2007 OYRA Recipient, Dr. Tuson Park

Dr. Tuson Park of the Condensed Matter and Thermal Physics Group at the Los Alamos National Laboratory has been selected as the recipient of the 2007 OYRA award, the annual award to honor an outstanding young ethnic Korean physicist by AKPA. This year marks the 14^th year of the OYRA. The OYRA that carries a cash award of $1,500 will be given out at the Forum for International Physics reception at the March meeting of APS in Denver, Colorado. This is the second time the OYRA is given at a session of APS, the first time being the 1996 award given out at the “Physics Without Borders” session of APS in May of that year in Indianapolis.

Dr. Park received his Ph.D. in physics from the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign where he worked under the guidance of Prof. Myron Salamon. Tuson’s thesis research focused on issues surrounding superconductivity in the boro-carbides. Specifically, Tuson explored the thermodynamic signature of the gap nodes that were predicted but never observed experimentally in these compounds. In order to carry out his measurements, Tuson developed a novel ac calorimeter capable of making angle-resolved magnetic-field dependent specific-heat measurements. This development work presented many challenges, and Tuson’s success in creating this unique measurement capability is a testament to his resourcefulness and determination. Tuson used his calorimeter to directly observe modulations in the specific-heat of YNi₂B₂C as a function of magnetic field angle. The observed modulation provides direct confirmation of the momentum-space quasiparticle gap structure. Tuson also used his calorimeter to elucidate the anisotropic superconducting gap in LuNi₂B₂C. Tuson’s work is important because it provides the first direct observation of an anisotropic quasiparticle gap via a thermodynamic measurement.

After receiving his Ph.D. in 2003, Tuson went to Los Alamo National Laboratory as a postdoctoral research associate to work with Dr. Joe Thompson and the members of the Condensed Matter and Thermal Physics group. Based on his successful research in 2003 and 2004, Tuson subsequently became a J. Robert Oppenheimer Postdoctoral Fellow in 2005; this is a prestigious honor that is only granted to the top 5% of Los Alamos’s postdocs.

Education

2003 Ph. D. in Physics at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

1996 M. S. in Physics at Sung Kyun Kwan University

1994 B. A. in Physics at Sung Kyun Kwan University

Employment

2005-present J. Robert Oppenheimer (JRO) fellow, Los Alamos National Laboratory

2003-2005 Postdoctoral Research Associate, Los Alamos National Laboratory

Research Advisor: Dr. Joe D. Thompson

The 2007 OYRA awardee was selected by the AKPA Award Committee chaired by Prof. Yong Wook Kim and served by Dr. Kwang-Je Kim, Prof. Yoonseok Lee, Prof. M. Howard Lee and Prof. Eun-Suk Seo.