Office Address:

Department of Physics

Florida State University

310 Keen Building

Tallahassee, FL 32306-4350

Phone: (850) 644-6814/6011

Fax: (850) 644-0098

E-mail: rikvold@scs.fsu.edu

Position: The James G. Skofronick Professor of Physics

Degrees:

Candidatus Magisterii (BSc): University of Oslo, Norway, 1971

Candidatus Realium (MSc): University of Oslo, Norway, 1976

Japanese language certificate: Osaka University of Foreign Studies, Japan, 1977

PhD: Temple University, Philadelphia, PA, 1983

Current and Recent Teaching:

Spring 2007: PHY 4513 (PHY 5515), Thermal and Statistical Physics.

Fall 2007: ISC 5316, Applied Computational Science II.

Spring 2008: PHZ 3113, Mathematical Physics.

Fall 2008: ISC 5316, Applied Computational Science II.

Just for fun? -- Teaching physics with LEGO

• Theoretical materials science and condensed-matter physics.
• Computational statistical mechanics and its applications in materials science, chemistry, and biology.

Meetings organized:

• Biological systems and soft materials: Future directions in statistical physics. A symposium on the interface of statistical physics, biology, and chemistry. Department of Physics, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, March 6-7, 2004.
• Symposium on Computer Simulation in Electrochemistry at the American Chemical Society 220th National Meeting, Washington, DC, August 20-24, 2000.
• Monte Carlo and Structure Optimization Methods for Biology, Chemistry, and Physics. Supercomputer Computations Research Institute (SCRI), Florida State University, March 28-30, 1999.

FSU research affiliations:

• Center for Materials Research and Technology, MARTECH.
• School of Computational Science, SCS.
• National High Magnetic Field Laboratory, NHMFL.

Current External Research Support:

• National Science Foundation Grant No. DMR-0444051: Computational Studies of Dynamical Phenomena in Nanoscale Ferromagnets (with M.A. Novotny, Mississippi State University).

Professional Experience:

• 1976-78: Japanese Ministry of Education Foreign Graduate Fellow, Department of Physics, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan.
• 1978-81: Predoctoral Research Associate, Department of Physics, University of Oslo, Norway.
• 1981-83: Research Council of Norway Predoctoral Research Fellow, Department of Physics, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA.
• 1983-85: Postdoctoral Research Associate, Department of Mechanical Engineering, State University of New York at Stony Brook, Stony Brook, NY.
• 1985-87: Senior Research Chemist, ARCO Chemical Company, Newtown Square, PA.
• 1987-92: Associate Professor of Physics, FSU.
• 1992-2004: Professor of Physics, FSU.
• 2004-present: The James G. Skofronick Professor of Physics, FSU.

Major Honors and Awards:

1983: Elected Full Member of Sigma Xi, The Scientific Research Society.

1991: International Visiting Fellow, Tohwa University, Fukuoka, Japan.

1995: FSU COFRS Summer Salary Award.

1996: Japan Foundation Center for Global Partnership Science Fellowship.

1999: FSU Physics Department PAI Award for Excellence in Teaching and Research.

2001: FSU COFRS Summer Salary Award.

2001: Elected Fellow of The American Physical Society. For innovative and significant computational studies in statistical and condensed-matter physics, materials science, and electrochemistry, including development of novel algorithms to study the decay of metastable phases of matter.

2004: Elected Foreign Member of The Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters.

2005: FSU COFRS Summer Salary Award.

Professional Organizations:

The American Physical Society (Fellow)

The Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters (Foreign Member)

The Norwegian Physical Society

The European Physical Society

The Materials Research Society

The Electrochemical Society

American Association for the Advancement of Science

Sigma Xi

Personal Data:

Born October 4, 1948, in Norway

Married

Citizenship:

United States

1. David K. Hilton, FSU Physics, 1989-91.
   2003: Ph.D. in Physics, FSU.
   From 2003: Postdoctoral Research Associate, National High Magnetic Fields Laboratory, Tallahassee, FL.
2. Lester Hightower, FSU Chemistry, 1993.
3. Derek Barton, FSU Physics, 1994.
4. Dean M. Townsley, FSU Physics, 1995-98.
   1997: FSU Top Senior Man.
   1998: Awarded NSF Graduate Fellowship.
   From 1998: Graduate student in Physics, University of California at Santa Barbara.
5. David Frey, FSU Physics Summer REU Fellow, 1997.
6. Zachariah Kramer, FSU Chemistry, 1998.
7. Christina J. Oberlin, FSU Physics, 1998-2002.
   2000: Awarded two-year Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship.
   2001: Inducted in Sigma Pi Sigma National Physics Honor Society.
   2002: Awarded NSF Graduate Fellopwship.
   2002: BS in Physics and Mathematics, FSU.
   From 2002: Graduate student in Computer Science, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI.
8. Rami Al-Haddad, International Association for the Exchange of Students for Technical Experience (IAESTE) Summer Intern from The University of Jordan, 1999.
9. Shawn Havery, FSU Chemistry, 2000.
10. Daniel E. Roberts, FSU Physics, 2000-02.
    2001: Awarded Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship.
    2001: FSU Department of Physics Guenter Schwartz Memorial Scholarship for Excellence in Physics and the Arts.
    2001: Inducted in Sigma Pi Sigma National Physics Honor Society.
    2002: Honorable Mention, 2002 NSF Graduate Fellowship competition.
    2002: BS in Physics, FSU.
    2003: MS in Physics, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
    From 2004: Scientist, Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC), Champaign, IL.
11. Philip L. Coltharp, FSU Physics, 2001.
    2002: BS in Physics, FSU.
    From 2002: Graduate student in Physics, FSU.
12. Anton Souslov, FSU Physics, 2006.
    2006: BS in Physics, FSU.
    From 2006: Graduate Student in Physics, The University of Pennsylvania.
13. Alan Kuhnle, FSU Physics, 2008.

