Tim Koeth’s research interests are in materials at the extremes, exploring the limits of materials in extreme radiation environments as well as developing materials to produce extreme effects.

Brian works in the field of charged particle beams, with a specialization in electron guns, electron source, ion sources, and transport of space charge dominated beams.  He is involved in testing electronics under high dose irradiation. Brian is active in undergraduate and graduate-level education in the science and engineering of particle accelerators

My expertise includes Solar Wind Spacecraft Experiments, including Ion Composition Experiment on ISEE-3/ICE, launched August, 1978 and CELIAS Experiment on SoHO, launched December, 1995, Magnetosphere Sounding Rocket Experiments and Laboratory Experiments in Charge exchange of H⁺, H₂⁺ and He⁺ with small molecules, and most recently the development of a neutron detector based on the ¹⁰B(n, 𝛂)⁷Li reaction in xenon.

Carolyn brings a background in pure mathematics, computer science, and physics to the Koeth Group. She performs mathematical modeling on multiple projects, collaborating with and mentoring undergraduate and graduate students. Carolyn is the Group’s Simulation Leader and is an Associate Research Professor at the University of Maryland, College Park.

Professor Alice Mignerey is a Nuclear Chemist with research programs in basic nuclear science and nuclear forensics and in applications of the nuclear analytical technique of Accelerator Mass Spectrometry (AMS) to environmental and nuclear problems.  Professor Mignerey’s basic nuclear research is focused on understanding the behavior of nuclear matter under conditions of extreme density (pressure) and temperature. These conditions are postulated to have existed just after the Big Bang, when the protons and neutrons had not yet formed from their constituent quarks and the gluons that hold them together.

Claire earned her B.S. in Applied Math with a minor in Computer Science from the University of Delaware in 2023. She then worked at the Naval Surface Warfare Center Carderock Division on radar cross-section simulations in the Naval Research Enterprise Internship Program (NREIP). She is now a Ph.D. student at UMD working on the Bulk Electrets project.

Ariana is a PhD student in the physics department at the University of Maryland, College Park. She is currently using trapped ion experimental physics to examine the nature of the weak force and manipulate radioactive decay rates of charged radioisotopes. A few of her main research interests are particle & nuclear astrophysics, accelerator physics, and high energy electromagnetic fields. Ariana earned a B.S. in Physics from UMD and is also a UCLA graduate with B.A. in English.

Bryson received her bachelor’s degrees in Mechanical Engineering (B.S.) and Physics (B.S.) from the University of Louisville in 2019. She completed multiple cooperative education rotations at Honda of America Manufacturing, Inc. and interned at the NASA Langley Research Center in the Advanced Materials Branch before coming to the University of Maryland. Her thesis work in the Koeth group includes exploring the temperature dependence of spatial-charge retention in dielectrics.

Emily Frashure is a Materials Science and Engineering PhD student in the Koeth Group. She received a bachelor’s in Materials Science and Engineering in May 2023 from the University of Maryland and works on the Charge Loaded Dielectric project’s Materials Characterization group. In addition to her project with CLD, she is researching the effect of neutron radiation on medical polymers and other degradation mechanisms.

Noah Hoppis is a graduate student in the MSE department. He obtained his B.S. in physics at the University of Washington. Noah is leading work on the Bulk Electrets project.

Thomas Montano received his B.S. in electrical engineering in 2022 from the Missouri University of Science and Technology, Rolla, MO. He is currently a Ph.D. candidate in electrical engineering at the University of Maryland, College Park, MD. His research focus is in electrophysics, and he is working on simulation and modeling for the spacecraft materials project. He also works as an Electronics Engineer at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, MD, as part of the Telecommunication Networks and Technology group.

Nick earned his B.S. from MIT in Mechanical Engineering in 2018, and his Masters in Mechanical Engineering from Imperial College London and the University of Oxford in 2019 and 2020, respectively. As a PhD student, his work focuses on the CMFX project, and he aims to tackle the materials science and mechanical issues that plague fusion energy.

Kate earned her B.S. degrees in physics and astronomy from UMD in 2022. She is now a graduate student in the UMD physics department working on the Bulk Electrets project.

Meryl is a graduate student in the MSE department. She graduated from the University of Central Florida in 2023 with a B.S. in Materials Science and Engineering. Her research interests include radiation degradation of polymers and polymer characterization. Meryl is currently working in the Characterization subgroup of the Charge Loaded Dielectrics project.

Ashley is a Junior Materials Science and Engineering major. She is primarily involved in the Charge Loaded Dielectrics project focusing on fast imaging and characterization. Currently, she is working on maintaining the group’s radiation detection devices and preparing for a Summer internship with Lockheed Martin Rotary Mission Systems.

John “Jay” Howson is a physicist working as a civilian in the NAVY. His role is to lead a team of specialists in operating and maintaining the NAVYs electromagnetic test environment capability. I have an interest in methods to prevent dielectric breakdown in high electric fields.

My focus is Trinitite (nuclear melt glass from the first atomic bomb) and the use of machine learning to investigate the radionuclides in Trinitite and its provenance.

Scott graduated from the University of Maryland with his B.S. in Physics in December 2020. He is currently a graduate student at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Email: smoroch@umd.edu