Two HEP Group Postdocs Win Awards

Two postdocs from the high energy physics group were recognized for their work this week at the Fermilab Users Meeting. Alex Himmel (from the Neutrino Group) was awarded the URA thesis award for his thesis "Antineutrino Oscillations in the Atmospheric Sector" which he completed at Caltech just before coming to Duke.

Himmel (center)

Bodhitha Jayatilaka, who is a postdoc working with Prof. Ashutosh Kotwal on the CDF experiment, won this year's URA Tollestrup Award for Outstanding Postdoctoral Research for his work "Precision Measurement of the W Boson Mass at CDF". Following a rigorous selection process from all postdocs who are conducting research at Fermilab, the Tollestrup Award Committee chose Jayatilaka for this prestigious award citing his contributions to the recent, most precise measurement of the W boson mass. Dr. Jayatilaka  was presented this award at the Fermilab Annual Users Meeting in June by Dr. Alvin Tollestrup, who motivated the construction of the Tevatron proton-antiproton collider at Fermilab and was the founding co-spokesperson of the CDF experiment.

Tollestrup (left), Jayatilaka (right)

Congratulations to both of them!