Janet Tate, Professor of Physics, has been elected a TUM 2014 Ambassador. The prestigious nomination is awarded by the Technische Universität München (Technical University of Munich) to its outstanding research alumni worldwide. Tate was a Humboldt Fellow at TUM in 1987-89, following her PhD from Stanford University. She has been a faculty member in the College of Science since 1989.
Technical University of Munich is one of the most notable German institutes of technology and is often lauded for its scientific impact as a leading European research university.
Tate is one among seven top-notch international scientists who was honored with the title of “TUM Ambassador” during a Research Alumni Forum in Munich November 28 – December 1 led by TUM President Wolfgang A. Herrmann. Tate was recognized along with other TUM 2014 ambassadors, which included scientists from the Indian Institute of Science (Bangalore, India), the University of California in Berkeley, Columbia University, MIT, Middle East Technical University (Ankara), Indian Institute of Technology (Chennai, India) and Korea Advanced Institute of Science & Technology (Daejeon, South Korea).
TUM nominations recognize researchers who have enriched their university with their “scientific expertise and international practice during the last decades and will now represent TUM as ambassadors all over the world.”
“We are delighted that Janet joins this stellar global cohort of scientists as a TUM ambassador,” said College of Science Dean Sastry G. Pantula.
“I am proud of the international distinction that Janet has earned and the global visibility she brings to the College of Science and to OSU.”
Tate, who is also an Adjunct Professor in the Department of Chemistry, conducts research on the properties of a wide variety of electronic materials, particularly thin films. Her current materials research focuses on transparent conductors and photovoltaic materials. Tate and her research team collaborate closely with researchers in the Departments of Chemistry and Electrical Engineering.
She is a passionately engaged physics educator and a much-appreciated mentor for young researchers seeking careers in physics.
Tate is the Chair of the American Physical Society (APS) Committee on Careers and Professional Development and has chaired an APS/AAPT-sponsored, NSF-funded conference on graduate education in physics in 2008 at the American Center for Physics in College Park, MD.
Recently she was selected to organize and host APS’s 2016 Conference for Undergraduate Women in Physics (CUWiP) at OSU. CUWip supports undergraduate women in physics through this professional conference experience that features information about graduate school and career paths in physics as well as providing access to women of all ages in physics so they can share experiences, advice and ideas.
A highly accomplished researcher and teacher, Tate is the recipient of many honors including the OSU Milton Harris Award in Basic Research, an Alfred P. Sloan Research Fellowship, and a Frederick H. Horne Award for excellence in teaching.
