UC Santa Barbara Department of Chemical Engineering Professor Matt Helgeson has been awarded the 2020 Neutron Scattering Society of America Science Prize. The biennial honor recognizes, “a major scientific accomplishment or important scientific contribution within the last 5 years using neutron scattering techniques.” 

Prof. Helgeson will receive a $2,500 honorarium in a ceremony at the American Conference on Neutron Scattering in Boulder Colorado, in July 2020, where he will present a talk reviewing recent efforts to develop new methods for performing and interpreting flow-SANS under complex and extreme flow conditions, “New tools for SANS in complex and extreme flows.”

Nominees must be within 12 years of receiving their PhD degree, with preference given to applicants whose work was carried out predominantly in North America.

The Helgeson Lab’s primary focus is to explore the behavior of colloids (nanoparticles, emulsions, biomolecules, etc.) in the presence of structured fluids such as surfactants, polymers and gels.

Previous winners of the NSSA Science Prize are Prof. Dmitry Pushin (2018), Dr. Yun Liu (2016), Dr. Emil Bozin (2014), Dr. Guangyong Xu (2012), Dr. Craig Brown (2010), Prof. Sueng-Hun Lee (2008), and Dr. Taner Yildirim (2006).  

The NSSA was formed in 1992 for individuals in academia, industry and government who have an interest in neutron scattering research. The nonprofit society has more than 1,000 members from 26 countries. ChE

– Melissa Walker is the Communications Coordinator for the Department of Chemical Engineering.