEin2030 committee. Computer Applications in Nuclear Mark Kushner of the University of Michigan during This has many in the IEEE alarmed that society and Plasma Sciences 8 a plenary session, and the 2016 Charles K Birdsall representation at the highest levels of the IEEE may Fusion Technology 9 Award to John Cary of the University of Colorado- be in jeopardy. I see some intriguing opportunities Pulsed Power Science and Technology 9 John Verboncouer Boulder/TechX Corporation at the Awards Banquet in some of the proposed elements of restructuring, IEEE NPSS President later that evening. Charles “Ned” Birdsall would have but have become gravely concerned about the FUNCTIONAL COMMITTEES been so proud to have the first two awards go to means by which it is being pursued, in a fashion that Awards 9 NPSS CONFERENCES such luminaries in modeling, and both with strong suppresses discussion and quashes dissent in a very Chapters 11 records of propagating the knowledge widely in non-IEEE fashion. I will explain. Publications 11 I am writing this on the flight back from a chain of conferences such as ICOPS. travels that included two NPSS conferences. I had At the Feb-2016 Technical Activities Board LIAISON REPORTS the pleasure to attend the International Conference The IPMHVC is technically cosponsored by NPSS, (TAB) meeting, where all the society and council EAB Education 12 on Plasma Science (ICOPS) in Banff, Alberta, and financially sponsored by our sister society presidents and division directors meet to discuss Coalition for Plasma Science 12 Canada, followed shortly after by the International Dielectrics and Electrical Insulation Society (DEIS). common issues of IEEE societies and councils, Power Modulator and High Voltage Conference Given the similarity of topic areas, it is not surprising TAB Vice President Jose’ Moura created an Ad Hoc ARTICLES (IPMHVC) in San Francisco, California, USA. that many NPSS members are regular attendees Committee, called TABin2030, to study the effects Positron Emission Tomography: of the IPMHVC and also members of DEIS, and of the proposed governance changes, and appointed Current Status of Motion Correction 13 ICOPS, in its second visit to Banff this century, was indeed our members have a very strong role in the me Chair. TABin2030 has held several Plasma’s Effects on Cancer 14 well organized, and provided exciting technical technical program. San Francisco was wonderful sessions inside, and amazing vistas outside during as always, with food that rivals the great Asian and PRESIDENT’S REPORT Continued on PAGE 2 the rare lull in activity. As a hidden blessing, I stayed European cities. 2 PRESIDENT’S REPORT ieee.org/npss NPSS News

called the Election Oversight Committee (EOC), and have now been joined by most other Society President’s Report Continued from PAGE 1 for the apparent purpose of providing advice to and Council Presidents. the IEEE President on election processes. The webinars (recorded and viewable here: http:// the fundamental nature of the IEEE as a volunteer current (2016) IEEE President was the Chair of Of Society and Council governing bodies taking a ta.ieee.org/strategic-planning/tab-in-2030) to discuss member-governed organization, coupled with the the IEEEin2030 in 2015, which proposed the position, 24 out of 25 oppose the Constitutional the Constitutional Amendment appearing on the control of the nomination process that controls the Constitutional Amendment to both the Governance Amendment. The NPSS AdCom is scheduled to ballot, and the proposals for changing the structural slates for new directors. Committee and the BoD for endorsement in Nov- discuss this at the upcoming AdCom meeting, and if governance of the IEEE. Much of that is covered in 2015. Contrary to the claim that the Amendment that is beyond the time to press for this Newsletter, my last report. A new Enterprise Board will handle fiscal operations, and the IEEEin2030 governance changes are we will inform members via email of any actions where Societies and Councils will have one vote separate efforts pursued by separate bodies, the taken on this important and time-sensitive matter. To summarize, the TABin2030 determined that the out of seven on fiscal matters despite generating former is a precondition for the latter developed You should take this issue very seriously, and decide Constitutional Amendment is incomplete without the 75-80% of the IEEE revenue. The Enterprise Board and proposed (see the BoD minutes from Nov- what kind of IEEE you want, while it still lies in the accompanying Bylaw changes that will follow. Key is overseen by the BoD, which could have zero 2015) by the IEEEin2030 Chair. Remarkably, the hands of the members. definitions of the Board of Directors (BoD), the legal directors drawn from the Societies and Councils that Executive Director, who stands to become an controlling body of the IEEE, are eliminated from understand the conference and publication business ex-officio nonvoting member of the BoD if the the Constitution and will be modified later in Bylaws model that generates most of the IEEE revenue. Amendment passes, was appointed to chair the RESOURCES: to be brought forward in the near future. Note that This could lead to a substantial change in the fiscal Teller’s Committee that counted the votes. In my the Constitution is owned by the members, and operation of the IEEE, and for societies and councils line of work, that is called Conflict of Interest, and The IEEE governing documents, including the requires a 2/3 vote of at least 10% of eligible voting in particular. indeed the IEEE training materials posit the same. Constitution and Bylaws, can be found here: http:// members to change. It is intended to safeguard the www.ieee.org/about/corporate/governance/index. fundamental nature of the IEEE. Both TABin2030, I see both risks and opportunities in the The IEEE Bylaws allow for opposition statements on html. and many other bodies including IEEEin2030, agree Constitutional Amendment and subsequent initiative ballots, and a number of IEEE members that those safeguards are weak and risks exist in the structural governance changes. I would rather see stepped forward to offer carefully crafted statements The proposed changes to the Constitution can be present Constitution, and TABin2030 concluded significant protections for member control of the IEEE of their concerns. Staff and the EOC edited the found here: https://www.ieee.org/about/corporate/ that those risks are increased by the Constitutional enshrined in the Constitution, with implementation statements, including removing coauthors, stripping election/2016_constitutional_amendment.html Amendment. Instead, TABin2030 suggests that details in the Bylaws. I think these are points of author titles, and even editing the text of the strengthening the fundamentals in the Constitution discussion for reasonable people, but we should not statements substantially. The appeals process goes The TABin2030 documents and webinars can be would be a better course of action. accept concentration of all power without checks through the President, who added additional edits, found here: http://ta.ieee.org/strategic-planning/ and balances. Given that the ultimate governance serving as the adjudicator for a matter in which he tab-in-2030 If key definitions of the BoD are moved to the structure enabled by the Amendment is still subject was the chief proponent as chair of the committee Bylaws, this will take them out of the members’ to change, and is outside the control of both proposing the Amendment. IEEE Legal, the IEEE Materials on the IEEEin2030 effort to evolve the hands, as changes to the Bylaws can be made members and society and council leadership, this officers, and others have been unable to answer IEEE organizational structure can be found here: by a 2/3 vote of the BoD, with no notification to introduces substantial risk, and is a change that may the simple question of what governance policy https://www.ieee.org/about/corporate/ieeein2030_ members until after the change is made. While that be very hard to undo if the result is not acceptable authorizes the specific actions of censorship, and archive_m.html is perfectly reasonable for housekeeping changes, to members. It would be far better to vote on a why a participant also serving as the adjudicator does member and broad leadership involvement in package of changes that includes a clearly articulated not have conflict of interest. While I presume that Materials from the opposition can be found here: fundamental structural changes seems important final state for the governance, so that we know the proponents sincerely believe they are working https://ieee2016blog.wordpress.com/ for a robust IEEE. exactly what we are voting for. in the best interests of the IEEE, frustration at years of failure to convince the rest of IEEE of the value The IEEE belongs to its members, and you should Proponents say the Constitutional Amendment Separately from the substance of the Constitutional of the proposed changes has led to a mentality of play a role in re-engineering it. IEEE elections typically will increase the member voice; how is that Amendment and subsequent structural governance winning at all costs that allows the ends to justify the are determined by about 15% of the members, so consistent? Proponents are referring to the ability changes, the process being pursued in the election means. This is not the IEEE many of us have worked about 60,000 members may vote in this election, to better distribute geographic representation has alarmed many of us who see the IEEE as a so hard to build, and if this is an indicator of the sort and a few hundred votes may make the difference. without increasing the size of the BoD using the democratic and egalitarian professional society built of judgment we can expect in a more executive-style Your vote really counts, so please vote! representative Assembly, which serves primarily in an around respect for open debate and examination of IEEE, it is a deal breaker for me. advisory capacity to the BoD. Proponents also view evidence. Indeed, this is even captured explicitly in IEEE-wide election of directors as increased member IEEE Policy 13.3.A.2: Many of us have been receiving frequent voice, although any given voter is unlikely to know admonitions against “electioneering” from the IEEE much about the character and leadership style It is the policy of IEEE to facilitate open President and IEEE Legal Counsel, which in normal John Verboncoeur, NPSS President by looking at summary biographies. Furthermore, discussion, including opposing views, of cases would prohibit an incumbent from using John Verboncoeur, IEEE NPSS President, slates of candidates selected by a nomination and issues and initiatives to appear on the ballot the resources of the IEEE, such as IEEE mailing can be reached at [email protected] appointment process overseen by the BoD may (Constitutional amendment and referendum); lists, to gain an unfair advantage over someone lead to selection of compliant and like-minded this applies to those proposals originated by the without access. In this context, the electioneering I know of no safe depository of the ultimate individuals for the slate, offering little choice. Given IEEE Board of Directors as well as those of other missives appear to be attempts to intimidate us into powers of the society but the people themselves; that the Executive Director would also become a members of IEEE. not speaking out on the proposed Constitutional and if we think them not enlightened enough nonvoting ex-officio member of the BoD, the ED Amendment and subsequent governance changes. to exercise their control with a wholesome would quickly become the most senior member of This would seem to apply quite clearly to matters of I note that they do NOT seem to apply to those discretion, the remedy is not to take it from them the BoD since (s)he would be the only director with governance, including the upcoming ballot item on speaking in favor. As you can see from my NPSS but to inform their discretion. a term longer than two years (or three, in the current the IEEE Constitutional Amendment. Nevertheless, Newsletter Reports over the past year, I disagree Thomas Jefferson proposed modified Bylaws). This could change in 2015 the BoD created an Ad Hoc committee strongly with the attempts to suppress discussion,