1. Bryan M. Gorman, 1990-94.
   1994: PhD in Physics, FSU.
   From 1995: Physicist, Applied Mathematics, Inc., Gales Ferry, CT.
2. Christoph C. A. Günther, 1989-94.
   1994: PhD in Physics, FSU.
   From 1995: Researcher, Ideas, Inc., Minneapolis, MN.
3. Howard L. Richards, 1991-96.
   1995: FSU Sigma Xi chapter Fischer Award for best graduate student paper in science or psychology.
   1996: PhD in Physics, FSU.
   1996-97: Inoue Foundation Postdoctoral Fellow, Department of Physics, University of Tokyo, Japan.
   1997-98: Postdoctoral Research Associate, Max-Planck-Institut für Polymerforschung, Mainz, Germany.
   1999-2000: Postdoctoral Research Associate, Department of Physics, University of Maryland, College park, MD.
   2000-07: Assistant Professor of Physics, Texas A&M University, Commerce, TX.
   From 2007: Assistant Professor of Physics, Marshall University, Huntington, WV.
4. Scott W. Sides, 1993-98.
   1998: PhD in Physics, FSU.
   1998-2001: Postdoctoral Research Associate, Integrated Materials Research Laboratory, Sandia National Laboratory, Albuquerque, NM.
   2001-04: Postdoctoral Research Associate, Department of Chemical Engineering, University of California at Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA.
   From 2004: Scientist, Tech-X Corporation, Boulder, CO.
5. Steven J. Mitchell, 1997-2001.
   2001: FSU Department of Physics Dirac-Hellman Award for Theoretical Physics.
   2001: PhD in Physics, FSU.
   2002-05: Postdoctoral Research Associate, Laboratory of Inorganic Chemistry and Catalysis, Eindoven University of Technology, The Netherlands.
   2005-06: Postdoctoral Research Associate, Center for Simulational Physics, Department of Physics and Astronomy, The University of Georgia, Athens, GA.
   From 2006: Software Leader - New Technologies Division, BP R&D Campus, Naperville, IL.
6. Daniel Valdez-Balderas, 2000-01.
   2001: MS in Physics, FSU.
   From 2001: Graduate student in Physics, Ohio State University.
7. Ibrahim Abou-Hamad, 2001-06.
   2006: PhD in Physics, FSU.
   From 2006: Postdoctoral Research Associate, Center for Computational Sciences, Mississippi State University.
8. Volkan Sevim, 2003-08.
   2008: PhD in Physics, FSU.
   From 2008: Postdoctoral Research Associate, Department of Physics, Duke University.
9. Sam Hill Thompson, 2003-present.
10. Tjipto Juwono, 2006-present.

1. Pedro Sacramento, 1988-89.
   1991: PhD in Physics, Temple University. Supervisors, James D. Gunton and Pedro Schlottmann.
   From 1992: Assistant Professor of Physics, Instituto Superior Tecnico, Lisboa, Portugal.
2. Qing Wang, 1991-93.
   1993: MS in Computer Science, FSU.
   1994-98: Software Engineer, The McGregor Group, Boston, MA.
   From 1998: Software Engineer, Fidelity Investments, Boston, MA.
3. Thomas Fiig, 1993.
   1994: PhD in Physics, The Technical University of Denmark. Supervisors: Profs. Per-Anker Lindgård and Ole G. Mouritsen.
4. Xuekun Kou, 1996-97. FAMU/FSU Electrical Engineering MS student. Supervisor: Prof. M.A. Novotny.
   1997: MS in Electrical Engineering, FAMU/FSU College of Engineering.
   1998-99: Graduate student in Electrical Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
   1999-2000: Graduate student in Computer Science, FSU.
   From 2000: Software Instructor, Gateway Computer Associates, Inc., St. Petersburg, FL.
5. Mukundan Chakrapani, 1999-2002. FSU Physics PhD student. Supervisor: Prof. D.H. Van Winkle.
   2003-04: Postdoctoral Research Associate, Steacie Institute for Molecular Sciences, National Research Council, Ottawa, ON, Canada.
   2004-06: Trainee Patent Examiner, G. R. Bell and Associates, Toronto, ON, Canada.
   From 2007: Patent Agent, Borden Ladner Gervais LLP (BLG), Ottawa, ON, Canada.
6. Elise Filotas, 2006-present. University of Montreal PhD student in geography. Supervisor: Prof. Lael Parrott.
7. Yohsuke Murase, 2007-present. University of Tokyo PhD student in Applied Physics. Supervisor: Prof. Nobuyasu Ito.

