Medal for Research Excellence 2002

John Peter Brodholt

John Peter Brodholt is currently Reader and Royal Society Research Fellow at University College, London. John had a late start in academic life with a geology degree from the State University of New York at Buffalo in 1985, followed by a Masters degree from Northwestern University (1988) and a PhD from Bristol University, England (1992), where he worked on molecular dynamics simulations of fluids at high pressures and temperatures. Since obtaining his PhD 10 years ago, John has become one of the leading researchers in computational mineral physics, although in his own words he also “dabbles in experiments”. His work has mainly been focussed on understanding the Earth’s interior. It has ranged from computational work on the structure of iron in the core, to modelling of defects in mantle phases and their influence on diffusion and strength of minerals, experimental work on the electrical conductivity of mantle minerals, and calculations of the elastic properties of mantle minerals at high temperature and pressure.

John is an enthusiastic collaborator with strong European links, particularly with scientists in Germany, Sweden and Italy, where he held a European Fellowship. He has also been involved in organising a number of important European conferences. For his outstanding research work and his contributions to the strengthening of European scientific links, the European Mineralogical Union Research Excellence Medal for 2002 is awarded (jointly) to Dr John Brodholt.

Sergey Vladimirovich Krivovichev

Sergey Vladimirovich Krivovichev is at the Department of Crystallography, St Petersburg State University, Russia, which is the city of his birth. He studied crystallography and mineralogy in this same Department from 1989 to 1994, and was awarded the PhD degree in 1997. His research work during this time centred upon studies of the structures and crystal chemistry of new materials found in the fumaroles of the Great Fissure Tolbachik eruption.

Professor Krivovichev has also worked as an NSF-NATO Fellow in the Department of Civil Engineering and Geological Sciences at the University of Notre Dame, Indiana, USA. Here, he was able to pursue a very fruitful collaboration with Professor Peter Burns.

The particular research contributions of Professor Krivovichev are related to new approaches to understanding the structures of large families of minerals (and related synthetic inorganic compounds) on the basis of anion-centred tetrahedra and their connectivity. These theories have been developed in parallel with numerous new structure determinations of minerals and inorganic compounds. Sergey Krivovichev has also contributed to other areas of crystal chemistry, including developing a new structural classification of sulphates in collaboration with Frank Hawthorne and Peter Burns, studies of natural and synthetic lead compounds, and of uranyl molybdate minerals which has contributed to a greater understanding of the crystal chemistry of uranium.

For the importance and international dimension of his work, the European Mineralogical Union Research Excellence Medal for 2002 is awarded (jointly) to Professor Sergey Krivovichev.