Dr Auinger’s report on ‘Effects of surface roughness on optical heating of metals’ has been awarded the esteemed Best Paper Prize 2014-2015, by the European Optical Society (EOS).

Dr Auinger, who co-wrote the report and has been described as the main ‘driving force’ behind it, said: “The EOS is celebrating its 25^th anniversary this year, which makes this award extra special. It was a great surprise, and I feel totally honoured to receive such acclaim.”

The search for stable materials during fast temperature changes or thermal cycling conditions is one of the biggest challenges in modern alloy design. Dr Auinger conducted his research over a six month period with colleagues from Germany at the Max-Planck-Institut für Eisenforschung in Düsseldorf and SENTECH Instruments in Berlin.

Apart from its industrial relevance in steam power plants or combustion engines, fast temperature changes and well defined experimental conditions are extremely important to obtain reliable scientific results, which must not be influenced by reaction kinetics during heating or cooling. This will affect processes like laser welding or the stability of (coated) steels like visible parts of a car under extreme sunlight.

Dr Auinger will be presented with the award at the EOS general meeting in Berlin, on 27^th September.