Proposed IEEE Constitutional Amendment

I was subsequently asked to help propose a In more detail, IEEE began with an emphasis on Below are statements in governance structure. I had a lot of misgivings, as industry but has morphed into an organization I knew that five other attempts to transform the centered on fundamental research. Our main favor and opposed to this BoD had been made in the last two decades. activities (conferences and archival publications) are Each attempt took an enormous amount of effort research oriented, our major revenue generating proposed amendment to create, faced stiff resistance, and was defeated products (these same conferences and publications) William W. Moses in the end, with its proponents (figuratively) left serve the research market, and the “day jobs” of our IEEE Fellow and IEEE NPSS Pro: In favor of the Constitutional Amendment beaten, bloodied, and exhausted. I also knew that leaders are predominantly in fundamental research. Conferences Chair William W. Moses, IEEE Fellow and IEEE NPSS any change in governance structure would involve During the roughly 30 years since I first became Conferences Chairman some organizational risk. But having attended over a involved with IEEE, this research sector has been By contrast, the industry side of the electrical dozen BoD meetings, I felt there was considerable healthy and grown at a rate comparable to the cost engineering world has exploded. Thirty years ago, room for improvement, and the continued attempts of living, and by virtually any measure IEEE has many of today’s dominant technology companies, MY CONSTITUTIONAL JOURNEY to transform the BoD suggested fundamental grown at a similar rate. such as Apple, Microsoft, Google, Amazon, Cisco, problems. So I agreed to serve. In late 2014, an invitation to join a committee to determine what IEEE needed to do to serve its Eighteen months later, my views regarding IEEE’s NUCLEAR & PLASMA SCIENCES SOCIETY NEWS members in 2030 started me on a constitutional future have changed considerably. I started out journey. Despite my extreme skepticism about complacent about IEEE’s direction and now have (USPS 000-560) is published quarterly by the Nuclear & Plasma Sciences Society of the Institute of Electrical strategic planning, I was intrigued by how IEEE significant reservations. In short, I think that IEEE’s and Electronics Engineers, Inc. Corporate Office: 3 Park Avenue, 17th Floor, New York, NY 10017-2394, ieee. might look in 2030 and so agreed to participate. current focus on fundamental research precludes org. Printed in the USA. One dollar per member per year is included in the Society fee for each member of The committee’s main recommendation was its full participation in the global technology boom, the Nuclear & Plasma Sciences Society. Periodicals postage paid at New York, NY and at additional mailing to restructure the top level of IEEE governance and that IEEE faces significant challenges whether it offices. Postmaster: Send address changes to Nuclear & Plasma Sciences News, IEEE, 445 Hoes Lane, (essentially the Board of Directors or BoD), and keeps or expands its present focus. Piscataway, NJ 08854. NPSS News ieee.org/npss PRESIDENT’S REPORT 3 and Intel, didn’t exist or were operating out of strategically oriented governance structure that critical step toward accomplishing this. We must find WHY MANY OPPOSE garages. The growth rate of the industrial sector is flexible enough to enable IEEE to adapt as the a way to efficiently incorporate the rapidly growing THE PROPOSED IEEE and the number of electrical engineers employed electrical engineering world evolves. At a very high number of different technical communities into CONSTITUTIONAL by it has vastly outstripped that of the fundamental level, the existing BoD is constituency based—seats our governance structure, especially if we increase AMENDMENT research area, but only a small percentage of these are allocated to specific “operating units” within IEEE our footprint in the tech industry. Finally, we have people interact with IEEE. This point was brought and each BoD member also heads one of those to give our younger members more leadership …because the 2016 amendment, up for ballot home to me during an Industry Outreach program operating units. This causes several problems: 1) it opportunities within IEEE, as they have the largest starting August 15th: in Silicon Valley where I spent nearly a week reinforces the status quo, as there is no place on the stake in figuring out how to make IEEE relevant in exploring potential connections to IEEE with over BoD for new or emerging communities, 2) individual 2030. » Would enable a small group to take control of IEEE, 100 engineers. These people are very intelligent, Directors face conflicts, as the best interests of IEEE technically excellent, innovative, inventive, driven to as a whole don’t necessarily match the best interests Con: Opposed to the Constitutional Amendment » Would move vital parts of the constitution to the succeed, generally between ages 20 and 40, and of a Director’s operating unit, 3) the BoD meetings bylaws - which will be subject to change by a small should be part of the IEEE family. But we heard over tend to focus on operations instead of strategy, group, on short notice, and over again that IEEE did not provide much that and 4) to both be a BoD member and head an they valued, and when asked to describe IEEE in one operating unit requires a huge time commitment » Would transfer power from over 300,000 word, one replied, “Obsolete.” Ouch!!! Clearly, IEEE is (each position takes ~2 months / year). In the members to a possibly small group of insiders, not supporting the careers of all electrical engineers, proposed structure, the heads of the operating units and as engineering careers increasingly span both would not be BoD members. The operating unit » Would remove regional representation from the academia and industry, we should provide our heads would continue to be selected as they are Board of Directors thereby making it possible that members with connections and resources wherever presently, but BoD members would be selected no Asian, European, Latin American or Canadian their careers take them. based on individual skills and diversities and would Harold L. Flescher representatives will be on the Board of Directors, not have other significant IEEE duties. In addition, IEEE Fellow and IEEE NPSS Moreover, changes are coming to IEEE whether the leaders of the six major boards within IEEE Finance Chair » Would remove technical activities representation we want them to or not. Nearly half of IEEE’s (Technical Activities, Membership and Geographic from the Board of Directors thereby making it revenue currently comes from the sale of research Activities, Standards, Publication Services and I have had NPSS Finance Chair reports in the last possible for a small group of bureaucrats and publications, but the world is evolving toward a place Products, Education, and IEEE-USA) would form a two NPSS Newsletters explaining that the IEEE Ballot professional managers to take control of IEEE. where publications are free. Unless we find alternate new body known as the Enterprise Board. This new that comes out in August contains an Amendment sources of revenue, we will be forced to re-evaluate body would be responsible for IEEE operations, to the IEEE Constitution that I feel you must The possible benefits of the amendment do not our involvement in humanitarian activities, education, leaving the BoD free to focus on strategy, and would disapprove, as it would create an IEEE environment outweigh its risks. public policy, and other areas that require financial also provide a forum that does not exist today for that would financially disadvantage NPSS and support. The number of communities within IEEE these six major boards to interact. A vote for the the other 38 Technical Societies and 7 Technical The existing IEEE constitution offers alternative, is growing rapidly as the number of new and constitutional amendment would allow (but not Councils as well as our Member and Geographic less complex ways of accomplishing the intended cross-disciplinary technologies increases, putting require) these governance changes to be made, Activities (MGA). I read something just a few days improvements, while maintaining members at the tremendous stress on our present governance while a vote against would preserve the present ago that was the output of a group of senior IEEE core of the decision-making process. approach that gives each recognized community a structure. volunteers including me and several past IEEE voting seat on some governance body. We already Presidents and many past IEEE volunteers holding Additional reasons for opposing the constitutional have difficulty accommodating growth in the So what are my thoughts as I complete my Director and Director-level volunteer positions. We amendment and proposed restructuring may be research sector alone (TAB has grown from 54 to constitutional journey? First, I encourage members as a group oppose the direction IEEE is being taken found here: https://ieee2016blog.wordpress.com 64 voting members in the last 20 years), and it will to take advantage of the copious information by our current volunteer leadership including our be difficult to provide this kind of representation in disseminated about the constitutional amendment current Board of Directors. I thought it useful if you The proposed changes to the Constitution can be an ever-evolving landscape with hundreds, perhaps and other governance changes as they decide how read the collective output of this group (the loyal found here: even thousands, of different communities whose to vote. All changes involve risks, and much has opposition), which includes: needs must be met. In addition, our membership is been said elsewhere about those associated with https://www.ieee.org/about/corporate/ aging. Over the last decade, the age of the average changing IEEE’s governance structure. But keeping John Vig—past IEEE President election/2016_constitutional_amendment.html IEEE member has risen from 45 to 48 years old: our present governance structure also involves if this trend continues, IEEE could easily fade into risks, as it is comparatively inflexible and so less Charles Alexander—past IEEE President Please share this with other IEEE members you irrelevance. able to adapt as the world changes. The financial, know. And PLEASE VOTE. We need fewer than representational, and demographic challenges on Troy Nagle—past IEEE President 20,000 IEEE members to vote no to defeat this Embracing the tech industry could help IEEE to the horizon require this kind of adaptability. IEEE Constitutional amendment. meet some of these challenges but would require Marc Apter—past IEEE-USA President, significant outreach. We would need to incorporate Finally, I believe that the IEEE will need to change, past VP Regional Activities (MGA) https://www.ieee.org/documents/ieee_board_of_ people from these communities into our leadership, regardless of the outcome of this vote. While it is directors_statement_opposition_rebuttals.pdf so that IEEE can understand how to make IEEE tempting to look for villains within IEEE who are Tony Ivanov—Washington, DC Section Chair attractive to the electrical engineers working in disrupting the status quo, this need for change is https://www.ieee.org/documents/ieee_board_of_ industry. This would, however, exacerbate our current driven by external forces that IEEE cannot control. Rabab Ward—President, IEEE Signal directors_statement_opposition_rebuttals.pdf governance structure’s representational challenges. IEEE must consciously decide which sectors of Processing Society electrical engineering it wants to serve and develop NOT CHANGE So what does this have to do with the proposed strategies to serve all those sectors effectively. Harold Flescher—past IEEE Director, past IEEE Good things, when short, are twice as good. changes to the IEEE constitution? In a nutshell, the Assimilating people from all those communities VP Technical Activities. past IEEE Treasurer, past Baltasar Gracian proposed changes are designed to create a more as integral parts of IEEE’s leadership structure is a NPSS President

» NPSS will increase the funding for Women in Secretary’s Report Engineering events at NPSS conferences up to an additional $1,500/event. These additional funds Based on available information, the budget process are to be used to support travel for speakers from run by the IEEE Operational Finance Committee outside of the conference community. The IEEE NPSS AdCom will report in through the new Enterprise Board, on which Technical Activities will have but one vote The NPSS will fund one travel grant per year (up to met in Portland, Oregon of 6-8 members. They will also control the split of $3,000/year) for the years 2017-2019 for a NPSS/ IEEE revenues, ~80% of which is today earned by WIE member to attend the Women in Engineering th on Saturday, July 16 . the Technical Societies from their products. How International Leadership Conference. The NPSS much we will have to support our NPSS activities is Awards Chair will administer the grant. Albe Larsen The most significant action of this meeting was the unknown. IEEE NPSS Secretary passage of the following motion: The NPSS Publications committee has chosen and Newsletter Editor See pro/con discussion at http://ta.ieee.org/strategic- Dr. Dimitris Visvikis, University of Brest, France, as » NPSS opposes the constitutional amendments planning/tab-in-2030. Editor-in-chief of our new journal, Transactions on Our 2016 conferences are doing well and because proposed by the IEEE Board of Directors (BoD) Radiation and Plasma Medical Sciences, and the of the number being held in Europe, a second set because of the potential deleterious consequences: Additional actions of AdCom include the following: Steering Committee has been appointed. The first of booth materials will be generated. There is also a issue of the journal is expected in January. Watch our request for a set for China. Because bylaw changes are not yet defined, the » NPSS approves budgeting of $517,000 for the website for paper submission information. Papers effect of approving the Constitutional Amendment initiatives discussed during the Treasurer’s Report. from the 2016 MIC to be held in early November, AdCom will meet again on Nov. 5th, 2016 in is unknown will now, if a peer-reviewed publication is desired, be Strasbourg, France. These initiatives include support for our new journal, submitted here. Based on available information, representation for our Young Professionals program, for child care LIKE HACKERS on the new BoD by the societies will go from the grants and for an education program operated NPSS’s treasurer reports that we are financially Some people are so busy learning the tricks of the current 11 of 31 members to a number that might through the IEEE Foundation Smart Village program. sound, but conferences need to work toward closing trade that they never learn the trade. be zero. All is unknown as the bylaws are not yet in a more timely way Vernon Law complete. 4 CONFERENCES ieee.org/npss NPSS News 2016 IEEE Nuclear Science Symposium and Medical Imaging Conference

23rd Symposium on Room Temperature X-Ray and Gamma-Ray Semiconductor Detectors

Anthony Lavietes European Coordinator Local Arrangements Chair STRASBOURG CONVENTION CENTER Marc Winter (CNRS/IN2P3/IRES, Strasbourg, France) (Palais De La Musique Et Des Congrès) Strasbourg, France The conference includes three primary scientific and technical programs: 29Th October–6Th November, 2016 www.nss-mic.org/2016 Nuclear Science Symposium (NSS)

[email protected] For scientists and engineers alike, this program encompasses the latest developments in instrumentation and data processing in the fields of particle and nuclear physics, astrophysics, space

science, security, energy and environmental sciences, Marc Winter and radiation therapy. The program spans a wide European Coordinator spectrum of techniques from small, single-channel detectors to large, complex detection and analysis systems. In keeping with the initiative of last year, we will hold a closing plenary session followed by an NSS Social The NSS program format consists of plenary, parallel, Hour on Friday. and poster sessions. In addition to the primary Dear Colleagues, The NSS/MIC and RTSD programs will include: session topics listed below, joint sessions will be held This year, we will break from tradition and, following with the MIC and RTSD communities on dosimetry, the first day of plenary, oral, and poster sessions The Nuclear Science Symposium and Medical » Short Courses and Tutorials presented by beam instrumentation, and hadron therapy. These (Monday) we will hold an NSS dinner (rather than Imaging Conference (NSS/MIC), together with leading scientists joint sessions are intended to highlight similar the traditional NSS luncheon). The NSS Dinner the 23rd International Symposium on Room- research activities among the three communities. will take place at the beautiful Pavillon Joséphine Temperature Semiconductor Detectors (RTSD), is » Scientific contributions organized into plenary The NSS received a total of 814 high-quality abstract Orangerie. one of the leading annual international events that sessions, parallel oral topical sessions, and submissions, from which 336 oral and 420 poster brings together scientific communities involved in the poster sessions presentations were selected. NSS Program Chair development of instrumentation for nuclear science Eckhard Elsen (CERN–Switzerland) (e.g., particle and nuclear physics, astrophysics, » Topical Workshops on emerging topics and new nuclear reactor instrumentation) and medical technologies in innovative fields NSS Deputy Program Chair fields (e.g., biomedical imaging, multimodality Susanne Kuehn (Albert-Ludwigs-University and hybrid imaging), as well as national and » An industrial exhibit with associated technical Freiburg, Germany) international security and environmental sciences. presentations This interdisciplinary event also offers an excellent opportunity for students and young professionals to » Special events: WIE (Women in Engineering), meet and exchange their expertise and ideas with YP (Young Professionals). eminent scientists in their respective fields. Added Dora Merelli emphasis will be placed on the interdisciplinary » Technical visits to local research laboratories Conference Coordinator aspects of the various topics, as well as the (e.g., IRCAD, IHU Strasbourg) technology transfer between fundamental research NSS Topics and relevant industrial and medical applications. Together, the NSS/MIC and RTSD cover a broad range of applications in detectors and » Accelerator technologies and beam-line instrumentation across many fields. The scope of instrumentation Eckhard Elsen the programs attract worldwide experts from various NSS Program Chair communities—academic institutions, government » Advanced computing and software for experiments laboratories, and industry—to exchange and identify new scientific and technical issues and challenges » Astrophysics and space instrumentation for the present and future. We have received 1570 abstracts, indicating an anticipated attendance of » Calorimetry approximately 2000 participants.

Maxim Titov » Circuits for readout and triggering General Chair » Data acquisition, trigger, and analysis

