Current events

1. Main Editor of JSR, Gene Ice, co-recipient of Compton Award 2015

The 2015 APS Arthur H. Compton Award has been awarded to Gene E. Ice, Bennett C. Larson and Cullie J. Sparks (posthumously), all of Oak Ridge National Laboratory. The Compton Award recognizes an important scientific or technical accomplishment at, or beneficial to, the Advanced Photon Source (APS). This year's award is given for seminal developments advancing spatially and temporally resolved synchrotron X-ray capabilities. The nominating and support statements for Ice, Larson and Sparks made clear the importance of their work: `This nomination recognizes breakthroughs that have had transformative impacts on focusing monochromators, on submicron three-dimensional spatial resolution X-ray microscopy, and on high-time-resolution scientific investigations at the Advanced Photon Source and synchrotrons worldwide.' The award will be presented at the APS Users Meeting, 11–14 May 2015.

Figure 1 From left to right: Gene Ice, Ben Larson and Cullie J. Sparks.

2. 12th International Conference on Synchrotron Radiation Instrumentation (SRI 2015)

The 12th International Conference on Synchrotron Radiation Instrumentation (SRI 2015) will be hosted by National Synchrotron Light Source II (NSLS-II) and will be held on 6–10 July 2015, at Marriott Marquis in Times Square, at the heart of New York City, USA. As in previous meetings in this triennial conference series, the SRI 2015 will bring together foremost scientists, researchers and engineers from around the world, and highlight the most cutting-edge instrumentation, technology and methodologies, as well as novel research and development that drive the rapid advances in the field of synchrotron and free-electron-laser light sources worldwide.

The scientific program at SRI 2015 will feature over 100 invited and contributed oral presentations in plenary and parallel sessions, a comprehensive poster and exhibition session with ample opportunities to discuss and mingle with colleagues from facilities and industry, and a trip to Long Island for a grand tour of the newest synchrotron in the world, NSLS-II.

The deadline for early registration is 1 June 2015; the conference website url is https://www.bnl.gov/sri2015/index.php.

3. Stephen Streiffer appointed Director of APS

Stephen Streiffer has been appointed Associate Laboratory Director (ALD) for Photon Sciences and Director of the Advanced Photon Source (APS) at Argonne National Laboratory, effective 1 April 2015.

Figure 2 Stephen Streiffer, new director of APS.

Dr Streiffer joined Argonne in 1998 as a researcher in the Materials Science Division and was a leading participant in the development of the Center for Nanoscale Materials, serving as the centre's Associate Division Director for Science, and later as its interim director. Dr Streiffer also served as Deputy ALD for the Energy Sciences and Engineering Directorate, providing leadership for the directorate's basic sciences portfolio. His scientific expertise centres around developing novel concepts for integration of oxide heterostructures, establishing a fundamental understanding of polar interfaces, and exploring how these interfaces may be manipulated to influence electronic and chemical function. Since joining Argonne, his research has involved utilizing in situ synchrotron X-ray methods to probe growth of complex oxide films, nanoscale size effects in ferroic thin films, and synthesis of InGaN heterostructures of interest for energy-efficient solid-state lighting.