The award recognizes members of the American Vacuum Society who have made sustained and outstanding technical contributions.
BYU Analytical Chemistry Professor Matthew Linford was recently named a Fellow of the American Vacuum Society (AVS). This award recognizes members of the society who have made sustained and outstanding technical contributions in areas of interest to AVS. Linford was honored for his lifetime of "outstanding contributions to surface modification, surface characterization and technological applications."
“I’m honored to receive this award,” Linford said. “I think that it’s not only good for me, but also for BYU and for my research group, and I’m just really grateful to be on the list of recipients.”
AVS is an interdisciplinary and professional society that supports networking among academic, industrial, government and consulting professionals involved in a variety of disciplines. These disciplines include, but are not limited to, chemistry, physics, biology, mathematics, all engineering disciplines, business and sales.
“AVS is one of the really important societies in the areas of thin films, surfaces, nanotechnology and material characterization,” Linford said.
The AVS "fellow" distinguishment is not easily obtained. In order to even be nominated for the award, the nominee must have made sustained and outstanding scientific and technical contributions in research, engineering, technical advancement, academic education or managerial leadership for at least ten years. Those who receive the award are usually considered to be the brightest and most experienced in their field.
“When you have your name on that list [of recipients], it’s a stamp of approval on the work that you’ve done and are doing,” Linford said. “It’s just very nice to see that coming from my colleagues.”
Linford, who grew up in Salt Lake City, Utah, became interested in the fields of chemistry and materials during his senior year of high school, when he worked on a project at the University of Utah.
“During that experience at the University of Utah, I really became interested in the field of materials and now all these years later I’m still in that area,” Linford said. “My work focuses on materials and their preparation, synthesis and characterization.”
While receiving this award from AVS is quite an accomplishment, Linford doesn’t plan on calling it quits just yet. He has many projects in the works, which include developing and producing better, more efficient options for long term digital data storage and developing and producing higher quality, faster, and better materials for chromatography (separation science).
“We’ve got some really interesting stuff coming up and great students working in the lab,” Linford said. “They’re all very talented and I’m excited to see where these projects go.”
Writer: Kelby Jones and Paige Montgomery