This annual international congress typically attracts » Gaseous detectors Susanne Kuehn 2000 participants from around the world. This year, NSS Deputy Program Chair the 2016 NSS/MIC will be held at the Strasbourg » High-energy-physics instrumentation: large- and Convention Center (Strasbourg, France) from 29 small-scale facilities October to 6 November. The organization of this MEDICAL IMAGING event is supported by the Commissariat à l’Energie Patrick Le Dû » Instrumentation for experimental reactors and CONFERENCE (MIC) Atomique et aux Energies Alternatives (CEA), Institut Deputy General Chair nuclear power plants National de Physique Nucléaire, et de Physique The MIC is a unique international scientific meeting des Particules (IN2P3) of the Centre National de » Instrumentation for security on the physics, engineering, and mathematical la Recherche et de Scientifique (CNRS), and the Complete, updated information is available on the aspects of nuclear medical imaging. The meeting Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche conference website: www.nss-mic.org/2016 » Neutron detectors and instrumentation will take place within the context of an increasing Médicale (INSERM). In addition, many European interest in multimodality approaches, both in terms and American scientific communities active in General Chair » New concepts in solid-state detectors and radiation of development of integrated multimodality imaging the disciplines covered by the conference are Maxim Titov (CEA Saclay, IRFU, France) damage effects devices, as well as in unique software developments contributing to its organization. in image reconstruction and processing, making Deputy General Chair » Nuclear physics instrumentation use of synergies associated with the combination of All presentations are eligible for publication in the Patrick Le Dû (CNRS IPN, Lyon) functional and anatomical imaging modalities and Conference Record that will subsequently be made » Photodetectors beyond. In parallel, developments in radiotherapy available in the Xplore IEEE Digital Library. In addition, Conference Coordinator instrumentation and associated treatment and authors may also elect to submit their manuscripts to Dora Merelli (CEA Saclay, IRFU, France) » Simulation and prototyping for detector dosimetry protocols, including the combination of the IEEE Transactions on Nuclear Science (TNS) or development imaging and radiation therapy, are continuously the new IEEE Transactions on Radiation and Plasma Local Arrangements Chair gaining ground. The contents of this MIC meeting Medical Sciences (TRPMS). These peer-reviewed Anthony Lavietes (IAEA, Vienna, Austria) » Scintillators and Scintillation Detectors will therefore reflect the expanding areas of hardware journals provide significant visibility and impact and software developments both in multimodality within the nuclear science and medical imaging » Synchrotron radiation and FEL instrumentation imaging and radiation therapy through a number of communities. specialized topics. The MIC program format consists NPSS News ieee.org/npss CONFERENCES, CONTINUED 5 of oral and poster sessions. In addition, joint sessions temperature solid-state radiation detectors for X-ray, these joint sessions. This year, the joint sessions will fuel cycle, safeguards and homeland security, and will be held with the NSS and RTSD communities gamma-ray, and neutron radiation are increasingly focus primarily on dosimetry, hadron therapy, and radioactive waste management. on dosimetry, counting photon detectors/spectral finding applications in several diverse fields, such photon-counting detectors. CT, and hadron therapy, to highlight research as medicine, homeland security, astrophysics, and » WS2—Workshop on Detectors for Ultra-Rare works in specific areas. Regular sessions will be environmental remediation. The objective of this Joint Session Topics Event Processes complemented by Short Courses covering many symposium is to provide a forum for discussion different imaging and therapy aspects. The MIC of the state-of-the-art in the development of » Multimodality approaches The second workshop on Sunday will focus on received 559 high-quality abstract submissions, photoconductive materials for radiation detection, detectors for ultra-rare event processes, including from which 114 oral and 370 poster presentations material and detector characterization, device » Front-end electronics, signal digitization and Dark Matter detectors, neutrino detectors (including were selected. fabrication processes, electronics, and applications. processing neutrino-less double beta decay), and the use of Oral and poster presentations have been organized noble liquid scintillators and associated photosensors MIC Program Topics to represent a broad spectrum of research activities » Beam instrumentation in search of other types of rare particles or decay emphasizing either device or material understanding. signatures. It will be geared towards the non-expert » New radiation detectors/technologies for The RTSD received 156 high quality abstracts » New detector developments and serve in part as an introduction to the topics of medical imaging submissions, from which 94 Oral and 59 Posters the third workshop—Technology Frontier for Single presentations were selected. » Scintillators and photodetectors Photon Detection and Fast Scintillator Timing. » Preclinical (small animal) emission or multimodality imaging systems (design, instrumentation, » Semiconductor-based imaging systems Friday, 4th November performance) » Simulation, modeling and hybrid computing » WS3—Workshop on the Technology Frontier » Clinical emission or multimodality imaging systems for Single-Photon Detection and Advanced (design, instrumentation, performance) Joint Session Program Chair Scintillator Timing David Brasse » Application-specific (e.g., brain, breast, intra- (IPHC IN2P3-CNRS –Strasbourg University) The overall focus of this workshop is on cutting-edge operative) emission or multimodality imaging technologies addressing the issues that currently systems (design, instrumentation, and Michael Fiederle Short Course Program limit the use of single-photon detectors including, performance) RTSD Cochair in particular, large-area readout issues, ultra-fast Whether you want to update your skills, boost your timing (better than 100 ps), radiation hardness, » CT imaging technologies (hardware and software) career, delve into a new field, or just refresh your and Ultra-Violet and Vacuum Ultra-Violet sensitivity. memory, the IEEE Short Course Program can help The technologies that are of particular interest » Other imaging technologies (e.g., optical, MR) you along your way. Learn from experts who have include analog SiPMs, SiPMs with embedded digital both theoretical knowledge and real-world practical electronics (monolithic digital SiPMs, 3D-integration, Quantitative imaging techniques and data correction experience in courses available in a wide range of etc.), as well as nonsolid-state-based solutions such topics for professionals in the nuclear science and as Micro-Channel plates, hybrid photodetectors » Assessment and comparison of image quality medical imaging fields. All courses are one or two or gas-based solutions. Scintillation materials and and methods days in length and include a continental breakfast, readout electronics solutions are also included as a lunch, and coffee breaks, as well as lecture notes part of the workshop scope. Ralph James » Tomographic image-reconstruction techniques and a certification of completion as part of the RTSD Cochair course registration fee. This workshop aims at bringing together scholars, » Signal processing and image analysis industry leaders and visionaries from across the RTSD Program Cochair Short Course Schedule world to discuss how academia and industry can » Parametric imaging and tracer kinetic modeling Ralph James (Brookhaven National Laboratory, USA) partner to address these challenges. It represents methods Dates: 29th October–1st November 2016 a technical revolution with profound impact on RTSD Program Cochair feasible applications in particle physics, accelerator » Simulation and modeling for medical imaging and Michael Fiederle (University of Freiburg, Germany) SC1—Neutron Detection and nuclear physics, medical and biological imaging, radiotherapy applications nondestructive industrial processing and electronic RTSD Program Topics SC2—Integrated Circuits for Detector Signal design topics. » Radiotherapy techniques and applications (e.g., Processing image guided, dosimetry) » 3d photon tracking detectors and image We encourage everyone who is interested in these reconstruction technology SC3—Advanced Photodetectors topics to attend any or all of the workshops and MIC Program Chair—Dimitris Visvikis (INSERM, UMR bring in new ideas for discussion. Anyone interested 1101, LaTIM, Brest, France) » Pixel, strip, frisch-grid, co-planar grid, and discrete SC4—Room Temperature Semiconductor Detectors: in submitting a contribution to one or more of semiconductor detectors Materials, Crystal Growth, and Technology the workshops should use the normal conference MIC Deputy Program Chair—Suleman Surti paper submission link. Please contact the organizers (University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, USA) » Detector/asic hybridization, interconnects, SC5—Medical Image Reconstruction listed in the workshop descriptions if you have and electronics any questions or wish to inquire further about SC6—Image Quality and Statistical Analysis the workshops. » Semiconductor materials for radiation detection SC7—Biology for Imaging Scientists Workshops Chair » Organic and other photoconductive materials for Craig Woody (Brookhaven National Laboratory, USA) radiation detection Short Course Cochair Silvia Dalla Torre (INFN-Sezione di Trieste—Italy) Industrial Program » Properties of electrical contacts and device fabrication technology Short Course Cochair Attendees are invited to visit the exhibition area Youngho Seo to see the latest in exhibitor offerings, as well as to » Polarization, long-term stability, and radiation (University of California, San Francisco—USA) attend the series of technical seminars focused on Dimitris Visvikis damage the newest product developments. The Industrial MIC Program Chair Workshops Exhibition will be located in a newly constructed, » Scintillator/semiconductor hybrid detectors with modern Exhibition Hall (Hall Rhin). All general focus on semiconductor technology We invite you to join us for three interesting conference coffee breaks will take place in the and exciting workshops at this year’s NSS/MIC exhibition area and, in addition, the Attendee » Solid-state neutron detectors conference on Sunday, with two on 30th October Lounge will be collocated with the exhibits. This is 2016 and one on Friday, 3rd November 2016. the ideal setup to maximize interactions between » Spectrometer systems for homeland security, attendees and exhibitors. To allow the NSS, MIC, and nuclear inspections, safeguards, and portal 30th October (Sunday) RTSD communities ample time to visit the exhibition monitoring area, the exhibits will be open from Tuesday lunch » WS1—Workshop on Instrumentation and time to the end of the afternoon coffee break on

Suleman Surti » Imaging systems for medical, space, non- Measurement in Nuclear Environments Thursday. The Exhibitors’ Reception—another great MIC Deputy Program Chair destructive testing, and cargo monitoring (Reactors, Fuel Cycles and Safeguards) opportunity to network with exhibitors—will be held on Tuesday night. NSS-MIC-RTSD Joint Sessions As entitled, this workshop focuses on research, 23RD INTERNATIONAL development and innovation in the frame of Exhibitor Technical Seminars SYMPOSIUM ON Two Joint Sessions that address areas of instrumentation and measurement dealing with ROOM-TEMPERATURE common interest within the NSS, MIC, and RTSD nuclear experimental reactors such as ZPR (Zero Do not miss the opportunity to attend the Exhibitor SEMICONDUCTOR communities have been organized for 2 November Power Reactors), MTR (Material Testing Reactors), Technical Sessions. Held in parallel with the DETECTORS (RTSD) (Wednesday). These sessions are an opportunity reactor demonstration prototypes for future nuclear Industrial Exhibition, each technical session will to highlight transverse research work pursued power reactor/fission and fusion (e.g., GEN IV, ITER), provide a detailed view into emerging technology The RTSD represents the largest forum of scientists across the respective fields. Abstract submissions as well as nuclear power reactors and the nuclear and engineers developing improved semiconductor that are of common interest to the NSS/MIC/RTSD CONFERENCES Continued on PAGE 6 radiation detectors and imaging arrays. Room- communities have been specifically selected for 6 CONFERENCES, CONTINUED ieee.org/npss NPSS News

In 1992, surgery faced inevitable changes, shifting » E6 - Strasbourg —Boat Tour and European Conferences Continued from PAGE 5 from the industrial era to the computer era. In this Parliament Thursday, 3rd November —14:00–17:00 context, Prof. Jacques Marescaux came up with developments and recent new offerings directly Publication Chair—Cinzia Da Vià (University of the idea to create a unique research and training » E7 - Colmar and Ribeauvillé from the manufacturers. Manchester, UK) center. In 1994, IRCAD opened on the grounds Friday, 4th November - 09:00–17:00 of the University Hospital of Strasbourg. Since its Academia-Industry creation, IRCAD has become world renowned as a » E8 - Haut-Koenigsbourg Castle, Wine Tasting and Matching Forum SOCIAL EVENTS leading research and education institute. In 2001, Lunch in Riquewihr Saturday, 5th November - Professor Marescaux electrified the surgical world 09:00–17:00 For the first time this year, academia will reveal A number of entertaining and exciting social activities, with “Operation Lindbergh.” Sitting at a robotic cutting-edge technologies with potential benefits to as well as events and meetings on unique topics, will console in New York City, Professor Marescaux Companion Program Chair your specific interests. Meet and talk with leading be offered throughout the week of the conference. dexterously removed the diseased gallbladder Martine Oger (CEA IRFU/SPP Saclay) academic researchers who will present mature Some require payment of a fee and others are of a patient in Strasbourg, France—the perfect technology developments at this forum organized complimentary. The following events are planned for blending of information technology and surgery. by HEPTech—the technology transfer network of the various conference Programs—individual detailed Just as Lindbergh’s solo flight across the Atlantic INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE particle, astro-particle, and nuclear physics. This event descriptions can be found on the conference revolutionized our thinking, so did this worldwide ON PLASMA SCIENCE will take place concurrently with the conference and website (www.nss-mic.org/2016). first, proving that distances were no longer an will provide additional networking opportunities. obstacle in surgery. A visit to this state-of-the-art May 21st –25th , 2017 NSS Dinner facility has been organized; the number of places Atlantic City, New Jersey Exhibits Reception Monday, 31st October 2016, is limited. 19:00-22:00, Pavillon Joséphine The 44th annual International Conference on This informal event will be held on the evening of Excursion Program Plasma Science (ICOPS) will be held May 21st–25th, 1st November (Tuesday) in the Exhibition area to This event has traditionally been held as a lunch, but 2017, at the Harrah’s Resort Atlantic City in Atlantic allow ample time for attendees and exhibitors to this year it will transition to a dinner to be held in this Alsace, the region of which Strasbourg is the capital, City, New Jersey. This conference continues the meet and discuss topics of mutual interest with no unique location. Transportation will be provided. runs west to east from the Vosges mountains great tradition of excellence established by the overlap with the scientific programs. through some of the most beautiful vineyards in prior conferences in the series. The organizational MIC Dinner France, to the mighty Rhine River and the border Exhibitor Chair Friday, 4th November 2016, with Germany. Changing hands several times over Jean Marie Legoff ( CERN) 19:00-23:30, Palais Universitaire the centuries between France and Germany has only strengthened the independent character of this Exhibitor Cochair The MIC Dinner will continue in its tradition as a fiercely traditional region. Antonio Pacheco (CERN) dinner, with the current plans for an elegant event at this remarkable location. Transportation will be Our Excursion Program will give you the opportunity provided. to discover a little bit of this magical region, as well GRANTS AND AWARDS as give you an insight to Strasbourg, its traditional RTSD Luncheon heritage, and its modernity. An exceptional offer Generous donations from individuals, institutions, Tuesday, 1st November 2016, of two classes with a famous French “pâtissier” agencies, and companies provide for a variety 11:15-15:00 complete our offer of excursions, all of them of financial support opportunities to attend the designed for both attendees and their companions. NSS/MIC conference or short-course program. A one-hour cruise around Strasbourg followed by a Several IEEE awards are also available. The specific lunch at the famous restaurant, Maison Kammerzell, All excursions will depart from the Leicester Room in application deadlines and requirements can be with a view of the Cathedral (Cathédrale Notre the Convention Center. All full-day excursions include found on the conference website (www.nss-mic. Dame de Strasbourg). lunch in a local restaurant. org/2016). All applications and recommendations committee has worked hard to offer, as usual, must be submitted online. Exhibitors’ Reception Excursion List an outstanding technical program. Engineers and Tuesday, 1st November 2016, scientists from around the world conducting research Grants and Awards 19:00-21:00, Hall Rhin, Companion Program Chair: Martine Oger and with interest in plasma science will attend ICOPS Strasbourg Congress Center (CEA IRFU/SPP Saclay) 2017. The technical and social programs have been » 2016 NPSS Child Care Assistance Grant organized to optimize opportunities for knowledge There will be an exhibitor-sponsored reception » E1 - Obernai and Wine Tasting exchange and networking in the various areas of » 2016 Paul Phelps Continuing Education Grant on Tuesday evening for all attendees and their Sunday, 30th October—14:00-17:00 plasma science. companions. This is a great opportunity to meet » 2016 Conference Trainee Grants with representatives from the industrial exhibition in » E2 - Baden-Baden (Germany) Professor Jose L. Lopez of Seton Hall University a casual atmosphere. Light refreshments will Monday, 31st October - 09:00-17:00 is the Conference General Chair. The Technical » 2016 Valentin T. Jordanov Radiation be served. Program Chair, Professor Kurt H. Becker of New Instrumentation Travel Grant » E3 - North of Alsace, Betschdorf and York University, and the Technical Area Chairs have Conference Reception Lalique Museum assembled an outstanding program of contributed » 2016 NPSS Student Paper Awards Wednesday, 2nd November 2016, Tuesday, 1st November - 09:00-17:00 papers that are arranged in seven sessions of oral 19:00-22:00, Strasbourg Congress Center and poster presentations. The first technical area in » 2016 Radiation Instrumentation Early Career » E4 - Pedestrian Tour of Strasbourg (and Lunch) Fundamental Research and Basic Processes in Fully Award (NSS) Join us for the Conference Reception on Wednesday Wednesday, 2nd November - 09:00–14:00 and Partially Ionized Plasmas is chaired by Professor evening. This complimentary event will feature Weidong Zhu of Saint Peter’s University. Sarita Devi » 2016 Glenn F. Knoll Radiation Instrumentation dinner and entertainment for all attendees and their » E5 - Pâtisserie! Prasad from the University of New Mexico, is the Outstanding Achievement Award (NSS) companions. Enjoy the relaxing and fun atmosphere Wednesday, 2nd November —14:30–17:30 technical area chair of Microwave Generation and while meeting with other colleagues and making Thursday, 3rd November —14:30–17:30 Plasma Interactions. The technical area chair of » 2016 Bruce H. Hasegawa Young Investigator new friends. Charged Particle Beams and Sources is Evgeniya Medical Imaging Science Award (MIC) Lock of the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory. The Women In Engineering (WIE) 2016 NORTH AMERICAN fourth technical area is in High Energy Density » 2016 Edward J. Hoffman Medical Imaging Scientist PAC—NA-PAC 2016 Plasmas and Applications which is chaired by Award (MIC) This year, the WIE event will take place on Thursday, Christine Coverdale of Sandia National Laboratories. 3rd November, during the lunch period. There will October 9th–14th , 2016 The Industrial, Commercial, and Medical Applications Scholarship Chair—Merry Keyser be three eminent speakers who will address issues Chicago, IL technical area is chaired by Gregory Fridman of related to their experience in the academic and Drexel University. Achim von Keudell of Ruhr entrepreneurial work environment. The final speaker Preparations for NA-PAC16 (9th–14 th October) University Bochum (Germany) is the technical PUBLICATIONS will present her study on the psychological impact of are proceeding well. We look forward to a very area chair of Plasma Diagnostics. The seventh women working in a male-dominated environment. exciting and informative conference, beginning technical area in Pulsed Power and other Plasma All manuscripts presented at the conference, both A light refreshment will be included. with IEEE Short Courses on Sunday morning Application is chaired by Tao Shao of the Chinese oral and poster, will be included in the Conference October 9th and the special student poster Academy of Sciences. All contributed papers in the Record and distributed to all conference attendees. Young Professionals Reception session that afternoon. There will be lab tours seven technical areas at ICOPS 2017 are eligible The Conference Record will subsequently be of Argonne and Fermilab accelerator facilities for submission and review for publication after the made available through IEEE Xplore. Authors may This annual event will meet on Thursday evening, on October 15th following the conference. conference in IEEE Transactions on Plasma Science. also elect to submit their manuscripts to one of 3rd November, at the Strasbourg Hilton Hotel (across the peer-reviewed journals—IEEE Transactions on from the Strasbourg Congress Center) Please visit our website https://napac2016. The conference will also include a Young Nuclear Science (TNS) or IEEE Transactions on from 19:00–21:00. aps.anl.gov/ for the most up-to-date Professionals session and a Women in Engineering Radiation and Plasma Medical Sciences (TRPMS). conference information, links to registration, event. Further, there will be an Industrial and As IEEE publication rules have recently been revised, Technical visit to IRCAD and scientific program, and paper submission. Commercial Exhibit throughout the duration of the please visit the conference website (www.nss-mic. Institut hospitalo-universitaire conference to allow attendees to learn about and org/2016) for the latest details about publishing de Strasbourg Marion White, Conference Chair, can be discuss new developments in products, equipment, your manuscript. Wednesday, 2nd November 2016, reached by E-mail at [email protected]. and services either enhanced by plasma science 14:00-17:00 or of benefit to the plasma research community. NPSS News ieee.org/npss CONFERENCES, CONTINUED 7

