Dr. Peter Pershan

Biography

Peter Pershan is the Frank B. Baird, Jr. Professor of Science, Emeritus at Harvard University, where his research primarily involves the use of x-rays to probe the structure and critical properties of matter. His laboratory includes an in-house x-ray facility, and his experiments often utilize the unique properties of synchrotron-generated x-rays. Over the years, he has conducted experiments at various synchrotron facilities including the National Synchrotron Light Source at Brookhaven National Laboratory, HASYLAB in Hamburg, the Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Laboratory, and the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility in Grenoble. His current work focuses on the construction of the Advanced Photon Laboratory at Argonne National Laboratory, which plays a key role in investigating two-dimensional statistical properties of liquid surfaces. Among the fascinating phenomena he studies are the atomic layering of liquid metal surfaces, the power law singularity of two-dimensional thermal excitations, and the quantum mechanical predictions of electron density profiles in superfluid helium vapor.

Research Interests