Nicholas Metropolis Award for Outstanding Doctoral Thesis Work in Computational Physics

This award recognizes doctoral thesis research of outstanding quality and achievement in computational physics and encourages effective written and oral presentation of research results. The annual award consists of $2,500, a certificate, travel reimbursement up to $1,500, and a registration waiver to receive the award and give an invited talk at the APS March Meeting.

Establishment & Support

The award is supported by the Division of Computational Physics.

Rules & Eligibility

The Division of Computational Physics is pleased to announce its annual competition for the Nicholas Metropolis Award for Outstanding Doctoral Thesis Work in Computational Physics. Nominations will be accepted for any doctoral student (present or past) in any country for work performed as part of the requirements for a doctoral degree. Nominees must have passed their thesis defense not more than 18 months before the nomination deadline. An individual can be nominated only once; however, nominations will be considered for two review cycles provided the nominator re-certifies the nomination before the next deadline.

Nomination & Selection Process

Deadline: Monday, September 2, 2024

The nomination package should include:  

  1. APS Prizes and Awards Nomination Form (available via the online application interface, APS Honors Nominations)
  2. Recommendation letter from nominator (generally the thesis advisor). This letter should also certify the eligibility of the student and delineate in detail the contributions of the nominee, making comparisons with others.
  3. The thesis manuscript in PDF format
  4. A thesis summary accessible to a computational scientist without specific expertise in the field of the thesis, prepared by the nominee.
  5. Two additional letters of support, at least one from outside the nominee’s institution
  6. Nominee’s CV
  7. Demographics form (if known/wish to specify age, gender, race, and ethnicity of the nominee)

To start a new or update a continuing nomination, please see the Prize & Award Nomination Guidelines.

2023 Selection Committee Members: Rajiv Kalia (Chair), Filipe Jornado, Elena D'Onghia, Kyungwha Park, Koblar Alan Jackson, Mark Turiensky



 

The membership of APS is diverse and global, and the nominees and recipients of APS Honors should reflect that diversity so that all are recognized for their impact on our community. Nominations of members belonging to groups traditionally underrepresented in physics, such as women, LGBT+ scientists, scientists who are Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC), disabled scientists, scientists from institutions with limited resources, and scientists from outside the United States, are especially encouraged.

Nominees for and holders of APS Honors (prizes, awards, and fellowship) and official leadership positions are expected to meet standards of professional conduct and integrity as described in the APS Ethics Guidelines. Violations of these standards may disqualify people from consideration or lead to revocation of honors or removal from office.