James Creel, PhD

Experience

• 

  The University of Texas at Arlington

  Mar 2005 - Dec 2006

  Responsibilities:-Teach, grade, and maintain physics laboratory classes-Keep up to date on five different laboratory sections (Physics 1,2,3 and Astronomy 1,2) consisting of roughly 10 labs each with 30 students per lab-Teach at least 2 labs (3 hours/lab) a week while maintaining high grades in physics, mathematics, and Honors College courses-Troubleshoot when laboratory equipment was not workingAccomplishments:-Became incredibly proficient and knowledgeable about teaching physics and astronomy to undergraduates-Recognized by UTA physics with a departmental service scholarship-Given role of community outreach officer based on instruction in labs and outside of them Show less

  • Laboratory Instructor

    Jan 2003 - Dec 2006

  • Planetarium Educator

    Mar 2005 - Jun 2006
• 

  CASPER, Baylor University

  Jan 2007 - Aug 2010

  Graduate Researcher

  Responsibilities:-Research into complex (dusty) plasmas-Instruct and carry out research with summer NSF REU program students-Develop science curricula and outreach projects for CASPER based STEM outreachAccomplishments:-Langmuir probe measurement characterization of two GEC rf Reference Cells at varying powers and pressures-Presented research at various conferences-Granted scholarships and summer school appointments from various agencies and universities-Co-author of two papers during my master's-Co-author of one paper from NSF REU summer appointment in 2006 Show less

• 

  Trinity College Dublin

  Sept 2014 - Sept 2017

  Responsibilities:-Design and maintain plasma heating apparatus, beam delivery systems, optical emission spectroscopy setups-Use MHD theory to explain and predict plasma behavior -Automate data acquisition and analysis with ICCD cameras, ns/fs lasers, oscilloscopes, motor controllers, and spectrometers via LabVIEW and Matlab-Instruct and carry out research with postgrads, summer students and project students-Maintain optics, laser systems, and diagnose and repair broken scientific equipment Show less Responsibilities:-Design and maintain plasma heating apparatus, beam delivery systems, optical emission spectroscopy setups-Use MHD theory to explain and predict plasma behavior -Automate data acquisition and analysis with ICCD cameras, ns/fs lasers, oscilloscopes, motor controllers, and spectrometers via LabVIEW and Matlab-Instruct and carry out research with less senior postgrads, summer students and project students-Maintain optics, laser systems, and diagnose and repair broken scientific equipmentAccomplishments: -Designed and built four apparatus that reheat a laser ablation plasma plume-One manuscript on topic accepted into APL (below), more manuscripts to be submitted later-Work presented at four conferences via posters and oral presentationsSkills gained:-fast (ns) time- and space-resolved spectroscopy-fast (ns) time gated ICCD photography-plasma discharges and pinches-ns laser ablation-plasma probe construction and diagnostics-laser machining -computational modelling and programming (COMSOL, PrismSPECT, LabVIEW, MATLAB, Mathematica, C, FORTRAN, Python)-pulsed power electronics-high vacuum systems-machining and computer aided drafting (SolidWorks, Solid Edge, CAD) Show less Description: Pilot Scheme STEM weekly Saturday club for 13-14 year students. A joint venture between three Trinity College Dublin schools: Physics, Education and Maths.Responsibilities:-Developing challenging yet palatable physics curricula for the club-Develop short but meaningful physics labsAccomplishments:-Integral part of making the pilot STEM club a success-Helped engage and enrich student experience in STEM-Learned more about foreign education systems and content delivery-Successfully integrated my ideas about teaching science into the curriculum-Delivered physics in a fun and exciting way without reduction in level of material Show less

  • Postdoctoral Research Fellow

    May 2017 - Sept 2017

  • Research Assistant, Plasma Scientist

    Dec 2016 - May 2017

  • Postgraduate Researcher

    Sept 2012 - Nov 2016

  • Physics Educator, TCD Walton Club (STEM program)

    Sept 2014 - Jun 2015
• 

  Self-Employed

  Sept 2017 - Dec 2017

  Actively Seeking Employment
• 

  Nanohmics

  Jan 2018 - Jan 2019

  Senior Scientist

  Research and simulation in the areas of photonics (hyperspectral imaging, optical gyroscopes, fiber optics, optical scattering), thermionics, and plasma physics. Proposal writing (SBIR, STTR).

• 

  Trinity College Dublin

  Jan 2019 - Oct 2019

  Postdoctoral Research Fellow

  Studies of high rep rate laser ablation for electronic printing applications. Proposal writing.

• 

  University of Antwerp

  Oct 2019 - Jan 2021

  Postdoctoral Researcher

  Design, simulation, and prototyping of plasma reactors for gas reforming - petrochemicals. 0D to 3D simulations in ZDPlasKin (Fortran), Matlab, and COMSOL. Simulations involve: currents, induction, electromagnetic heating, fluid dynamics, circuits, gas chemistry, plasma, and particle tracing

• 

  George H.W. Bush Combat Development Complex

  Jan 2021 - now

  Senior Research Engineer IV

  I am a researcher working primarily in the two main areas of Directed Energy (High Energy Lasers) and Diagnostics for Hypersonics. I am part of a team of researchers (Co-PI) who work on a 5-year, $100M IDIQ contract with the Army to deliver 6.2/6.3 work in these areas as well as many others. On the Directed Energy side, I work to understand atmospheric effects on Directed Energy effectiveness and work closely with those who model and simulate laser propagation through the atmosphere. More recently, I lead the effort to establish Texas's first High Energy Laser Outdoor Testing Range with RTX. Show less