Pat Clancy wins Young Innovator Award

Congratulations to McMaster University’s Pat Clancy on receiving the 2023 Petro-Canada – McMaster University Young Innovator Award.

The award recognizes an innovative scholar within the first eight years of their research career and is valued at $25,000. The award is financed through a $250,000 endowment provided by Petro-Canada, and a matching annual contribution provided by McMaster University’s Office of the Vice-President Research. Each Faculty at McMaster submits a nominee.

Pat is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Physics & Astronomy and a member of the Brockhouse Institute for Materials Research. Pat’s research focuses on the study of novel quantum materials and his research group specializes in sample synthesis and crystal growth of new materials, and the investigation of their structural and magnetic properties using x-ray and neutron scattering techniques.

Pat will use his award to develop new strategies for improving the teaching of quantum mechanics with a focus on exploring student attitudes and designing a course that provides an experimental introduction to quantum materials. Education and training will become increasingly important as Canada’s emerging “quantum technology” industry grows yet the application and practicality for daily life can get lost in the mathematical complexity of the ideas.

In addition to experimental physics, Pat has an active interest in physics education research, particularly as it relates to the development of virtual learning resources and the teaching of quantum mechanics.

Pat received his B.Sc. in Physics from St. Francis Xavier University, and his M.Sc. and Ph.D. in Physics from McMaster. He completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Toronto, and has previously held positions as an Assistant Professor at Trent University and as a neutron instrument scientist at the McMaster Nuclear Reactor. He has held Banting, Heater, and McCall MacBain postdoctoral fellowships, and was awarded the John Charles Polanyi Prize in Physics for Early Career Research.

For more on Pat’s award and research, visit the MacPherson Institute site at https://lnkd.in/gNnhfuvE.