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Plasma, Pulsed Power, and Microwave Laboratory

Ronald M. Gilgenbach

Contact Information:

EMAIL:  
OFFICE PHONE: (734) 763-1261
LAB PHONE: (734) 763-0213
FAX: (734) 763-4540
ADDRESS: 1941 Cooley Bldg.
LAB: Plasma, Pulsed Power, and Microwave Laboratory Bioelectromagnetism and Plasma Laboratory



Biographical Information:

Ronald M. Gilgenbach is a professor in the Nuclear Engineering and Radiological Sciences Department and also serves in the Applied Physics Program at the University of Michigan. He received his Ph. D. in Electrical Engineering from Columbia University in 1978. His B.S. (1972) and M.S. (1973) degrees were earned at the University of Wisconsin. In the early 1970's he spent several years as a Member of the Technical Staff at Bell Labs. From 1978-1980, he worked at the Naval Research Lab (NRL) and Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Dr. Gilgenbach joined the faculty of the University of Michigan in 1980 and became Director of the Intense Energy Beam Interaction Laboratory, recently renamed the Plasma, Pulsed Power and Microwave Laboratory. In 2002 he founded the Bioelectromagnetism Laboratory, which he directs. His research at Michigan has concentrated on the plasma physics and applications of high-power electron beams and microwaves, as well as laser-plasmas, laser diagnostics, beam-materials processing, biological interactions of radio-frequency and ultrawideband radiation, and plasma propulsion for space. He has had research interactions with scientists at Air Force Research Lab, Sandia National Labs, NASA Glenn, Northrop-Grumman, L-3 Corp., General Motors Research Labs, Los Alamos National Lab, Fermilab, and the Naval Research Lab.  

He received the NSF Presidential Young Investigator Award and the 1997 Plasma Sciences and Applications Committee Award from the IEEE. He is a Fellow of the American Physical Society and the IEEE. He has published some 125 articles in refereed journals and has supervised 39 successful Ph.D. students.

Patents:

  • R. M. Gilgenbach, "Electron Beam, Ion Beam, or Neutral Particle Beam - Induced Modification or Enhancement of Combustion Reactions," US Patent # 4,855,065, Issued 1989.
  • Ya. S. Derbenev, Y. Y. Lau, R. M. Gilgenbach, "Two-Beam Particle Acceleration Method and Apparatus," US Patent #5483122, Issued Jan. 9, 1996.
  • V. B. Neculaes, R. M. Gilgenbach, and Y. Y. Lau, "Low Noise Cross-Field Devices Such as Microwave Magnetron Having an Azimuthally-Varying Axial Magnetic Field and Microwave OVen Utilizing Same", US Patent #6,872,929, Issued March 29, 2005 and US Patent #6,921,890, Issued July 26, 2005.

Recent Graduate Students Supervised by R. M. Gilgenbach:

  1. Joel S. Lash, "Ionization Dynamics of Laser Ablation and a Laser-Ablation-Assisted-Plasma-Discharge Ion Source" (defense March 21, 1996), employed by Sandia National Labs.
  2. Jonathan Hochman, "Microwave Emission of Large and Small Orbit Rectangular Gyrotron Devices" (defense April 15, 1998), employed by Raytheon.
  3. Joshua Rintamaki, "Effects of RF plasma Processing on the Impedance and Electron Emission properties of a MV Beam Diode" (defense December 14, 1998), employed by General Electric Lighting.
  4. Scott Kovaleski, "Dynamics of Electron Beam Ablation" (defense May 10, 1999), employed by Dynacs.
  5. Reginald Jaynes, "Generation of High Power Microwaves in a Large Orbit Coaxial Gyrotron" (defense January 17, 2000), employed by Raytheon.
  6. William Cohen, "Optical Spectroscopy and Effects of Plasma in High Power Microwave Gyrotron Experiments" (defense May 10, 2000), employed by General Electric Lighting.
  7. Chris Peters, "Time-Frequency Analysis of High Power Microwave Sources" (defense December 1, 2000), employed by Lockheed Martin.
  8. Bo Qi, "Ablation Plasma Ion Implantation" (defense July 2, 2002), employed by Applied Materials Corp.
  9. Mike Lopez, "Experiments on a Relativistic Magnetron Driven by a Microsecond Electron Beam Accelerator with a Ceramic Insulating Stack" (defense September 8, 2003).
  10. Mark Johnston, "Ionization Dynamics of a Single Wire Z-Pinch" (defense April 22, 2004).
  11. Michael Jones, "Cathode Priming of Relativistic Magnetrons" (defense April 11, 2005), employed by Sandia National Labs.
  12. V. Bogdan Neculaes, "Magnetron magnetic Priming for Rapid Startup and Noise Reduction"(defense April 11, 2005), employed by General Electric Lighting.
  13. David Jordan, "Ultrawideband Electrochemotherapy" (defense August 19, 2005), employed by Medical Physics Consultants.
  14. Yoshiteru Hidaka (co-chair with Y.Y. Lau), "Experimental and Simulational Studies of the University of Michigan Large ECR Source as an Electron Propulsion Neutralizer" (defense December 5, 2005), employed by MIT.
  15. Will White, "RF Priming of a Long-Pulse Relativistic Magnetron" (defense December 5, 2005), employed by K-Tech as Sandia National Labs contractor.
  16. Trevor Strickler (co-chair with Y.Y. Lau), "Azimuthal Wire Motion and Ablation Dynamics in Z-Pinches" (defense July 21, 2006), DoE Postdoc at Princeton Plasma Physics Lab.
  17. Nicholas Jordan (co-chair with Y.Y. Lau), "Laser Fabrication of High-K Dielectrics for High Current Cathodes" (defense December 17, 2007), Postdoctoral Research Fellow at UM.

Books and Refereed Journal Publications

(1995 to Present)