1. Jooyoung Lee, 1992-94.
   1994-2000: Research Associate, Department of Chemistry, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY.
   From 2000: Professor, Computational Sciences, Korea Institute for Advanced Study, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
2. Moonsup Han, 1993-94.
   From 1994: Assistant Professor of Physics, Seoul City University, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
3. Maria Gamboa-Aldeco, 1993-94.
   From 1994: Chemist, Lynntech, Inc., College Station, TX.
4. Jun Zhang, 1993-95.
   1995-2000: Unix System Administrator, Florida Association of Community Colleges, Tallahassee, FL.
   2000-03: Unix System Administrator, ConocoPhillips, Houston, TX.
   From 2003: Senior Systems Engineer, Activant Solutions, Inc., Austin, TX.
5. Raphael A. Ramos, 1994-96.
   1996-2001: Assistant Professor of Physics, University of Puerto Rico, Mayaguez, PR.
   From 2002: Associate Professor of Physics, University of Puerto Rico, Mayaguez, PR.
6. Miroslav Kolesik, 1996-98.
   On leave from permanent position: Research Scientist, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Bratislava, Slovak Republic.
   1998-99: Postdoctoral Research Associate, Department of Mathematics, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ.
   2000-01: Research Assistant Professor, Department of Mathematics, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ.
   From 2002: Associate Research Professor, Optical Sciences Center, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ.
7. Gregory Brown
   1997-2001: Postdoctoral research associate, Supercomputer Computations Research Institute and School of Computational Science and Information Technology, FSU.
   2001-04: Postdoctoral research associate, Scientific Computing, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, and Visiting Postdoctoral Research Associate, School of Computational Science and Information Technology, FSU.
   From 2004: Scientist, Parallax Research, Inc., Tallahassee, FL.
8. György Korniss, 1997-2000.
   2000-06: Assistant Professor of Physics, Rensselear Polytechnic Institute, Troy, NY.
   From 2006: Associate Professor of Physics, Rensselear Polytechnic Institute, Troy, NY.
9. Kyungwha Park, 2000-02.
   2002-05: Postdoctoral Research Associate, Naval Research Laboratory, Washington, DC.
   From 2005: Assistant Professor of Physics, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, VA.
10. Sanwu Wang, 2000-02.
    2002-06: Research Assistant Professor of Physics, Vanderbilt University, Memphis, TN.
    From 2006: Assistant Professor of Physics, The Univerisity of Tulsa, Tulsa, OK.
11. Stefan Frank, 2004-05.
    2005-06: Postdoctoral Research Associate, Department of Chemistry, University of Ulm, Germany.
    From 2007: Postdoctoral Research Associate, Department of Chemistry, University of Leiden, The Netherlands.
12. Daniel Robb, 2004-2006.
    From 2006: Postdoctoral Research Associate, Department of Physics, Clarkson University, Potsdam, NY.

1. Joseph B. Collins, Temple University and ARCO Chemical Company, 1986-88.
   From 1988: Research Physicist, Naval Research Laboratory, Washington, DC.
2. Trond Aukrust, IBM Bergen Scientifc Centre, 1987-89.
   Presently: Senior Researcher, SINTEF Materials Technology, Oslo, Norway.
3. Alice K. Kolakowska, Mississippi State University, 2003.
   2006-07: Assistant Professor of Physics, Penn State Altoona, Altoona, PA.
   From 2007: Assistant Professor of Physics, Florida Institute of Technology, Melbourne, FL.
4. Steven M. Stinnett, Mississippi State University, 2003-04.
   From 2004: Assistant Professor of Physics, McNeese State University, Lake Charles, LA.

• Professor Hiroyki Tomita, College of Integrated Human Science, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan.
  Sabbatical, 1994.
• Professor Gloria M. Buendía, Department of Physics, Universidad Simon Bolívar, Caracas, Venezuela.
  Sabbaticals, 1993-94 and 2001-02. Regular summer visits.
• Professor Jae Wo Lee, Department of Physics, Inha University, Incheon, Republic of Korea.
  Sabbatical, 2004-05.
• Professor Osman Canco, Department of Physics, Erciyes University, Kayseri, Turkey.
  Sabbatical, 2008-09.

Last Updated: April 24, 2008.
Send questions and comments to:
rikvold@scs.fsu.edu