Professor Sung-o Kim of New York Institute of 2017 IEEE NSREC IS PLANNING » Displacement Damage Technology is the Sponsors and Exhibits Chair. FOR NEW ORLEANS For more information on exhibits or conference » Processing-Induced Radiation Effects sponsorship please visit http://www.shu.edu/ July 17th –21st, 2017 ICOPS2017 or contact Sung-o Kim at +1 516-686- Radiation Effects on Electronic 1302 or [email protected]. The IEEE Nuclear and Space Radiation Effects and Photonic Devices and Conference will be held July 17th–21st, 2017 Circuits Atlantic City is a world-renowned travel destination in New Orleans, at the New Orleans Marriott. with many resorts and attractions. Furthermore, it is Mark Sinclair The conference will feature a Technical Program a distinctive and popular destination for conferences PPC General Chair consisting of nine sessions of contributed papers and special events. Atlantic City, in the state of (both oral and poster) that describe the latest New Jersey on the Atlantic coast of the United observations and research results in radiation States, is in close proximity to the New York City, effects, an up-to-date Short Course offered on July Philadelphia, and Washington D.C. metropolitan 17th, a Radiation Effects Data Workshop, and an areas where a third of the population of the United Industrial Exhibit. States lives. Atlantic City is approximately 60 miles (90 km) from Philadelphia, 125 miles (200 km) from New York City and 175 miles (280 km) from Teresa Farris Washington, D.C. Conveniently, Atlantic City is served RE Vice Chair-person of Publicity by the Atlantic City International Airport along with Philadelphia International Airport, approximately 65 » Single Event Effects mi or 105 km, and Newark Liberty International Bucur Novac PPC Technical Program Chair Airport, approximately 116 mi or 187 km away from » MOS, Bipolar and Advanced Technologies Atlantic City. In addition, Atlantic City has train service connections from all major East Coast cities. » Isolation Technologies, such as SOI and SOS

The ICOPS 2017 will be held at the Harrah’s Resort » Optoelectronic and Optical Devices and Systems Atlantic City which has over 2500 guest rooms New Orleans along with their world-famous casino floor that has » Methods for Hardened Design and Manufacturing various other entertainment options and resort Just north of the Gulf of Mexico, on the banks of the amenities such as restaurants, pools, theater, and Mississippi River, lies New Orleans, a 300-year-old » Modeling of Devices, Circuits and Systems exercise facilities. The conference’s technical program melting pot of cultures, sights, tastes, and sounds and social events will be held at the Waterfront with something for everyone. If you’re a WWII buff, » Cryogenic or High Temperature Effects

Conference Center located at the Harrah’s Resort Neal Graneau be sure to visit the National WWII museum for an Atlantic City. Conference Treasurer immersive experience. If your preference is the » Novel Device Structures, such as MEMS and natural world, the Audubon Zoo and Aquarium is Nanotechnologies For the latest information on the conference, regularly rated in the top ten. If history is your bag, including the technical program, local arrangements, The conference is being held at the Hilton Metropole visit the New Orleans Jazz National Historical Park, » Techniques for Hardening Circuits and Systems housing and travel information, abstract submission Hotel, on the seafront of the town of Brighton and take in a live concert, or spend a day at the Jean and registration information, please visit the ICOPS situated on the south coast of England. Brighton is Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve learning Space, Atmospheric, and 2017 website at http://www.shu.edu/ICOPS2017. a popular and cosmopolitan town that has hosted about New Orleans’ very own pirate. Architecture Terrestrial Radiation Effects many national and international conferences. One buffs will enjoy a walking tour of the mansions in the For further information contact the ICOPS 2017 of the largest towns in England, Brighton has a long Garden District and exploring the Spanish-influenced » Characterization and Modeling of Radiation Organizing Committee at [email protected] or history reaching back to Roman times. Its more architecture of the French Quarter. All are reachable Environments directly contact the General Chair, Professor Jose L. recent history is as a seaside resort, the Lanes, the by a short walk or an easy trolley or bus ride from Lopez by phone at +1 973-761-9057, or by E-mail: Royal Pavilion, Brighton Pier and the i360 are all the conference hotel. » Space Weather Events and Effects [email protected]. attractions of particular note. When in New Orleans, don’t forget the food. » Spacecraft Charging The conference will be opening for registrations and Whether the cuisine is classic and refined Creole, 21ST IEEE PULSED POWER abstracts on 7th November 2016; early commitment its spicier rural cousin Cajun, or any of the creative » Predicting and Verifying Soft Error Rates (SER) CONFERENCE—PPC 2017 to the conference is encouraged, especially for fusion efforts for which New Orleans is justly famous, those needing visas to visit the UK. The deadline it is hard to get a bad meal. Take a short walk after Hardness Assurance 18th –22nd June 2017 for abstracts will be the 17th of February. Early dinner to visit the live music scene on Frenchman Technology and Testing Hilton Metropole Hotel registration for the conference, at a reduced rate, will street, where world-class musicians play nightly, Brighton, United Kingdom close on 5th May; further registrations will have to be and locals take in the scene. New Orleans is the » New Testing Techniques, Guidelines and Hardness made at the conference. The conference will open birthplace of Jazz, but you can find Latin, blues, Assurance Methodology For its 21st conference, Pulsed Power is being held on the 18th of June with a buffet reception. Reggae, or some mixture of them all. Whatever you for the first time in the United Kingdom. The Pulsed like, you can find it in New Orleans. Join us in 2017. » Unique Radiation Exposure Facilities or Novel Power Conference is a forum for the discussion of At the conference we will be presenting the Instrumentation Methods all aspects of the science, technology and application Pulsed Power Science and Technology, committee Technical Program of Pulsed Power. Pulsed Power, the techniques for awards, the Marx award for outstanding technical » Dosimetry using electrical energy to generate high-power short contributions to the field of Pulsed Power, the Haas Chaired by Heather Quinn, LANL, papers to pulse(s), is used in a large range of applications from award for sustained management and influence be presented at this meeting will describe the plasma physics and partice-beam generation though of programs to support Pulsed Power and the effects of space, terrestrial, or nuclear radiation on NEW DEVELOPMENTS OF intense magnetic-field generation to industrial and Arthur H. Guenther Pulsed Power Student Award electronic or photonic devices, circuits, sensors, INTEREST TO THE RADIATION medical applications. PPC 2017 welcomes papers for the outstanding students of 2016 and 2017. materials and systems, as well as semiconductor EFFECTS COMMUNITY and presentations on all these topics and any others The nomination deadline for all these awards is processing technology and techniques for producing that apply to the Pulsed Power field. 1st December 2016. Please see the NPSS website radiation-tolerant devices and integrated circuits. The Radiation Effects Data Workshop (http://ieee-npss.org/technical-committees/pulsed- conference will be attended by engineers, scientists, power-science-and-technology/) for details and and managers who are concerned with radiation The Radiation Effects Data Workshop is a forum application forms. effects. for papers on radiation effects data on electronic

devices and systems. Workshop papers are

The organizing committee invites you to join us in The conference committee is soliciting papers intended to provide radiation response data to Brighton for this, the 21st Pulsed Power Conference. describing significant new findings in the following or scientists and engineers who use electronic devices 18th to 22nd related areas: in a radiation environment, and for designers of June 2017 For additional information visit the conference web radiation-hardened or radiation-tolerant systems. Website 21st IEEE Pulsed site http://ieee-npss.org/technical-committees/ Basic Mechanisms of Radiation Papers describing new simulation facilities are ppc2017.org pulsed-power-science-and-technology/ or contact Effects in Electronic Materials also welcomed. Power Conference the Conference Chairman, Mark Sinclair by E-mail at: and Devices PPC 2017 [email protected] Paper Submittal » Single Event Charge Collection Phenomena and

General Chair – Mark Sinclair, AWE UK General Chair PPC 2017 Mechanisms Information on the submission of summaries to the Technical Chair – Bucur Novac, Mark Sinclair 2017 NSREC for either the Technical Sessions or the Loughborough University Email - [email protected] » Radiation Transport, Energy Deposition and Data Workshop can be found at www.nsrec.com. PPC 2017 Technical Program Chair Dosimetry The deadline for submitting summaries is February Bucur Novac, 3, 2017. Loughborough University » Ionizing Radiation Effects CONFERENCES Continued on PAGE 9 PPC 2017 Treasurer » Materials and Device Effects Neal Graneau, AWE 8 TECHNICAL COMMITTEES ieee.org/npss NPSS News Technical Committees

COMPUTER APPLICATIONS IN NUCLEAR AND PLASMA SCIENCES

Caterina Ensemble Sing in the San Gaetano .Church for RT attendees and guests—Sublime!

1 RT-2016 Conference Attendees

Roger Lecomte, University of Chair Adriano Lucchetta Opens the 2016 Sherbrooke, Canada, this year’s CANPS The colorful houses on the Veneto Island of Burano, which was part of the excursion. RT Conference Award Winner

The 20th Real-Time Conference was held in Padova, Italy in June. It takes place every other year, with previous conferences held in Nara, Japan (2014), Berkeley, CA (2012), and Lisbon, Portugal (2010).

