Katherine Harkay

Outstanding Alumni Award 2009

• 1993 Ph.D., Physics, Purdue University

Dr. Katherine Harkay received her PhD from Purdue University in 1993, supported through the Fermilab Doctoral Program in Accelerator Physics and under the direction of Prof. Lazslo Gutay. She joined the Advanced Photon Source at Argonne National Laboratory that same year and served as Group Leader for Accelerator Physics from 2003-2008. Since 1999, she has played a lead role in analyzing the electron cloud distribution in high-energy particle accelerators. She championed the use of electron detectors known as retarding field analyzers (RFAs), developed and pioneered by Richard Rosenberg (Argonne). She is presently collaborating on characterizing the electron cloud at the CESR Test Accelerator, a proposed test bed for the ILC Damping Ring. Dr. Harkay serves on various committees, including the Fermilab Accelerator Advisory Committee and the U.S. Particle Accelerator School Program Committee.