Charles D. Brown II, an assistant professor of physics at Yale University, has been selected as the winner the Joseph A. Johnson Award for Excellence from the American Institute of Physics and the National Society of Black Physicists.
The Johnson Award honors an early career physicist who exemplifies the scientific ingenuity and passion for mentorship and service of Joseph A. Johnson III, the renowned experimental physicist and National Society of Black Physicists founder who was a mentor to many Black doctoral students.
Dr. Brown conducts research at the interface of atomic, molecular, and optical physics and condensed matter physics. He uses experimental atomic physics techniques to create synthetic crystals which consist of extremely cold atoms hopping around grids made of light.
“I’m deeply honored to receive the J.A. Johnson III award, especially given our shared experience as Yale physics Ph.D. graduates,” Dr. Brown said. “Professor Johnson was an academic leader who was impactful in scientific research on turbulent plasmas, in the lives of students he mentored, and through the organizations that he was instrumental in founding. I’m moved by the idea that I am carrying on the legacy of a historically important physicist like Professor Johnson.”
Dr. Brown received his undergraduate degree from the University of Minnesota and his Ph.D. from Yale University.
