Sarah R. Kurtz is an American materials scientist known for her research on solar energy and photovoltaics, including the application of multi-junction solar cells in robotic spacecraft. Formerly a research fellow at the National Center for Photovoltaics and principal scientist at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory,[1][2] she is a professor of materials science and engineering at the University of California, Merced.[3]

Education and career

Kurtz attended public schools in her hometown of Defiance, Ohio, and graduated in 1979 from Manchester College, majoring in chemistry and physics. She earned a Ph.D. in chemical physics in 1985 from Harvard University;[3] her dissertation was Atmospheric pressure chemical vapor deposition of hydrogenated amorphous silicon, titanium nitride, and titanium dioxide thin films.[4]

She joined the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) in 1985 as a post-doctoral researcher.[1] She moved to the University of California, Merced in 2017.[2]

Recognition

Kurtz and fellow NREL scientist Jerry Olson won one of the 2007 Dan David Prizes "for their exceptional and profound contributions to the field of photovoltaic energy".[5] In 2012 the IEEE Electron Devices Society gave her their William R. Cherry Award for her work on multi-junction cells.[6] The US Clean Energy Education & Empowerment (C3E) Initiative gave her their 2016 Lifetime Achievement Award.[7]

She was elected to the National Academy of Engineering in 2020, "for contributions to the development of GaInP/GaAs photovoltaic cells and leadership in solar cell reliability and quality".[8] She became the first faculty member at UC Merced to be elected to the academy.[2]

References

  1. 1 2 Sarah Kurtz — Research Fellow, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, archived from the original on 2017-04-30
  2. 1 2 3 Anderson, Lorena (February 13, 2020), "National Academy of Engineering Elects Kurtz Into Its Ranks", Newsroom, University of California, Merced, retrieved 2020-10-26
  3. 1 2 "Sarah Kurtz", School of Engineering Faculty, University of California, Merced, retrieved 2020-10-26
  4. ↑ WorldCat catalog entry for Atmospheric pressure chemical vapor deposition of hydrogenated amorphous silicon, titanium nitride, and titanium dioxide thin films, retrieved 2020-10-26
  5. ↑ NREL Scientists Win Dan David Prize in Future Category, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, March 6, 2007, retrieved 2020-10-26; "2 NREL scientists take share of Dan David prize", Denver Post, March 6, 2007; "Laureates 2007", Dan David Prize, retrieved 2020-10-26
  6. ↑ NREL's Sarah Kurtz Wins Prestigious Cherry Award from IEEE, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, June 7, 2012, retrieved 2020-10-26
  7. ↑ "Sarah Kurtz, 2016 winner", Lifetime Achievement Award, US Clean Energy Education & Empowerment (C3E) Initiative, retrieved 2020-10-26
  8. ↑ "Professor Sarah Kurtz", Member profiles, National Academy of Engineering, retrieved 2020-10-26
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