Princeton's Suckewer Wins Prize for Laser Research

The American Physical Society has named Szymon Suckewer, Princeton University professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering and co-director of the Program in Plasma Science and Technology, as recipient of the 2007 Arthur Schawlow Prize in Laser Science. Awarded annually to recognize a scientist's outstanding contributions to basic research using lasers, Suckewer will receive the prize for his "pioneering contributions to the generation of ultrashort wavelength and femtosecond lasers and x-ray microscopy." Suckewer, who earned his PhD and DSc in physics from Warsaw University in Poland, has been a member of the Princeton faculty since 1987. Prior to that, he spent 12 years conducting research at the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory. He is a fellow of the American Physical Society and the Optical Society of America. In 2005, he received the W.E. Lamb Medal for his contributions to laser science, especially the development of x-ray lasers. His research interests include the development and application of x-ray lasers and ultrashort pulse lasers. In addition to ongoing work with lasers to study the properties and dynamics of matter, Suckewer recently expanded his research efforts to include the use of lasers in biomaterials and medical devices.