Maxwell Prize nominations for Professor Liu Chen

Professor Liu Chen is awarded by the European Physical Society (EPS) the 2008 Hannes Alfven Prize.
Professor Liu Chen has made original contributions in basic plasma physics, fusion, and space space physics. His seminal works (12 papers with more than 100 citations and more than 5,700 total citations according to SCI) include the discoveries of kinetic Alfvén waves, toroidal Alfvén eigenmode modes, and energetic particle modes; the theories of geomagnetic pulsations, Alfvén wave heating, and fishbone oscillations; the first formulation of nonlinear gyrokinetic equations; and the fundamental contributions to drift wave instabilities and turbulence. 

Prof. Chen received the APS Award for Excellence in Plasma Physics Research in 2004 “For the Theoretical Discovery and Experimental Identification of Toroidicity Induced Alfven Eigenmodes”. He also received the European Physical Society (EPS) the 2008 Hannes Alfven Prize “for his many seminalworks on Alfvén wave physics in both laboratory and space plasmas, for his continuing contribution of new ideas which have fostered creativity and promoted cross-fertilization in both these areas of research, and for his fundamental contributions in educating a new generation of researchers for which he is an example to emulate”.

Prof. Chen has supervised many prominent Ph.D students including T.S. Hahm, H. Biglari, A. A. Chan, F. Zonca, G. Vetoulis, and G. Zhao, and postdocs including R.A. Santoro, G. Hu, L.J. Zheng, S. Dettrick, W. Wang, S. Hu, C. Crabtree, and A. Bierwage. They have established a school of thoughts that has been shaping a generation of theoretical plasma physicists.

* Curriculum Vitae

According to Science Citation Index (SCI), Prof. Chen's papers have received a total of 5,700+ citations, including 50 papers with 30+ citations and 12 papers with 100+ citations.
* Statistics of 50 papers with 30 or more citations
Prof. Chen has published >170 peer-reviewed papers and one textbook, "Waves and Instabilities in Plasmas".

* Bibliography

Copies of five reprints to be included in the nomination package:

1.      A Theory of Long Period Magnetic Pulsations, 1. Steady State Excitation of Field Line Resonance, L. Chen and A. Hasegawa, J. Geophys Res. 79, 1024-1032 (March 1974).
2.      Nonlinear Gyrokinetic Equations for Low-Frequency Electromagnetic Waves in General Plasma Equilibrium, E. A. Frieman and L. Chen, Phys. Fluids 25, 502-508 (March 1982).
3.      Excitation of Internal Kink Modes by Trapped Energetic Beam Ions, L. Chen, R. B. White, and M. N. Rosenbluth, Phys. Rev. Lett. 52, 1122-1125 (March 1984).
4.      Theory of Magnetohydrodynamic Instabilities Excited by Energetic Particles in Tokamaks, L. Chen, Phys. Plasmas 1(5), 1519 (May 1994).
5.      Excitation of Zonal Flow by Drift Waves in Toroidal Plasmas, L. Chen, Z. Lin, and R. White, Phys. of Plasmas 7(8), 3129 (2000).
* Alfven nomination package

* Selected "high impact" papers: full-length text and comments

I. Geomagnetic pulsations
comments by Yu Lin
1.      A Theory of Long Period Magnetic Pulsations, 1. Steady State Excitation of Field Line Resonance, L. Chen and A. Hasegawa, J. Geophys Res. 79, 1024-1032 (March 1974).
2.      A Theory of Long Period Magnetic Pulsations, 2. Impulse Excitation of Surface Eigen-modes, L. Chen and A. Hasegawa, J. Geophys. Res. 79, 1033-1037 (March 1974).
3.      Kinetic Theory of Geomagnetic Pulsations 1. Internal Excitations by Energetic Particles, L. Chen and A. Hasegawa, J. Geophys. Res. 96, 1503-1512 (February 1991).
II. Alfven wave heating and kinetic Alfven waves
comments by Fulvio Zonca
1.      Plasma Heating by Alfven-Wave Phase Mixing, A. Hasegawa and L. Chen, Phys. Rev. Lett. 32, 454-456 (March 1974).
2.      Plasma Heating by Spatial Resonance of Alfven Wave, L. Chen and A. Hasegawa, Phys. Fluids 17, 1399-1403 (July 1974).
3.      Kinetic Process of Plasma Heating Due to Alfven Wave Excitation, A. Hasegawa and L. Chen, Phys. Rev. Lett. 35, 370-373 (August 1975).
4.      Kinetic Processes in Plasma Heating by Resonant Mode Conversion of Alfven Wave, A. Hasegawa and L. Chen, Phys. Fluids 19, 1924-1934 (December 1976).
III. Nonlinear gyrokinetic equations
comments by Taik-Soo Hahm
1.      Nonlinear Gyrokinetic Equations for Low-Frequency Electromagnetic Waves in General Plasma Equilibrium, E. A. Frieman and L. Chen, Phys. Fluids 25, 502-508 (March 1982).
IV. Alfven-ballooning modes in torus
comments by Fulvio Zonca
1.      High-n Ideal and Resistive Shear Alfven Waves in Tokamaks, C. Z. Cheng, L. Chen, and M. S. Chance, Ann. Phys. 161, 21-47 (1985).
2.      Resonant Damping of Toroidicity Induced Shear Alfven Eigenmodes in Tokamaks, F. Zonca and L. Chen, Phys. Rev. Lett. 68, 592 (February 1992).
V. Fishbone/Energetic particle mode
comments by Fulvio Zonca
1.      Excitation of Internal Kink Modes by Trapped Energetic Beam Ions, L. Chen, R. B. White, and M. N. Rosenbluth, Phys. Rev. Lett. 52, 1122-1125 (March 1984).
2.      Theory of Magnetohydrodynamic Instabilities Excited by Energetic Particles in Tokamaks, L. Chen, Phys. Plasmas 1(5), 1519 (May 1994).
VI. Drift wave instabilities and turbulences
comments by Fulvio Zonca
1.      Theory of Drift-Wave Eigenmodes in Toroidal Plasmas, L. Chen and C. Z. Cheng, Phys. Fluids 23, 2242-2249 (November 1980).
2.      Excitation of Zonal Flow by Drift Waves in Toroidal Plasmas, L. Chen, Z. Lin, and R. White, Phys. of Plasmas 7(8), 3129 (2000).
Contact Zhihong Lin for questions/comments