Awards

Bicentennial Medal - 2020

Distinguished Professor (Emeritus) - 1990

National Academies - 1987

American Association for the Advancement of Science

Guggenheim Fellow - 1980

About Victor E. Viola

Professor Viola received his B.A. degree from the University of Kansas, 1957 and the Ph.D. degree from the University of California, Berkeley in 1961. He was a postdoctoral fellow, University of California, 1961-62; NSF and Ford Postdoctoral Fellow, Centre Europeenne pour la Recherche Nucleaire, Geneva, Switzerland, 1963-64; Research Associate, Argonne National Laboratory, 1964-66.

Professor Viola has received the ACS Award for Nuclear Chemistry, 1986; Chairman, Division of Nuclear Chemistry and Technology, American Chemical Society, 1980; Guggenheim Fellow, 1980-81; Fellow, American Physical Society, 1986; Fellow, American Association for the Advancement of Science, 1987. Professor Viola has published 250 papers in refereed journals and major conference proceedings; one textbook, and has held numerous professional and editorial responsibilities. He served as director of the Indiana University Cyclotron Facility from 1986-87.

His research interests are: (1) Dynamics of Collisions between Complex Nuclei. These investigations have focused on understanding the transport of energy and matter when two complex nuclei collide, and the subsequent evolution of these unique physical systems. The ultimate goal is to understand the "equation of state" of nuclear matter; (i.e. the behavior of atomic nuclei under extreme conditions of temperature and pressure). This is important not only for the understanding of nuclei, but also the properties of astrophysical bodies such as supernovae and neutron stars. During the past few years, this work has evolved into a study of "explosion-like" disintegrations of the nucleus, which occur on a very fast time scale.

Viola received the IU Bicentennial Medal in September 2020 in recognition of his distinguished contributions to Indiana University.