Scientist Who Developed Quantum Computing Code Wins ORNL’s Top Science Award

Nov. 20, 2020 — Paul Kent, a computational nanoscience researcher in Oak Ridge Nationwide Laboratory’s Computing and Computational Science Directorate, obtained the ORNL Director’s Award for Excellent Particular person Accomplishment in Science and Know-how. The award acknowledges Kent’s management in quantum computing growth and utility on high-performance computing platforms to assist clear up main scientific issues.

The Director’s Awards had been introduced throughout a livestreamed ceremony by ORNL Director Thomas Zacharia on Friday. The lab’s prime awards concluded a two-week interval wherein class winners had been introduced day by day to laboratory workers. The awards are usually introduced at an Awards Night time occasion hosted by UT-Battelle, the administration and working contractor of ORNL for the Division of Power.

Kent obtained the lab’s prime science and know-how award “for exemplary management within the growth of quantum Monte Carlo strategies on high-performance computing platforms and making use of them to main issues of excessive scientific and technologic relevance.” He additionally received the Analysis Management award (video).

Kent’s analysis is targeted on predicting and explaining the properties of supplies utilizing pc simulation. He directs DOE’s Heart for Predictive Simulation of Purposeful Supplies and leads the event of the QMCPACK utility — high-performance quantum Monte Carlo code for computing the digital construction of atoms, molecules and solids — as a part of DOE’s Exascale Computing Venture.

The Director’s Award for Excellent Workforce Accomplishment in Science and Know-how went to a analysis group in ORNL’s Organic and Environmental Programs Science Directorate for “revolutionary developments within the space of microbial isolation strategies that promise to usher in a brand new period for microbiome research, an space of present vital curiosity in each well being and agriculture.” Led by Mircea Podar, the staff contains Jerry Parks, Connor Cooper, Manasi Balachandran and Daybreak Klingeman. The staff additionally obtained an Excellent Scholarly Output award (video).

Dr. Bart Iddins, ORNL Well being Companies Division director, received the Director’s Award for Mission Assist “for his excellent management in guaranteeing the security of the ORNL workers and enabling the continued efficiency of the laboratory’s analysis actions through the COVID-19 pandemic (video).

He suggested ORNL management in making unprecedented selections concerning laboratory operations primarily based on each his medical information and profession in disaster administration. Satisfied that testing with speedy turnaround was key, he arrange an efficient onsite testing program that continues to develop extra sturdy. In the course of the pandemic, the retired Air Drive main normal has been and continues to be entrance and middle in ORNL’s battle towards the SARS-CoV-2 virus.”

Moreover, Iddins obtained the Mission Assist Management award.

The Director’s Award for a Mission Assist staff went to a multidisciplinary group led by Merlin Theodore, director of the Carbon Fiber Know-how Facility in ORNL’s Power Science and Know-how Directorate (ESTD), “for the speedy growth and deployment of soften blowing and charging know-how to allow home manufacturing of N95 media. Working with the inventor of N95 filter media, the staff developed a novel in-line charging machine important to manufacturing of the filter media. A collaboration and know-how switch between ORNL’s Carbon Fiber Know-how Facility and Cummins Filtration led to the manufacturing of tens of millions of respirator masks distributed throughout the nation to fight COVID-19.”

The staff contains ESTD’s Jason Newport, Tina Summers, Kim Sitzlar, Peter Lloyd, Jesse Heineman, Emma Betters and Greg Larsen; the Setting, Security, Well being and High quality Directorate’s Tony Reynolds; Bodily Sciences Directorate’s Parans Paranthaman; and Peter Tsai, a retired school member from the College of Tennessee, Knoxville, and inventor of the N95 masks filter materials. The staff additionally received a Know-how Switch award.

Honorees in ORNL’s annual awards program are chosen by committees and accredited by the laboratory director. Nominations are made by division, program or directorate managers. The Director’s Award winners are chosen from honorees by the laboratory director with enter from the deputy for science and know-how, deputy for tasks, and deputy for operations.

View the full video playlist of the 2020 award winners.

UT-Battelle manages ORNL for the Division of Power’s Workplace of Science, the only largest supporter of primary analysis within the bodily sciences in america. The Workplace of Science is working to deal with among the most urgent challenges of our time. For extra data, please go to energy.gov/science.

Supply: ORNL