The Padova conference had the largest-ever talks about the ITER diagnostics development by turnout in both registered participants (234) and Michael Walsh and a presentation by Alberto Gennai submitted abstracts (239). The abstract selection about the Virgo test mass control, which is critical was managed by program chairs Réjean Fontaine for catching gravitational waves. This was followed from the University of Sherbrooke in Canada, and by one of the signature presentations by Pierpaolo Martin Grossman from the Paul-Scherrer Institute Campostrini about the efforts to protect Venice in Switzerland. In the end, the conference had 52 against the rising sea levels, while at the same time The student award winners. From left to right: Dominic Gaisbauer, Stephanie Su, Davide Pedretti , Christian Bohm (student awards chair), Sergio Esquembri Martínez, oral presentations, 183 posters, and one additional preserving the lagoon biotope and maintaining an Martin Purschke (CANPS chair), Marc-André Trétault, and Chong Liu. presentation from the CANPS award recipient. adequate amount of water exchange in the lagoon. Campostrini is one of the architects of the “shutoff In addition to a superb scientific program, we were valve” design that will soon protect the lagoon from award winners about their work in future issues of treated to a lot of local Italian flair. The conference the ever-more-frequent super tides that would this newsletter, one article at a time. Congratulations chair, Adriano Luchetta from the local Consortio RFX otherwise flood the streets and palaces. The other to the winners! and his crew, even organized a choir performance signature talk was given by Roger Lecomte from by the Caterina Ensemble, where a number of the the University de Sherbrooke in Canada, this year’s It is now time to start preparing for the next Real- local organizers are members (the artistic A very CANPS award winner. His award citation reads “For Time conference in 2018, which will come back to successful 20th Real-Time Conference in Padova, contributions of real time techniques in the field of the U.S. and will be held 10th –15th June 2018, in Italy program got added to the conference schedule, Positron Emission Tomography.” In his presentation, Williamsburg, Virginia. It will be hosted by Jefferson a very nice touch). We also had a wonderful Roger took us through a stunning review of the Laboratory and chaired by David Abbott. Martin Purschke excursion by bus and boat to the Veneto islands history of the readout technologies in medical- Chair, CANPS Technical Committee Murano and Burano, where we could observe the imaging applications, a field to which he himself has For this year, a big thanks to the conference chair traditional glass blowers at work on Murano, and made many significant contributions. Congratulations Adriano Luchetta, and all the organizers, members admire the colorfully painted houses as well as to the CANPS award winner for a well-deserved of the various committees, abstract reviewers, Martin Purschke, Chair of the CANPS Technical the beautiful local embroidery and lace-making recognition of his work. program and session chairs, and all presenters Committee, can be reached by E-mail at on Burano. and participants, which made the 20th Real-Time [email protected]. The student award committee led by Christian Conference 2016 special and one of the best of After the traditional short courses on the Sunday Bohm (Univ. of Stockholm) selected five student its kind. before the conference (given by Stefan Ritt and papers to receive the prestigious student awards. Mariano Ruiz), the conference opened on Monday. The winners are: Dominic Gaisbauer from the CUTTING REMARKS The scientific program of the Real-Time Conference Technische Universitaet Muenchen, Germany, The man who first abused his fellows with swear words instead of bashing their brains out with a club should traditionally consists of plenary talks and poster Stephanie Su from the University of Michigan, Sergio be counted among those who laid the foundations of civilization. sessions. In this way, one can concentrate fully on Esquembri Martínez from the Universidad Politecnica John Cohen the oral presentations without the need to select de Madrid, Spain, Davide Pedretti, Universita e INFN, between parallel sessions. Another long-standing Legnaro, Italy, and Chong Liu, University of Science US TOO! feature of the Real-Time Conferences are “Mini- and Technology of China. An honorable mention What politics has become requires a level of tolerance for triviality and artifice and nonsense that I find I have in Orals” for poster presenters, who can present a short went to Marc-André Trétault, who was ineligible for short supply. advertisement for their poster and aid the audience a prize since he had already won this award at the Al Gore in selecting which posters to visit. On the opening last conference. Following a tradition from the last day, after the welcome addresses, we heard invited conference, you can look forward to articles from the NPSS News ieee.org/npss TECHNICAL COMMITTEES CONTINUED 9

FUSION TECHNOLOGY Sciences (ASIPP), Hefei, an enthusiastic partner ballot. And thank you to everybody who has cast in organizing and running the conference. Plans their vote in this inaugural committee election. are underway to identify a banquet location within walking distance of the conference hotel, and to As we move forward, we would like to remind establish a companion program that will include everybody in our community to assist each other one cultural event and two sightseeing trips. Student in attaining professional recognition. This starts with participation is receiving special emphasis. An nominating your collaborator or other professional extensive minicourse program is being planned contact for IEEE senior member. The paperwork

along with a well-financed student grant program. required for such a nomination is limited and the Andreas Neuber You are encouraged to visit the web site (https:// main requirement is that candidates shall have Chair, Pulsed Power Science and sofe2017.princeton.edu/) and begin to make plans. been in professional practice for at least ten years. Technology Committtee Charles Neumeyer Registration and abstract submission opens 14th Once this has been established, the next step would Chair, Fusion TC November 2016. be a nomination to IEEE fellow. This process is a for his achievements in the development and bit more involved and much information may be implementation of noninvasive localized magnetic- Following the transition of FTC Chair from J. P. Charles Neumeyer, Chairman of the Fusion found online at www.ieee.org under Membership field diagnostics for pulsed-power systems; Mr. Allain to C. Neumeyer, various housekeeping issues Technology Technical Committee, can be & Services. Of course, I would like to encourage Shelby Lacouture, Lubbock, Texas, who is seeking have been settled. The committee roster has reached by E-mail at [email protected]. every distinguished member of our community his Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering at Texas Tech been established (http://ieee-npss.org/technical- considering elevation to the grade of IEEE Fellow, University has been recognized for his achievements committees/fusion-technology/). Candidates have to discuss the matter with Gerry Cooperstein in the design and construction of multiple pulsed- been nominated for the upcoming election of an PULSED POWER SCIENCE AND ([email protected]), who currently power systems and the design and prototyping of a FTC representative on the AdCom. Nominations TECHNOLOGY serves as chair of the PPST Fellow Nominations 3-D static magnetic field imager. The award will be have been received for the 2016 Fusion Technology Committee. More information on the respective officially presented next year along with the 2017 Award and the selection process is underway, with Operating fully under our new by-laws for the first processes and contact information for our awards at our upcoming biennial conference. Hence, the winner to be announced toward the end of year has been exciting and brought with it a number committee and its subcommittees may be found I would like to conclude with a reminder that the July. And J.P. Allain has volunteered to serve as a of positive changes. Foremost, the transition to an at ieee-npss.org under PPST. next Pulsed Power Conference will be held for the Distinguished Lecturer representing the FTC. elected technical PPS&T committee is in full swing. At first time in the United Kingdom, in Brighton, from the time of this writing, the nominations have closed Also, in accordance with our new PPS&T bylaws, 18th–22nd June 2017. Brighton is an exciting place Preparations continue for the 27th SOFE, June and balloting shall commence in a few weeks. Not the student award is now awarded annually. We with the PPC conference hotel located right at the 4th–7th, 2017, chaired by Hutch Neilson. The venue too long after the distribution of this newsletter, the are happy to announce that the 2016 Arthur seafront featuring outdoor cafes and restaurants. will be the Marriott Shanghai City Center, Shanghai, first four elected members of the PPST committee Guenther Outstanding Student award was won China. This will be the first SOFE convened outside will be announced in September of 2016. Thank by two graduate students: Mr. Dimitry Mikitchuk Andreas Neuber, chairman of the Pulsed-Power the U.S. and excitement is building. The SOFE will you to the very qualified members of the community of Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel, Science and Technology Technical Committee, benefit from the key roles being played by the who have shown their desire to serve on the who is seeking his Ph.D. from the Faculty of Physics can be reached by E-mail at andreas.neuber@ Institute of Plasma Physics, Chinese Academy of committee and whose names appeared on the at the Weizmann Institute has been recognized ttu.edu.

he taught a very popular Short Course on Radiation Functional Committees Detectors at the Nuclear Science Symposium, and authored the widely used textbook, Radiation AWARDS Many of his students have had successful careers Detection and Measurement., now in its fourth and are now leaders in our field. He was a Professor edition Announcement of the NPSS of Electrical Engineering at the University of Michigan Glenn F. Knoll Educational and served as the Chair of that Department from The IEEE Glenn F. Knoll Radiation Instrumentation Grants 1979-1990, and then as Interim Dean of the Outstanding Achievement Award, so named in School of Engineering from 1995-1996. He was 2014, is presented each year by the Radiation Glenn F. Knoll NPSS announces the formation of two new a long-standing member of NPSS and served as Instrumentation Technical Committee. However, educational grants in honor of one of our most the Chair of the Radiation Instrumentation Steering initiated this year, there are now two new grants admired and respected members, Glenn F. Knoll, Committee as well as several terms on AdCom as in Prof. Knoll’s honor, which are the IEEE Glenn innovative technical and/or leadership contributions who passed away in April of 2014. Prof. Knoll was a representative from the Radiation Instrumentation F. Knoll Graduate Educational Grant and the IEEE to the radiation effects community. The $3000 a gifted teacher and mentor of many generations Technical Committee. He served briefly as Chair of Glenn F. Knoll Postdoctoral Educational Grant. These cash award and plaque will be presented at of students in the field of nuclear engineering. the Publications Committee as well. For many years grants are intended to help further the studies and NSREC New Orleans. Nomination forms are careers of graduate students and postdocs in the available electronically at http://ieee-npss.org/ fields of nuclear science, medical imaging sciences technical-committees/radiation-effects/ and must Conferences Local Arrangements and homeland security technologies. They were be submitted by January 27th, 2017. Additional John Stone, established by generous donations from Mrs. Gladys information can be obtained from Simone Gerardin, Southwest Research Institute Knoll, Dr. Valentin Jordanov (a former student of Member-at-Large for the Radiation Effects Steering Continued from PAGE 7 [email protected] Prof. Knoll) and funds from NPSS, and will provide Group. Simone can be reached at +39 049 827 Short Course a monetary award of $5000 that can be used to 7786, [email protected]. Short Course support travel to and attendance at conferences, Attendees will have the opportunity to participate Jonathan Pellish, workshops or summer schools, or to support special Paul Phelps Continuing in a one-day Short Course on Monday, July 17. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center research projects. They will be open to graduate Education Grant Nominations The short course is being organized by Jonathan [email protected] students and postdocs who are members of both Pellish, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center. The IEEE and NPSS and will be offered for the first time Nominations are currently being accepted for the course will be of interest both to radiation effects Publicity in 2017. Nominations will be accepted starting in 2017 Paul Phelps Continuing Education Grant. specialists and newcomers to the field alike. Teresa Farris, the fall of this year and more information about The purpose of the grant is to promote continuing Cobham Semiconductor Solutions how to apply for these prestigious new grants will education (attendance at the 2017 NSREC Short Industrial Exhibit [email protected] be available soon on the NPSS Awards website. Course) and encourage membership in NPSS. Outstanding members of NPSS who are either An Industrial Exhibit will be included as an integral Finance Chair Student Members, Post-Doctoral Fellows or Research part of the conference and will be chaired by Dolores Black, NUCLEAR AND SPACE Associates, or unemployed members needing Annie Minez, 3-D Plus. Exhibitors will include Sandia National Laboratories RADIATION EFFECTS assistance in changing career direction can be companies or agencies involved in manufacturing [email protected] nominated for the award. The actual amount of the electronic devices or systems for applications in Call for Nominations grant will be determined prior to the 2017 NSREC in space or nuclear environments, modeling and Awards for 2017 Awards New Orleans. Funds are to be used towards covering analysis of radiation effects at the device and Jean-Luc Leray, travel costs to attend the NSREC Short Course. The system level, and radiation testing. CEA Nominations are due January 27th, 2017 for awards winners will also receive complimentary short course [email protected] that will be presented at the IEEE NSREC 2017 registration. Committee Conference July 17th–21st , 2017 in New Orleans. Industrial Exhibits Nomination forms are available electronically at General Chairman Chair Anne Minez, Radiation Effects Award http://ieee-npss.org/technical-committees/radiation- Véronique Ferlet-Cavrois, 3Dplus Nominations effects/ and must be submitted by January 27th, European Space Agency [email protected] 2017. Additional information can be obtained from [email protected] Nominations are currently being accepted for the Tom Turflinger, Junior-Member-at- Large, Aerospace Web Developer 2017 IEEE Nuclear and Plasma Sciences Society Corporation, for the Radiation Effects Steering Technical Program Jeffrey Black, (NPSS) Radiation Effects Award. The purpose Group. Tom can be reached at 571-307-3715, Heather Quinn, Sandia National Laboratories of the award is to recognize individuals who [email protected].

LANL [email protected] [email protected] have had a sustained history of outstanding and FUNCTIONAL COMMITTEES Continued on PAGE 10 10 FUNCTIONAL COMMITTEES ieee.org/npss NPSS News

