Illinois Tech to Help Train Future Accelerator Scientists Through $1.9 Million Fellowship Grant
The United States Department of Energy has awarded Illinois Institute of Technology and Northern Illinois University a $1.9 million grant to train physics graduate students in accelerator science and technology.
This new fellowship program includes hands-on research opportunities at Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory and Argonne National Laboratory.
The grant will fund the new Chicagoland Accelerator Science Traineeship program, which will provide two-year fellowships at both Illinois Tech and Northern Illinois. The program will begin in spring 2020, and fellowships will support eight Illinois Tech students over the next five years.
“Not enough people are being trained to work in the field of accelerator science. We at Illinois Tech can help fill this workforce gap and train the next generation of accelerator scientists,” says Yagmur Torun, an associate professor of physics at Illinois Tech and the principal investigator on the grant.
In addition to Torun, two other Illinois Tech faculty members will participate in the training opportunities—Pavel Snopok, associate professor of physics and computational accelerator physicist, and Linda Spentzouris, professor of physics and accelerator physicist.
Particle accelerators use electromagnetic fields to propel charged particles at high speeds that are contained within beams. Illinois Tech’s Center for Accelerator and Particle Physics provides a forum for cross-disciplinary work beyond physics, including in engineering and materials science.
Illinois Tech will accept fellowship applications on a rolling basis. The program will cover student tuition costs for two years and fund paid research assistantships at Fermilab or Argonne. Read more about the program and how interested students can apply.
