11/15/2010 Colloquium - Kurt Sickafus

Kurt Sickafus Los Alamos National Laboratory

Event Info

Title:  An Ode to Oxides & The Role of Crystal Structure and Chemistry on Radiation Damage Effects in Oxides

Date: Nov 15, 2010
Location: 3105 Etcheverry Hall
Time: 4-5pm

Abstract

This presentation will consist of two parts:

(1) Ode to Oxides. I will introduce the audience to the extraordinary variety of oxide compounds that exist in nature or are produced synthetically. I will use an “oxidation line” and a color-coded ionic radius scheme, as devices to classify oxides according to their diverse structures and properties.

(2) Radiation Tolerance of Oxides. I will present an overview of the radiation damage response of oxides and use a crystal structure “layered-atom model” as an aid to establishing “universal” concepts for predicting the radiation damage response of oxides.

Speaker Biography

Kurt Sickafus is a Technical Staff Member and Laboratory Fellow at Los Alamos National Laboratory. Kurt is also a Fellow of the American Ceramic Society. Kurt graduated from Ohio Wesleyan University in 1978 and received his Ph.D. degree from Cornell University in 1985 (Materials Science & Engineering). Kurt also worked as a postdoctoral researcher in the Cavendish Laboratory, University of Cambridge (1985-1987), U.K., and as a staff member at I.B.M. (1987-88) before joining Los Alamos National Laboratory in 1989. Kurt’s primary experimental expertise is in transmission electron microscopy. His research is in the area of radiation damage effects in ceramics, especially the radiation damage behavior of complex oxides.