techniques to probe radiation-induced, transient contributions to the development of particle Functional Committees Continued from PAGE 9 signals with resolution not possible with conventional accelerator science and technology. oscilloscope measurements. In summer 2014, Isaak was a visiting scholar at imec in Leuven, Belgium. Two Awards are granted at each of the Particle 2016 NSREC Phelps Grant microelectronic technologies. The focus of his Ph.D. In January of 2016, Isaak began the Pathways Accelerator Conferences held in North America Recipients dissertation work is on correlating fundamental Internship program, working with the NASA Goddard (PAC or IPAC). The 2016 PAST Awards and the damage mechanisms between heavy-ion-induced Space Flight Center’s Radiation Effects and Analysis PAST Doctoral Student Award will be presented The 2016 Paul Phelps Continuing Education Grant single event transients (SETs) and laser-induced Group. Isaak has authored or co-authored seven at the 2016 North America Particle Accelerator was awarded to four student members from the SETs in SiGe heterojunction bipolar transistors journal or conference publications, and was the Conference (NA-PAC’16), which will be held in radiation effects community. At the opening of the (HBTs). His research leverages advanced models recipient of the GOMACTech 2015 Best Student Chicago, Illinois, October 9th–14 th, 2016. NSREC technical sessions (July 11th, 2016), Allan and simulations in order to identify the underlying Poster award. His advisor at Vanderbilt is Professor Johnston, Chairman of the Radiation Effects Steering physical phenomena involved with single event Robert A. Reed. His work is supported in part by the Dr. Anna Grasselino Group, announced the grant awards. The grants effects. The aim of his work is to help accelerate Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA). included tuition for the 2016 NSREC Short Course testing schedules for costly broad-beam experiments. and a check for $750. He has authored or co-authored 16 publications. He received the NSREC 2014 Outstanding Student CALL FOR NOMINATIONS The purpose of the Phelps Grant is to promote Paper Award and the BCTM 2015 Best Student continuing education and encourage membership Paper Award. He is advised by Dr. John D. Cressler, Pulsed Power Science and in the Nuclear and Plasma Sciences Society (NPSS). Schlumberger Chair Professor in Electronics. His Technology Awards, The criteria for judging are exceptional promise as a research is supported by collaborations with the student, postdoc or research associate in any of the Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) and the fields of NPSS, or exceptional work in those fields Naval Research Laboratory (NRL). by currently unemployed NPSS members with an Anna Grasselino 2016 PAST Award Recipient expectation that attendance to at one or more of Serena Rizzolo the Short Courses will result in an improved the possibility of obtaining a job in an NPSS field. Dr. Anna Grassellino of Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory is a winner of the IEEE NPSS Particle The four recipients of the 2016 Paul Phelps Accelerator Science and Technology Award for 2016. Bryan Oliver Continuing Education Grant were Jean-Marc Belloir, PPST Awards Chairman Zachary Fleetwood, Serena Rizzolo, and Isaak Anna Grassellino receives the IEEE PAST Award Samsel. for her pioneering work on nitrogen doping of Dec 1st 2016 deadline SRF cavities. This work includes the discovery of Jean-Marc Belloir the effect itself; making it into a simple, practical Serena Rizzolo The NPSS Pulsed Power Science and Technology technology; transferring the know-how to other 2016 Phelps Grant Recipient Committee is soliciting nominations for: laboratories and industry; and finally successfully implementing it in an accelerator. This advance is Erwin Marx Award: regarded as one of the largest breakthroughs in the Serena Rizzolo completed her Ph.D. (April 4th, 2016) field of radio-frequency superconductivity in the past while working in the area of radiation effects on To recognize outstanding technical achievements in 10-plus years. CW accelerators around the globe optical fiber technology and associated systems, in pulsed power engineering, science and technology will benefit from these findings; as an example collaboration with the University of Saint-Etienne by an individual over an extended period of time. LCLS-II at SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory will (France) and the University of Palermo (Italy). Individuals who have made outstanding technical be the first beneficiary of nitrogen doping. The new Jean-Marc Belloir Her Ph.D. project deals with the development of contributions to pulsed power technology for at least surface processing technique can result in an overall 2016 Phelps Grant Recipient radiation-hardened distributed optical-fiber sensors ten years are eligible. potential cryogenic cost reduction by a factor of for the monitoring of temperature and water level more than two compared to previous state-of-the-art inside storage fuel pools (SFP). Specifically, she Peter Haas Pulsed Power Award: treatments. Jean-Marc Belloir was born in Rennes, France in has studied the permanent and transient radiation 1990. He received the Materials Engineering degree effects on the performances of Optical-Frequency- To honor individuals whose efforts, over an extended Anna Grassellino is a scientist and group leader from the Institut National des Sciences Appliquées Domain Reflectometry-based optical fiber sensors. period of time resulted in important pulsed power at Fermilab. She is the recipient of various prizes (INSA, Rennes, France) and held a six-month The acquired knowledge allowed her to develop a programs and the growth of important areas of among which are the prestigious $2.5M DOE Early internship at ESA (ESTEC, Noordwijk, Netherlands) prototype of a temperature and liquid-level sensor activity including research, education, applications Career Award for her work on High Q cavities. Her to study radiation-induced CTI in CCDs. He is that was tested in realistic conditions. The results of and information exchange. Any individual who has group’s work spans from fundamental understanding currently pursuing a Ph.D degree at Institut Supérieur her Ph.D. studies have shown that this architecture demonstrated sustained contributions to developing, of SRF cavity performance, to R&D for cavity de l’Aéronautique et de l’Espace (ISAE, Toulouse, of sensors can be integrated in the SFPs (two managing or influencing programs, education or performance improvement for Q and gradient France) in collaboration with Centre National pending patents, 2015). Serena has authored or information exchange that has led to important frontiers, to leading the cavity measurements for d’Etudes Spatiales (CNES, Toulouse, France) and co-authored seven publications in international advances in the field of pulsed power is eligible. research and projects at the FNAL SRF vertical test Commissariat à l’Energie Atomique (CEA, Bruyères- journals and she has attended NSREC, RADECS and facility. Anna also serves as Cavity Measurement Le-Châtel, France). His work aims at studying the ANIMMA conferences during her final Ph.D year. 2017 Arthur H. Guenther lead scientist in the FNAL SRF program, and as FNAL defects responsible for the dark-current increase due She will continue to work in the radiation field Outstanding Pulsed Power LCLS-II lead for acceptance and qualification of to displacement damage in CMOS image sensors. with a post-doc position on image sensors Student Award: LCLS-II production cavities. Under her leadership the To do that, he uses the dark-current spectroscopy characterization. Her Ph.D supervisor, Pr. Sylvain FNAL cavity research program has seen some major technique to detect and identify the defects in Girard, nominated her. To recognize outstanding contributions as a student breakthroughs in performance improvement and CMOS image sensors irradiated with various in pulsed power engineering, science or technology. understanding, for both the gradient and Q frontier. particles. Jean-Marc has presented his work at both Isaak Knox Samsel Candidates for this Award will be solicited annually Anna also serves on various committees, among NSREC and RADECS technical sessions in 2015, and the selection process will be completed each which is the APS-DPB executive committee for which and received the RADECS 2015 Best Student Paper year. Any full-time undergraduate or graduate she was recently elected member-at-large. Award. Jean-Marc has authored or co-authored five university student in pulsed power engineering or papers and expects to receive his Ph.D. degree at science is eligible. The nominee must be a student Citation: for pioneering nitrogen-doping of the end of 2016. He was nominated by Dr. Philippe when nominated. superconducting RF cavities. Paillet from CEA. Further details on the awards and nomination Dr. Wim Leemans Zachary Fleetwood process can be found on the webpages of the NPSS Pulsed Power Science and Technology Committee: Dr. Wim Leemans of Lawrence Berkeley National Isaak Knox Samsel http://ieee-npss.org/awards/technical-committee- Laboratory is a winner of the IEEE NPSS Particle 2016 Phelps Grant Recipient awards/. Further information may also be obtained Accelerator Science and Technology Award for 2016. by contacting the NPSS PPST Awards Committee Isaak Knox Samsel is a Ph.D. student in Chair, Bryan V Oliver ([email protected]). Please Dr. Wim Leemans is currently the Director of electrical engineering at Vanderbilt University in note that these awards now have a Dec 1st, 2016 the Accelerator Technology and Applied Physics Nashville,Tennessee. He received his B.S. in electrical nomination deadline. (ATAP) Division and its BELLA Center (Berkeley Lab engineering at University of Tennessee, Knoxville. Laser Accelerator) at Lawrence Berkeley National As a member of Vanderbilt’s radiation effects and Laboratory. He obtained an electrical engineering Zachary Fleetwood reliability research group, Isaak’s research focus is on PARTICLE ACCELERATOR degree from the Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Belgium, 2016 Phelps Grant Recipient single-event effects (SEEs) in nonsilicon electronics. SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY in 1985, and a Ph.D. from UCLA in 1991. He joined His research has included investigating the charge AWARDS LBNL in 1991 and, in 1994, started the LOASIS Zachary Fleetwood is pursuing his Ph.D. in the collection behavior and mechanisms of AlGaN/ Program (now BELLA Center) in what is now the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering GaN MOS-HEMTs, SiGe-channel and Ge-channel IEEE is the world’s largest professional association ATAP Division. For more than three decades, Dr. at the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta, planar MOSFETs, and Ge-channel FinFETs, utilizing dedicated to technology innovation. The IEEE Leemans’ main research areas have been plasma- Georgia. His studies involve investigating radiation heavy-ion irradiation as well as two-photon and Nuclear and Plasma Sciences Society grants based accelerator science, advanced radiation effects (total ionizing dose and single-event effects) single-photon laser irradiation. His dissertation the Particle Accelerator Science and Technology sources, and development of laser technology for in silicon and silicon-germanium (SiGe) based work involves utilizing electro-optical measurement Award to individuals who have made outstanding future accelerators. His Ph.D. dissertation was on NPSS News ieee.org/npss FUNCTIONAL COMMITTEES 11 physics related to beat-wave acceleration and in The IEEE Nuclear and Plasma Sciences Society We were honored to have the distinguished industry requirements just after the graduation. the mid-1990s he launched experiments at LBNL presents the Particle Accelerator Science and Professor Ahmed Hussein to give a talk on Dual Fluid Dr. Mohammed also talked about how to be to investigate methods for guiding high intensity Technology Doctoral Student Award to individuals Reactor (DFR). Prof. Hussein received his B.Sc. in prepared and get the qualifications that are required laser pulses in preformed plasmas. In 2004, jointly who have done outstanding thesis research applied physics from Alexandria University, M.Sc. and to be a professional engineer. He also talked about with two other international teams, he and his in particle accelerator science and technology. Ph.D. in nuclear physics from University of Alberta, the different industrial applications that might fit fresh team were the first to show the possibility for laser This award is made to recognize significant and Canada. He is the Co-inventor of the DFR (patent graduate nuclear engineers. plasma accelerators to produce quasi-monoenergetic innovative technical contributions to the field of pending). Prof. Ahmed is also a senior member of electron beams. The Berkeley team was the particle accelerator science and technology as IEEE, and Chair of the Joint Applied Physics Chapter, The seminar helped the students to define the real first to use laser preformed plasma channels to demonstrated in a student’s doctoral thesis. Vancouver Section. opportunities in the industry and the qualifications produce such beams. In 2006, he led the team required for such positions. that demonstrated the generation of a 1GeV beam Sam Posen earned his undergraduate degree from with a capillary-discharge-based plasma channel to Queen’s University in 2009, at the top of his class For further information, contact Haidy M. guide 40 TW peak power laser pulses over extended in Engineering Physics. He then began the pursuit Abd El-Kader, Secretary, Aleandria distances. With his team, the first demonstration of a Ph.D. in Physics at Cornell University, where Student Branch Chapter by E-mail at of techniques for controlled injection relying on he conducted research under Matthias Liepe on [email protected]. longitudinal tailoring of plasma density profiles to superconducting RF (SRF) cavities. Selecting Nb3Sn control the phase velocity of plasma waves was coatings for SRF cavities as his Ph.D. research experimentally achieved as well as measurements topic, Sam endeavored to develop a technology PUBLICATIONS of ultra-low emittance and evidence for low slice that had the potential to substantially improve the Farah el Sayed R&P Committee member energy spread based on coherent optical transition performance of SRF cavities but had been plagued Medical Content Moving to TRPMS radiation. In 2014, after leading the construction with limitation from Q-slope in previous experiments. of the BELLA laser system, the world’s highest Sam designed and assembled a coating chamber This seminar was organized to discuss the basic As described in previous Newsletters, the Nuclear repetition rate PW-class laser, he led the team that for fabricating Nb3Sn in Cornell’s high-temperature concept of the Dual Fluid Reactor which is a new and Plasma Sciences Society (NPSS) is launching demonstrated 4.25 GeV electron beams from 9-cm- vacuum furnace. After coating samples that showed Gen IV nuclear reactor concept that is still under a new journal, the Transactions on Radiation long, capillary-discharge-based structures. In 2016, near-ideal stoichiometry and critical temperature, he development. Prof. Ahmed Hussein explained the and Plasma Medical Sciences (TRPMS). It is he and his colleagues where the first to show staging moved on to cavities, demonstrating for the first time basic idea of nuclear reactors (induced fission, the cosponsored by the Engineering in Medicine of two consecutive, independently laser-powered an accelerator cavity using an alternative material chain reaction and the role of control rods) and and Biology Society (EMBS). The Editor-in-Chief plasma structures, an essential step towards a that significantly outperforms niobium at a useful overviewed the problems encountered with current for TRPMS has been selected (Dimitris Visvikis; future collider. With his theory colleagues he has temperature and gradient. The cavities he coated reactors that led to probing advanced concepts [email protected]), and he is working on the proposed many methods for controlling, observing showed reproducible high Q0 at 4.2 K, minimal such as the DFR. He also introduced current first issue which will be published in January, 2017. or enhancing the performance of laser-plasma Q-slope, and quench fields above 10 MV/m. His statistics on operating reactors and reactors under accelerators including the colliding pulse technique, accomplishments earned several poster prizes construction. Then he talked about how energy The scope of the IEEE TRPMS encompasses betatron emission, laser guiding and group velocity before he was granted his Ph.D. in 2015. sources are efficiently selected based on a variety technology and application areas related to radiation- control. Over the past five years, he has been of characteristics; for example: having a high energy and plasma-based medical sciences. These areas instrumental in launching a joint effort between laser From Cornell, Sam moved to Fermilab, where he density, providing the minimum demand base load include radiation detectors for medical and biological and accelerator physicists to increase the average now is an Associate Scientist in the SRF department. and having minimal pollution effects. applications; imaging system design/optimization/ power of lasers that drive plasma-based accelerators, He also is a member of Fermilab’s Scientific Advisory performance; therapy-related system design/ Council and a member of the Executive Committee Brief comparisons between nuclear sources and optimization/performance; radiation-application- of the American Physical Society’s Division of other sources of energy (renewable and non- based image reconstruction, data analysis and image Physics of Beams. Sam continues his research on renewable) based on the characteristics mentioned processing; medical radiation therapy applications;

Nb3Sn SRF cavities at Fermilab, where he plans to above were introduced. Finally, Prof. Hussein clinical/preclinical evaluation of imaging and therapy push state-of-the-art performances through novel introduced the Molten Salt Experiment and then systems, plasma applications in medicine and coating procedures, and to scale up to coating full continued explaining the concept of the Dual Fluid biology; and simulations for imaging and therapy production-style cavities. Sam hopes that high quality Reactor. He explained the proposed two-loop applications. Educational material such as technical/

Nb3Sn cavities can one day increase the reach concept and the different passive safety systems clinical review papers covering the above subjects of of powerful large-scale accelerators and enable involved in the DFR concept. He then talked about interest is also included.

