About Thompson

Carol Thompson

1978 B.S. Engineering and Applied Science, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA

1980 M.S. Materials Science and Engineering, Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA

1987 Ph.D Physics, University of Houston, Houston, TX

1987-1989 postdoc at IBM T.J. Watson Research Laboratory in the Physical Sciences, Yorktown Heights, NY

1989-1995 assistant professor of physics at Polytechnic University, Brooklyn, NY (Currently known as Tandon School of Engineering, New York University)

1994 (summer) Navy-ASEE Faculty fellow, Naval Research Laboratory, Washington, DC

1995-2001 associate professor of physics at Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, IL

2001-2019 professor of physics at Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, IL

2019-present professor emerita of physics at Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, IL

Also 1995-present : resident associate (i.e., frequent visiting scientist) at Materials Science Division, Argonne National Laboratory

Summary

Thompson’s research been based at the Advanced Photon Source at Argonne National Laboratory and at the Center for Nanoscale Materials at Argonne. The high brilliance of the x-rays at synchrotrons provides unique access to techniques that study fundamental structure-property questions in materials physics. Her access to this facilities is as a general user through their peer reviewed proposal process. Unique to her current programs is the access to a specially constructed chamber for materials synthesis at the Advanced Photon Source designed and operated by her collaborators and her group. It allows in situ x-ray characterization techniques to be performed simultaneously during the growth of layers of atoms onto a substrate, and the ability to study structure at the nanoscale. This particular chamber is capable of organo-metallic vapor phase epitaxy (OMVPE) in oxide and nitride systems.

See Research pages for more information.

See Service pages for more information about NIU and external committees service.

Thompson has experience in a variety of leadership and service roles. She has extensive experience serving on a variety of University committees that deal with personnel and program policy and assessment issues at the university, college, and department level. She is currently a member of the Materials Research Society, the Electrochemical Society, the American Physical Society. She was president (1993-94) of the Materials Science Club of New York, a professional society established in 1947 of materials scientists from industrial and government laboratories, universities, and consulting firms in the New Jersey and New York area. She organized the symposium, Materials in Transition: Insights from Synchrotron and Neutron Sources" at the Fall 2007 Materials Research Society meeting in Boston; Thompson was elected 2005-06 Chair of the 12 member steering committee of the Advanced Photon Source Users Organization (APSUO)) which represents the over 4000 users of the APS whose programs cover all areas of physical sciences, life sciences, and technology. She was program chair of the 14th Users meeting (2005) of the Advanced Photon Source.