By Molly A. Seltzer

Egemen Kolemen has been promoted to associate professor, as of July 1, 2021. Kolemen, associate professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering and the Andlinger Center for Energy and the Environment and a staff research physicist at the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory, is an expert in plasma control systems for fusion devices.

Finding ways to control the temperature of plasma is a critical part of facilitating fusion and harnessing its power as a source of renewable energy. Kolemen’s expertise is in using data to control fusion in tokamaks, devices that use magnetic fields to confine plasma and create the conditions for fusion to take place. He develops diagnostic tools and technologies to characterize the plasma and better manage its heat. He has worked on tokomaks and fusion reactors around the world, including on General Atomics’ DIII-D reactor, and reactors in France, Korea and China. In 2020, Kolemen was awarded the Excellence in Fusion award from Fusion Power Associates for his work on the “analysis, control and optimization of current and future fusion experimental facilities,” including ITER, the world’s largest fusion plant, currently under construction in Cadarache, France. He also received an early-career research award from the U.S. Department of Energy. Kolemen earned a B.S. from Bogazici University in Istanbul and his Ph.D. from Princeton University, where he also did postdoctoral work. He joined Princeton’s faculty in 2014. Kolemen recently commented on the momentum behind the fusion sector in an Andlinger Center Q&A and hosted the director general of ITER for a virtual seminar in 2020. He also convenes the Grad/Postdoc Energy Group, a lunchtime series for graduate students to present their findings to peers and improve their public speaking ability. As associate professor, Kolemen joins the Andlinger Center’s executive committee.