Katherine Weimer Award
This award, honoring a plasma scientist who is also a woman, consists of $4,000 and funds for travel to the annual meeting where the award is to be presented. The award also includes a certificate citing the contributions made by the recipient. The recipient will be invited to give a talk at the Division's annual meeting.
Rules and eligibility
The award is open to any female plasma scientist. The nominee's PhD must have been received within the ten-year period prior to the nomination deadline of April 28, 2023.
Starting in 2019, nominations are presented every two years.
Process and selection
To nominate a candidate, email the following information to the Award Committee members by the deadline of April 28, 2023:
- A letter evaluating the nominee's qualifications identifying the specific work to be recognized
- A biographical sketch
- A list of the most important publications
- At least two, but no more than four, seconding letter
Establishment and support
In 2001, the American Physical Society Division of Plasma Physics Executive Committee established the Katherine E. Weimer Award to “recognize and encourage outstanding achievement in plasma science research by a woman physicist in the early years of her career.”
Katherine E. Weimer, PhD, was a pioneering research physicist at the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory at Princeton University. She made many important contributions in magnetohydrodynamic equilibrium and stability theory for magnetically confined plasmas.
The Division of Plasma Physics has historically experienced significantly lower representation of women in its ranks compared to other divisions. This award will play an important role in recognizing the contribution and potential of women in plasma science and will help to attract and retain women in this field.
The membership of APS is diverse and global, and the nominees and recipients of APS Honors should reflect that diversity so that all are recognized for their impact on our community. Nominations of members belonging to groups traditionally underrepresented in physics, such as women, LGBT+ scientists, scientists who are Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC), disabled scientists, scientists from institutions with limited resources, and scientists from outside the United States, are especially encouraged.
Nominees for and holders of APS Honors (prizes, awards, and fellowship) and official leadership positions are expected to meet standards of professional conduct and integrity as described in the APS Ethics Guidelines. Violations of these standards may disqualify people from consideration or lead to revocation of honors or removal from office.