Nicholas Jordan

Additional Title

• Lab Manager, Plasma, Pulsed Power and Microwave Laboratory (PPML)

Dr. Jordan received his Ph.D. from the University of Michigan in 2008.  His thesis work included laser ablation ion deposition/implantation of thin-film oxides for semiconductor gate dielectrics and triple point high-power microwave cathodes.  Following completion of his Ph.D., Dr. Jordan worked at Cybernet Systems in Ann Arbor, MI, where he: designed and tested compact pulsed power and high power microwave systems for use in disabling vehicles; investigated methods of developing compact, disposable sensors for Directed Energy Test & Evaluation at Eglin, AFB; managed several research projects (and the associated personnel) with combined budgets of over $3M, including a software package (VSIL) designed to assist with complex, multidisciplinary simulation and design challenges; and wrote numerous SBIR, STTR, and BAA proposals to a variety of government agencies.

In 2013, Dr. Jordan returned to the University of Michigan as an Assistant Research Scientist and the Lab Manager for the PPML.  His current research interests include high-power microwaves, pulsed-power technology, plasma diagnostics, and the dynamics of Z-pinch implosions.  The highlights of this research equipment currently include a relativistic magnetron driven by a 1 MV, 10 kA, 1 μs Marx capacitor bank (MELBA), a 200 kV, 1 MA, 500 ns single-cavity Linear Transformer Driver (LTD), an 800 kV, 4-cavity LTD, a 12-frame, 200M FPS, intensified CCD camera, a 775 ns Ti:Sapphire femtosecond laser, and a 10 Hz, 150 mJ, 2 ns, Nd:YAG laser with frequency doubling and tripling crystals.

As the Lab Manager for the PPML, he keeps the lab (and its equipment) running and helps guide research on our active experiments. This currently includes high power microwave sources driven by a Marx capacitor bank (MELBA), a 1 MA Linear Transformer Driver (LTD) for high energy density physics experiments, a 4-cavity LTD, multipactor breakdown, plasma imaging, and laser diagnostics.