Wim Leemans new small-scale industrial applications, including the dual fluid concept on which the reactor is based. 2016 PAST Award Recipient in medicine, border security, and flue gas and He ended the session by introducing estimated wastewater treatment. total costs of the DFR, the estimated time and the required investment to build the reactor followed by an essential requirement for future applications. He Citation: For contributions to the development some of its applications including those related to has received numerous awards including the 1992 of Nb3Sn SRF cavities. gas turbines, petrochemical and hydrogen plants. APS Simon Ramo award for outstanding doctoral thesis research work in plasma physics, the 1996 During this seminar, the audience gained knowledge Klaus Halbach Award for X-ray Instrumentation, CHAPTERS about innovative ideas and solutions for challenging the 2005 United States Particle Accelerator School problems facing current generation of reactors Paul Dressendorfer Prize for Achievement in Accelerator Physics and Alexandria Student Branch concerning their designs, cost and safety systems. NPSS Publications Committee Chair Technology, the 2009 E.O. Lawrence Award Chapter from the U.S. Department of Energy, the 2010 The second session organized by the NPSS AlexSC American Physical Society John Dawson Award for From the time of the last report, the NPSS AlexSC’s was named Nuclear Engineers in Industry. The The objective of this journal is to create a unique Excellence in Plasma Physics Research, the 2012 organized two sessions. One hosted an NPSS session’s goal was to introduce job opportunities publication related to the application of radiation and Advanced Accelerator Concepts Prize and the 2014 distinguished lecturer and the other hosted a for the nuclear engineering students in different plasma sciences within the medical field. TRPMS Department of Energy Secretary’s Achievement nuclear-engineering graduate who has more than 15 fields of industry not necessarily directly related to aims at combining the larger and well-established Award for the BELLA Project. He is also a Fellow of years of experience in engineering fields not directly the nuclear-energy field. The session was oriented field of radiation medical applications with the the American Physical Society, Institute of Electrical related to the nuclear-engineering specialization to show the students how the graduate nuclear upcoming plasma medical sciences domain, and Electronics Engineers, and American Association engineer can fit in many work areas using related providing a unique venue for the publication of for Advancement of Science. Dr. Leemans has NPSS AlexSC’s current board was honored to finally scientific background and engineering skills in light of radiation- and plasma-based medical sciences. been research advisor for more than twenty Ph.D. host an NPSS Distinguished Lecturer during its the low market demand for nuclear engineers due to No such journal exists today either within IEEE or graduate students, two who received the APS presidential time. This stems from the realization the delay in the nuclear program at least for the time other publishers. outstanding dissertation award (2005 & 2006) and that the Distinguished Lecturer Program (DLP) aims being. The session targeted the undergrad students one who received the Japanese PJAS prize for an to provide stimulus and support for NPSS chapter who are in their last year in college. Both of the current NPSS publications, the IEEE outstanding dissertation (2007). meetings via high-quality technical and scientific Transactions on Nuclear Science (TNS) and the lectures by distinguished experts from the NPSS The speaker was Dr. Mohammed Hatem who has a IEEE Transactions on Plasma Science (TPS), publish Citation: for pioneering development of laser- technical communities. Ph.D. in nuclear engineering and more than 15 years papers with medical sciences content. That content plasma accelerators. of work experience in different industrial areas. He is transitioning to the new journal TRPMS. spoke about how students could catch up with the Thus beginning immediately, both TNS and TPS 2016 PARTICLE ACCELERATOR will no longer be accepting medically related SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY manuscripts. We strongly encourage authors to DOCTORAL STUDENT AWARD submit such work to TRPMS instead at https:// mc.manuscriptcentral.com/trpms. We believe Dr. Sam Posen that authors will find the review process to be as beneficial as that of TNS and TPS, and that Dr. Sam Posen of Fermilab National Accelerator publication of their work in this journal will be to Laboratory is the recipient of the 2016 IEEE Particle their advantage compared to TNS, TPS, or other Accelerator Science and Technology Doctoral possible publication venues. Student Award. Paul Dressendorfer, NPSS Pubs Chair, can be reached by E-mail at [email protected]. Alexandria Student Branch Chapter Members with Dr. Ahmed Hussein 12 LIAISON REPORTS ieee.org/npss NPSS News Liaison Reports

EAB EDUCATION LIAISON COALITION FOR PLASMA SCIENCE

Biomedical work earns CPS Excellence in Plasma Physics Award at INTEL ISEF

Phoenix, AZ - It seems like only yesterday CPS was sending an inquiry to INTEL International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF), asking to sponsor a $1000 prize for a student presenting a plasma- Edl Schamiloglu related project at the fair. It was 2005. Eleven EAB Liaison years later, with the prize increased to $1500, CPS has happily observed the growing interest in

IEEEx Update plasma-oriented experiments at the INTEL ISEF. Figure 1: Nathan Kinsey (center) discusses his winning project with CPS judges Arturo This year three judges, including CPS Chair Lee Berry, Dominguez (left) and Seth Dorfman. Photo:Lee Berry Several massive open online courses (MOOCs) Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory Senior Program were released on IEEEx, IEEE’s space on the edX Leader Arturo Dominguez and UCLA Postdoctoral platform. In April 2016 alone, three new courses Scientist Seth Dorfman, evaluated 15 student were launched addressing data storage, systems projects. In a ceremony on May 13th, 2016, they biology, and technical standards. In addition, two ultimately gave the 11th CPS Excellence in Plasma popular existing courses were rerun in April. More Physics Award to Nathan Kinsey for “Lightning in a than 12,000 learners were reached in April through Bottle: Effect of Plasma Activation on Muscle Cells.” those courses. In May 2016, a new course began (Figure 1) on the topic of “Big Data for Smart Cities,” which was developed in partnership with the IEEE Smart Kinsey hypothesized that applying plasma to muscle Cities Initiative and IEEE Future Directions. Learners cells “would enhance cell growth and wound from more than 125 countries were represented in recovery, and that growth would be proportional to the course. In addition, IEEEx’s most popular course intensity of plasma application.” Using a micro- to date, “Introduction to Cloud Computing,” reran in plasma cutter “fabricated from 9V batteries, wire, May. More than 75,000 learners have registered for graphite and aluminum foil,” Kinsey applied plasma this course during its three runs. to muscle cells both directly (to cells in media) and indirectly (to media, which was then applied to cells). Accreditation He also varied the intensity of the plasma dose.

Accreditation.org is a free online resource that He discovered that in this case less is more. Applying offers information on Engineering, Technology and low doses of plasma directly or indirectly to the Figure 2: Shailaja Humane received a Physics and Astronomy Second Prize for her study of Computing (ETC) accreditation globally. The portal muscles resulted in longer cells with greater growth, “Electrically- Induced Acoustic Oscillations of Gas Bubbles.” Photo: Lee Berry provides descriptions of accrediting organizations while high doses sometimes killed the cells, or around the world, a searchable global database resulted in shorter cells. Wounds also healed more of accredited programs, and details on mutual quickly and successfully when using an indirect, low- recognition agreements. Those using the accredited dose approach. program search can search by degree category, country, or university name and generate a list of all Lee Berry noted, “An interesting finding was there currently accredited programs as well as an indication was a 'Goldilocks' level that, apparently, optimally of which organization provided accreditation. balanced the positive effect of enhanced growth with the negatives of too much plasma.” The judges were IEEE Pre-University Education impressed with Kinsey’s ingenuity in developing the Helping Students Imagine the plasma source and his careful attention to controls Careers of 2030 and statistical significance. “Equally impressive were his enthusiasm and ideas for future work on the In 2016, IEEE Educational Activities received a seed project,” said Berry. grant from the IEEE New Initiatives Committee to develop three short videos featuring IEEE members An essay on “Plasma Medicine” is part of the CPS engaging in cutting-edge work in IEEE’s fields “About Plasmas” series, and is easily accessible of interest. The videos are intended to provide via the publications section of the CPS web site. pre-university students with an inspiring look into Although the majority of science-fair projects the careers of 2030. The videos will showcase approach plasmas from the point of view of physics how IEEE members are shaping our future and or astrophysics, more students are choosing to Figure 3: Figure 3: CPS Chair Lee Berry (left) and Seth Dorfman (far right) with (left to right) blazing the path for students who will become the explore medical/biological applications of plasma. Noah Hoppis and Kevin Lee, who presented their project on “The Role of Secondary Electrons engineers of tomorrow. Students will learn how a The last time CPS awarded a prize to a plasma- in IEC and BT Fusion.” Photo: Arturo Dominguez career in engineering will enable them to make a medicine project was in 2010, when Turkish student world of difference by working at the forefront of Bilge Zeren Aksu explored the possibility of killing Received Materials Science Second Award ($1500) Holistic Flare Prediction using Aggregated Solar technological innovation. cancer cells with oxygen plasmas. and Arizona State University New American Cycle 23-24 Magnetograms and Intensitygrams: University Scholarship Shengdong Wang, Hamilton High School, Chandler, Collaborative, inquiry-based lesson plans relating to Of the remaining fourteen plasma-related projects, AZ, USA. Received Arizona State University New the content of each video will also be developed. eight received a total of 9 other awards at the event. Spectroscopic Analysis of Titanium Oxide American University Scholarship Educators can use these lesson plans in conjunction Presence in Stars: Sarah Amina Maazouz, Liberty with the videos to further engage students through Plasmatic Events during Electrolysis of Aqueous High School, Hillsboro, OR, USA. Received European Astrophysical Modeling of Wolf Rayet Stars Using related hands-on experiences. The videos and lesson Solutions: Benedickt Pintat, Walther-Rathenau- Organization of Nuclear Research—CERN—all Low Resolution Gratings: Ivo Jose Goncalves, plans will be featured on TryEngineering.org and Gymnasium, Bitterfeld-Wolfen, Germany. Received expense paid trip to CERN Daniel Alexandre Diaz da Costa, Mauro Barbosa TryComputing.org, which reached over 2.5 million American Chemical Society Honorable Mention Franqueira, 18, Escola Secundária Dona Maria II, pre-university students, educators, and parents in Electrically-Induced Acoustic Oscillations of Gas Braga, Portugal. Received Physics and Astronomy 2015. Investigating the Acoustic Flame Interaction Bubbles: Shailaja Humane, Watchung Hills Regional Fourth Award ($500) with the Effects of Magnetic field and Plasma: High School, Warren, NJ, USA. Received Physics and Edl Schamiloglu, IEEE NPSS Liaison to the Omar Abdulrahman Alhazzaa, Najd National School, Astronomy Second Award ($1500) (Figure 2) CPS judge Arturo Dominguez was impressed with Educational Activities Board, can be reached by Riyadh, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Received Society the student work. “As with last year, these high- E-mail at [email protected]. of Experimental Test Pilots, United Technologies Analysis of Chemical Vapor Deposition schoolers blew me away. They did some amazing Corporation Honorable Mention—$3000 in UTC Diamonds for Neutron Detection on OMEGA: work, many at advanced undergraduate level. I was stock Ishir Seth, Brighton High School, Rochester, NY USA. particularly impressed by the number of projects RATHER USEFUL, EH? Received Physics and Astronomy Fourth Award that incorporated plasma physics in fields other …science helps us distinguish between the way Novel Synthesis of Water-Soluble Paramagnetic ($500); Alternate for CERN trip than fusion and astrophysics, such as the winning things seem and the way they are… Polymer Nanoparticles (Metal Free) for Selective entry. The fact that there were projects exploring Rebecca Goldstein Drug Delivery and Cancer Therapy Applications: plasma physics in biology, water purification, rocket Arnob Das, Jesuit High School, Portland, OR, USA propulsion, etc., highlights the versatility of the field. NPSS News ieee.org/npss LIAISON REPORTS, CONTINUED 13

It’s inspiring to see these young minds getting $4 million in awards. The Intel International Science presenting their research on an international stage, The CPS Intel ISEF award is supported in part by interested in the field.” and Engineering Fair encourages millions of students Intel International Science and Engineering Fair contributions from the American Physical Society, worldwide to explore their passion for innovation and finalists are judged by and interact with doctoral-level Division of Plasma Physics and the Institute of The Intel International Science and Engineering Fair, develop solutions for global challenges. scientists as they compete for prizes. Each year, Electrical and Electronic Engineers, Nuclear and a program of Society for Science & the Public, is the more than 400 finalists receive awards and prizes Plasma Science Society. world's largest precollege science competition, and Students are able to compete as a finalist in the for their groundbreaking research. We hope that the includes more than 1,700 high school students Intel International Science and Engineering Fair after interactions with other finalists and the judges, as OOPS! from more than 75 countries, regions and territories. winning a top prize from a Society-affiliated fair (419 well as the recognition and awards, encourage the When everything is coming your way, you’re in the Each year, the finalists showcase their independent of which are bringing finalists this year) in more than students to continue their involvement in science wrong lane. research as they compete for approximately 75 countries, regions and territories. In addition to and technology. (Figure 3) Steven Wright

