Gwyn P. Williams Basic Research Program Manager

Contact:

• Center for Advanced Studies of Accelerators
  Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility
  12000 Jefferson Avenue, Newport News, VA 23606
• 757-269-7521 (phone)
  757-269-5024 (fax)
• gwyn@mailaps.org

Education:

• BSc. Physics 1968 Hull University, England
• PhD. Physics 1971 Sheffield University, England

Career:

• 2000 – present. Basic Research Program Manager, Free Electron Laser, Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Laboratory.
• 1979-2000. Physicist, National Synchrotron Light Source, Brookhaven National Laboratory
• 1977-1979. Research Physicist at Montana State University.
• 1971-1977. U.K. Science Research Council Postdoctoral Research Associate.

Fellowships and Awards:

• Fellow of the American Physical Society (2000)
• Co-operative Research and Development Agreement with Grumman Aerospace (1994)
• National Science Foundation International Collaboration award with CNRS, France (1991)
• Winner R&D 100 Award for Wavefront Dividing Interferometer (1990)
• Sabbatical visit to BESSY, Berlin, W. Germany (1986)
• Science Research Council (London) Senior Visiting Fellow (1981)

Patents:

• United Kingdom Patent 1573407 “Radiation Indicating Device” (1980).
• United States Patent 4308459 “Ultraviolet Radiation Detection Device” (1981).

Research Highlights:

• 1979-2000. Physicist at Brookhaven National Laboratory, working at the National Synchrotron Light Source. I was responsible for the development of the world’s first synchrotron infrared user facility for scientific and applied programs, interacting with scientists from academia, industry and the national laboratories. I generated a large user base via workshops and talks, and then managed operations. The programs included microspectroscopy, low frequency studies of vibrational modes for adsorbates on surfaces, and studies of superconductors and semiconductors in the far infrared including synchrotron-laser pump-probe experiments. I also worked continuously on an instrumentation development program for Fourier transform based spectroscopy with synchrotron radiation.
  
  Prior to this I was responsible for coordinating and establishing the initial research activities at the VUV ring at the National Synchrotron Light Source, and was involved with design, construction, commissioning and research use of beam lines in the VUV and soft x-ray region.
  
  My own research focused on electronic structure and vibrational dynamics studies of metals and semiconductors using synchrotron radiation in the 1meV to 1eV region. Highlights were the first direct high resolution observation of an adsorbate substrate bond and the mapping of the energy bands of the 3-5 semiconductor series.
  
  I was the Technology transfer representative at the NSLS and established an infrared microspectroscopy beamline for industrial analytical applications.
  
  In 1986, I initiated a series of x-ray lithography workshops which led to a major new program for the laboratory involving the design and construction of a compact superconducting storage ring.
  
  Wrote book chapters on the design of soft x-ray and vuv beamlines, and on synchrotron radiation sources, and on the application of synchrotron radiation to surface vibrational dynamics.
  
  
• 1977-1979. Postdoc at Montana State University with Professor G. J. Lapeyre's group. Studied the electronic structure of metal and semiconductor samples using polarization dependent angle resolved photoemission at the University of Wisconsin storage ring Tantalus 1. Designed and installed a mini-computer control system for the MSU experiment. Successfully installed the Daresbury grazing incidence monochromator at Tantalus 1. Was involved and carried out the first experiments on the "grasshopper" monochromator.
  
  
• 1971-1977. Postdoc at Leicester University, England. Developed apparatus for studying electronic structure of liquid metals using photoemission under ultra-high vacuum conditions and at temperatures up to 1400K. Undertook a feasibility study for the Science research Council into the advantages of using synchrotron radiation as a tool for studying the electronic structure of metals, alloys and semiconductors and their surfaces. Was involved with setting up a facility using a successfully obtained grant from SRC to execute the above at Daresbury. The project involved the construction of two monochromators. All instrumentation was controlled remotely by mini-computers which also handled the data acquisition.
  
  
• 1968-1971. Infrared studies of the electronic properties of semiconductors in the 1-30 micron wavelength range. Developed a cryostat capable of applying high uniaxial stresses at 77K to Si and Ge to study effective mass and relaxation time anisotropies. Also measured deformation potentials by studying stress dependent changes in the excitonic thresholds.

Teaching

• 1979-1999. Regular Brookhaven Lab. lecturer to visiting high schools and colleges.
• 1997. Taught courses on IR synchrotron radiation and also vacuum technology in Taiwan.
• 1988-1994. External thesis advisor of C.J. Hirschmugl, Yale U.
• 1980-present. Department of Energy student programs advisor.
• 1979. Taught graduate course on Optics, Montana State U.
• 1976. Taught graduate course on Quantum Mechanics, U. Leicester.

Publications

complete list of papers

Links

• My personal web pages