A&A professor Uri Shumlak was elevated to an IEEE Fellow for research of sheared flow stabilization of the Z pinch for fusion energy. IEEE, the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, is the world’s largest technical professional organization dedicated to advancing technology for the benefit of humanity.

An IEEE Fellow is a distinction reserved for select members whose extraordinary accomplishments in any of the IEEE fields of interest are deemed fitting of this prestigious grade elevation. A&A chair Kristi Morgansen said, "This award is the highest rank in IEEE and is awarded to only one-tenth of 1% of the total voting membership.”

Professor Shumlak's research areas are plasma physics, theoretical and computational plasma modeling, innovative magnetic plasma confinement for fusion energy and electric propulsion. His work includes theoretical and experimental investigation of the stabilizing effect of sheared flows in magnetically confined plasmas. A sheared-flow-stabilized Z pinch would have immediate applications as a near-term fusion thruster for space exploration and a compact fusion energy source.

He is a Fellow of the American Physical Society and an Associate Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. He has also co-founded Zap Energy - a spin-off company from the UW to develop commercial fusion applications.

For more on Shumlak’s work at the UW, read about the latest breakthrough with the Z-pinch, and check out the Computational Plasma Dynamics Lab and the Flow Z-Pinch Lab.

Photo courtesy of Zap Energy.