Articles Positron Emission Tomography: Current Status of Motion Correction

bellows, respectively. Then, PET measurements can and regularizer terms introduce nonuniform and The quality of motion information is critical for be binned into several motion phases and the data anisotropic spatial resolution [7]. Then, we proposed the success of MCIR methods. However, most in each bin can be used for image reconstruction. regularization design methods for different MCIRs to MCIR methods use noisy PET images to estimate Gated data contains negligible motion artifacts and yield an approximate target local impulse response. deformations [4, 5, 6, 10]. Good motion regularizers has proven to be effective for better quantitative We showed that it is possible to design quadratic could help to improve the quality of motion PET imaging without explicit motion estimation regularizer weights so that all MCIR methods can estimation, but the poor quality of noisy image [3]. However, the gating procedure distributes have a uniform and isotropic spatial resolution source was one of the bottlenecks for good quality total counts into several temporal bins so that [7]. We also derived analytical noise expressions motion information. Motion estimation from 4D each reconstructed image from gated data usually for MCIR methods and performed analytical and CT images in hybrid PET-CT scanners has been contains high noise. Practically, gating requires 2-3 empirical comparisons between different MCIRs investigated and conjectured in many MCIR studies. Se Young Chun times longer data acquisition time for reasonable with matched spatial resolution [8]. We showed However, there are many concerns in this approach noise level (e.g. [3]). However, long acquisition time that MCIR methods of parametric motion model such as high radiation dose due to 4D CT and Positron Emission Tomography (PET) provides and the idea of discarding counts corresponding to [5] and of temporal regularizer [6] have superior motion information mismatch between PET and CT researchers and clinicians with metabolic and other motion phases may not be desirable. noise properties over the MCIR method of summing due to sequential acquisition of PET and CT. molecular information about the disease status aligned images [4]. of patients. PET has been used for diagnosing Motion-compensated image reconstruction (MCIR) Recently developed simultaneous PET-MR opened and monitoring diseases such as cancers, cardiac methods account for non-rigid cardiac or respiratory The nonrigid motion estimation problem is ill-posed. up new possibilities for motion correction in PET. malfunctions, and neurologic disorders. A PET motions during or after PET image reconstruction. In other words, there are too many possible solutions Well-aligned PET and MR images can be obtained scanner counts positrons emitted from radiotracers simultaneously without increasing radiation dose by detecting pairs of gamma rays from positron due to CT. High quality motion information can annihilations. Then, image reconstruction algorithms be obtained from MR and can be applied to PET (e.g. OSEM) convert measured photon pairs into the motion correction. We measured motion information 3D distribution of radiotracers. Since the biomolecule from tagged MR images using B-spline-based image is labeled with a positron-emitting radiotracer, this registration methods [9] and incorporated it into the 3D distribution of radiotracer can be considered as MCIR framework [11]. We validated our proposed the 3D distribution of the biomolecule. Therefore, methods using deformable motion phantom underlying metabolic and molecular information studies with attached radioactive spheres (as shown inside a subject’s body can be estimated. For left), rabbit studies with the surgical implantation example, by injecting [18F]-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) of radioactive beads in the liver, and nonhuman into a subject and measuring the [18F] distribution primate studies. We showed that our proposed using PET, one may be able to obtain localized methods yielded comparable image quality to metabolic information about glucose and its a gating method with much longer acquisition unusually high consumption by cancer cells. time (at least 5 times) [11]. We also performed channelized Hotelling observer (CHO) studies for PET requires several minutes (or a few minutes motion phantom and rabbit studies and showed the for time-of-flight PET) to obtain reasonably low improvement of detection signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) noise measurements. However, typical respiratory using our proposed motion correction methods and cardiac motion cycles are 5 and 1 seconds, [11]. However, there were still a couple of limitations respectively. Thus, it is inevitable that acquired data is in this work: gating signal from respiratory bellows contaminated with motion artifacts due to respiratory The aim is to yield a low-noise PET image from all for this problem and iterative algorithms may provide may not be accurate and tagging signal did not last and cardiac motions during the acquisition time. collected data corresponding to all motion phases noisy and unrealistic deformations when no proper more than a second in 3T MRI while respiratory Reducing motion artifacts has been desirable in PET using estimated motion information between regularization was used. Quadratic penalty functions cycle is about 5 seconds. Recently, Dutta et al. image reconstruction. Motion was a concern even at different motion phases. MCIR methods have been based on an elastic deformable motion model were proposed a MR navigator-based MCIR method for the early stage of PET development in the 1970s. In actively investigated for the last 20 years. There are often used in many MCIR methods [4, 5, 6], but whole body PET-MR and evaluated their method [1], Phelps et al. reported that minor artifacts were mainly three different mathematical models for they may not be flexible enough to describe large using simulations and patient data from whole body observed due to 1.5 cm of relatively large motion. MCIR: the first method is to estimate motion from deformations of cardiac and respiratory motions. PET-MR [12]. However, at that time, the spatial resolution of this noisy PET images, to align all gated images using In the image registration field, a diffeomorphic early stage PET scanner (ECAT) was 0.95 cm. The estimated motions, and to sum all aligned PET motion model was investigated as an alternative Motion correction for PET is still an on-going research effective spatial resolution of ECAT due to motion images to yield a motion-corrected PET image with to a smooth motion model. Diffeomorphic motion area. As the spatial resolution of PET is getting is about 1.78 cm, which is close to the original low noise [4]. The second approach is to incorporate is invertible and sometimes topology-preserving, better, accurate motion will be more important for spatial resolution of about 1 cm. Thus, motion did a motion model into the statistical framework which is a more realistic assumption for motion in-vivo PET imaging to achieve high effective spatial not introduce severe motion artifacts for relatively for PET measurements and to derive an image than smooth motion. Some drawbacks of existing resolution. Understanding analytical properties of poor resolution PET images as observed. With the reconstruction algorithm based on that model [5]. diffeomorphic image registration methods in the late spatial resolution and noise for MCIR methods advancement of PET instrumentation and image The last method is to devise a temporal regularizer 2000’s were high computation complexity and large with unknown motion should be challenging, but reconstruction algorithms, modern PET systems can to encourage aligned adjacent gated PET images to memory requirement. Since MCIR methods deal interesting future work. Recent studies in anatomical achieve about 2.5 mm spatial resolution. In this case, be the same [6]. with multiple pairs of images, it was important for priors (e.g. CT, MR) for PET image reconstruction the effective spatial resolution due to 1.5 cm motion motion estimation methods to be fast and memory- may pose similar issues on undesirable spatial is about 1.52 cm, which is much poorer than the We investigated analytical forms of the noise variance efficient, while flexible enough to describe nonrigid resolution and noise properties in MCIR methods. original spatial resolution of 0.25 cm. Therefore, of three different MCIR models to see which method deformable motions. We proposed a B-spline-based Accurate motion estimation is challenging since subject motion becomes one of the key factors has the best noise property. Since noise properties fast and memory efficient regularizer that encourages the image registration problem is nonlinear and to deteriorate the image quality of modern PET are heavily dependent on spatial resolution invertible (diffeomorphic) B-spline deformation nonconvex so that local minima exist. Developing imaging. properties (stronger smoothing leads to lower noise), [9]. This new regularizer yielded more flexible and novel regularizers and motion estimation models we first studied the spatial resolution properties of realistic motion estimation values compared to may be able to further improve the accuracy of One remedy for motion artifacts in PET is gating MCIRs under limited circumstances of known motion a quadratic regularizer. Our proposed regularizer estimated motion information. Lastly, simultaneous [2]. Periodic cardiac and respiratory information information. We derived the local impulse responses was applied to a MCIR method with parametric can be obtained from indirect surrogate measures of MCIRs with a quadratic regularizer and found that motion model [5] to jointly estimate PET image and such as electrocardiogram (ECG) and respiratory both motion and the interaction between likelihood deformable motions [10]. ARTICLES Continued on PAGE 14 14 ARTICLES, CONTINUED ieee.org/npss NPSS News

Articles Continued from PAGE 13 Plasma’s Effects on Cancer

PET-MR has not been fully investigated for further [7] S. Y. Chun, J. A. Fessler, “Spatial resolution Mounir Laroussi development of MCIR methods and it will be properties of motion-compensated tomographic interesting to devise new MCIR models to exploit the image reconstruction methods,” IEEE Transactions Resembling a miniature version of Obi-Wan Kenobi’s fact that PET and MR are acquired at the same time. on Medical Imaging 31(7):1413-25, Jul 2012. Star Wars light saber, a plasma pencil developed by Mounir Laroussi is used to kill bacteria and sterilize [1] M. E. Phelps, E. J. Hoffman, S. C. Huang, [8] S. Y. Chun, J. A. Fessler, “Noise properties surfaces and could one day become the go-to D. E. Kuhl, “ECAT: a new computerized of motion-compensated tomographic image treatment to kill cancer cells. In 2005, Laroussi, director tomographic imaging system for positron-emitting reconstruction methods,” IEEE Transactions on of ODU’s Plasma Engineering and Medicine Institute radiopharmaceuticals,” Journal of Nuclear Medicine Medical Imaging 32(2):141-52, Feb 2013. and professor of electrical and computer engineering, 19(6):635-47, Jun 1978. designed the hand-held device that emits a stream [9] S. Y. Chun, J. A. Fessler, “A simple regularizer for of cool plasma. An ODU faculty member since 1999, [2] E. J. Hoffman, M. E. Phelps, G. Wisenberg, H. R. B-spline nonrigid image registration that encourages Laroussi specializes in plasma that can be created at Schelbert, D. E. Kuhl, “Electrocardiographic Gating in local invertibility,” IEEE Journal of Selected Topics in room temperature and used for medicinal purposes, Mounir Laroussi with Light Pencil Positron Emission Computed Tomography,” Journal Signal 3(1):159-69, Feb 2009. including dental and wound treatment. of Computer Assisted Tomography 3(6):733-9, Dec 1979. [10] S. Y. Chun, J. A. Fessler, “Joint image Known as one of the four states of matter along with solids, liquids and gases, plasma is produced reconstruction and nonrigid motion estimation when gas is heated or subjected to a strong electromagnetic field. “Plasma is usually generated inside an [3] S. A. Nehmeh, Y. E. Erdi, C. C. Ling, K. E. with a simple penalty that encourages local enclosed chamber,” Laroussi explains. “We wanted to get it in the air, and this [pencil] design allowed for Rosenzweig, H. Schoder, S. M. Larson, H. A. invertibility,” Proceedings of the SPIE Medical Imaging that. We can shoot a beam of plasma that’s safe to the touch and apply it on tissues, wounds and use it Macapinlac, O. D. Squire, J. L. Humm, “Effect of 7258:72580U–72580U–9, 2009. to sterilize surfaces.” respiratory gating on quantifying PET images of lung cancer,” Journal of Nuclear Medicine 43(7):876-81, [11] S. Y. Chun, T. G. Reese, J. Ouyang, B. Guerin, C. Laroussi began investigating plasma’s effects on cancer cells in 2010. It’s a brand-new field, with most Jul 2002. Catana, X. Zhu, N. M. Alpert, G. El Fakhri, “MRI-based researchers building scientific knowledge, while a group in Germany has begun doing clinical trials on nonrigid motion correction in simultaneous PET/ head and neck cancer patients. “We’re trying to understand what plasma does to cancer cells so we can [4] G. J. Klein, B. W. Reutter, R. H. Huesman, “Non- MRI,” Journal of Nuclear Medicine 53(8):1284-91, optimize the process and make it more efficient,” he says. “We’re getting very, very encouraging results rigid summing of gated PET via optical flow,” IEEE Aug 2012. where plasma kills cancer cells without hurting healthy cells.” Laroussi and his research team found that Transactions on Nuclear 44(4):1509-12, Aug 1997. more than 90 percent of leukemia cells were wiped [12] J. Dutta, C. Huang, Q. Li, G. El Fakhri, out when they came in contact with plasma. “It’s still [5] M. W. Jacobson, J. A. Fessler, “Joint estimation “Pulmonary imaging using respiratory motion in the scientific development stage, but hopefully of image and deformation parameters in motion- compensated simultaneous PET/MR,” Medical in the future, plasma will be one of the therapies corrected PET,” Proceedings of the IEEE Nuclear Physics 42(7):4227-40, Jul 2015. people use for cancer.” Science Symposium and Medical Imaging Conference 5: 3290-4, 2003. Se Young Chun can be reached by E-mail at Excerpted from Virginia Business, Local focus, global [email protected]. standing, 29 June 2016. [6] B. A. Mair, D. R. Gilland, J. Sun, “Estimation of images and nonrigid deformations in gated Mounir Laroussi can be reached by E-mail at emission CT,” IEEE Transactions on Medical Imaging Microscopy image of dead cancer cells [email protected]. 25(9):1130-44, Aug 2006.

ADCOM OFFICERS 2016 TECHNICAL COMMITTEE CHAIRS NEWSLETTER EDITOR: CONTRIBUTED ARTICLES

President, John P. Verboncoeur Steve Gourlay (PAST) Albe Dawson Larsen Publicity releases for forthcoming meetings, items of interest Vice President, Stefan Ritt Allan Johnston (RE) E-mail: [email protected] from local chapters, committee reports, announcements, Treasurer, Ron Keyser Patrick Le Du (RI) awards, or other materials requiring society publicity or Assistant Treasurer, Ralf Engels Paul Marsden (NMISC) EDITOR EMERITUS: relevant to NPSS should be submitted to the Newsletter Secretary, Albe Larsen Andreas Neuber (PPST) Editor by October 5th, 2016 for publication in the December Charles Neumeyer (Fusion) W. Kenneth Dawson 2016 Newsletter. ADCOM CLASS OF 2019 Martin Purschke (CANPS) E-mail: [email protected] Donald Shiffler (PSAC) News articles are actively solicited from contributing Monica Blank (PSAC) CONTRIBUTORS LISTED ALPHABETICALLY: editors, particularly related to important R&D activities, Bryan Oliver (PPST) FUNCTIONAL COMMITTEE CHAIRS significant industrial applications, early reports on technical Ron Schrimpf (RE) Haidy M. Abd El-Kader, Jean-Marc Belloir, breakthroughs, accomplishments at the big laboratories Mark Tillack (Fusion) Craig Woody (Awards) Ilan Ben-Zvi, Lee Berry, Lisa Boyd, Se Young and similar subjects. The various Transactions, of course, Peter Clout (Communications) Chun, Mark Crawford, Paul Dressendorfer, deal with formal treatment in depth of technical subjects. ADCOM CLASS OF 2018 Steve Gold (Chapters and Local Activities) Farah el-Sayed, Teresa Farris, Zachary Fleetwood, News articles should have an element of general interest or Bill Moses (Conferences) Harold Flescher, Anna Grassilino, Mounir contribute to a general understanding of technical problems Paul Lecoq (RI) Dan Fleetwood (Distinguished Lecturers) Laroussi, Albe Larsen, Patrick Le Du, Wim or fields of technical interest or could be assessments of Steven McClure (RE) Christian Bohm (Transnational) Leemans, Jose Lopez, William Moses, Andreas important ongoing technical endeavors. Steve Meikle (NMISC) Christoph Ilgner (Young Professionals) Neuber, Charles Neumeyer, Bryan Oliver, Sam Stephen Milton (PAST) Jane Lehr (Fellow Evaluation) Posen, Martin Purschke, Paul Rivenberg, Serena Advice on possible authors or offers of such articles are Sal Portillo (Membership) Rizzoli, Isaak Knox Samsel, Edl Schamiloglu, invited by the editor. ADCOM CLASS OF 2017 Paul Dressendorfer (Publications) John Verboncoeur, Craig Woody. Gerald Cooperstein (Nominations) Steve Gold (PSAC) ©2016 IEEE. Information contained in this newsletter may be copied without permission provided that the Dave Hiemstra (RE) LIAISONS copies are not made or distributed for direct commercial advantage, and the publication title and date appear. Weihua Jiang (PPST) Dick Lanza (RI) Lee Berry (Coalition for Plasma Science) Stefan Ritt (CANPS) Stan Schriber (PAC OC; APS-DPB) Ray Larsen (SSIT , SIGHT, IEEE Smart Village) ADCOM CLASS OF 2016 Brendan Godfrey (IEEE-USA R&D Policy) Michael King (TMI) Ronald J. Jaszczak (NMISC) Suleman Surti (TMI) Patrick Le Dû (Transnational) Janet Barth (Women in Engineering) Brendan Godfrey (PSAC) Edl Schamiloglu (Educational Activities Board) Harold Flescher (RADECS)

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