Sherry J. Yennello, Program Director
Prof. Sherry J. Yennello
Director of CENTAUR and Professor of Chemistry at Texas A&M University
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In the nuclear equation of state, the energy associated with an imbalance of neutrons and protons is termed the asymmetry energy. The density dependence of this quantity is currently the largest uncertainty. The Yennello Research Group focuses on further constraining this density dependence using heavy-ion collisions. Utilizing the K500 and K150 cyclotrons, heavy-ion projectiles are accelerated to up to 40% the speed of light and collided with stationary targets. These reactions are important for studying structure, chemical composition and the evolution of neutron stars and dynamics of supernovae explosions.
Lauren McIntosh, Managing Director & Science Coordinator
Lauren McIntosh
Managing Director & Science Coordinator and Assistant Research Scientist at Texas A&M University
As the Managing Director of CENTAUR, McIntosh facilitates collaboration between the institutions and manages activities and meetings for the center. Outside of CENTAUR, McIntosh studies questions of the density-dependence of the nuclear equation of state and other astrophysically-relevant questions experimentally with the Yennello group. She is also involved in developing isotope production capabilities at Texas A&M.