Robert Cava facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Robert Cava
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Cava in 2016
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| Born | 1951 (age 73–74) |
| Alma mater | Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
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| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Solid-state chemistry |
| Institutions | |
| Thesis | A study of the mobile ions in several binary fast ion conductors (1978) |
| Doctoral advisor | Bernhardt J. Wuensch |
| Doctoral students | Leslie Schoop |
| Other notable students | Hemamala Karunadasa |
Robert Joseph Cava (born in 1951) is a famous scientist. He is a solid-state chemist at Princeton University. This means he studies how different materials are made and how they behave. He is a professor of chemistry there.
Before joining Princeton, Professor Cava worked at Bell Labs for many years, from 1979 to 1996. He was a top scientist there. As of 2016, his research looks into special materials. These include topological insulators and semimetals, which conduct electricity in unique ways. He also studies superconductors, which can carry electricity with no loss. Other areas are frustrated magnets and thermoelectrics, which turn heat into electricity.
Contents
Becoming a Scientist: Robert Cava's Education
Robert Cava went to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). This is a very well-known science and engineering school. He earned two degrees there in 1974: a Bachelor of Science and a Master of Science. Both were in Materials Science and Engineering.
Later, in 1978, he earned his PhD in ceramics. His main teacher for his PhD was Bernhardt J. Wuensch. For his PhD, Robert Cava studied how tiny charged particles, called ions, move inside special materials called fast ion conductors.
Robert Cava's Career and Discoveries
Professor Cava has written more than 500 scientific papers. These papers have been checked by other scientists. Many of them were published in very important science magazines like Nature and Science. His work has been used and referenced by other scientists over 30,000 times.
One of his most important works was about a material called Ba2YCu3O9−δ, also known as YBCO. This material is a high-temperature superconductor. This means it can conduct electricity without resistance at higher temperatures than other superconductors. His paper on YBCO has been cited almost 1500 times. He also holds 15 patents for his inventions.
One of his former students, Leslie Schoop, has also become a notable scientist.
Awards and Honors for Robert Cava
Professor Cava has received many awards for his important work. In 1988, he became a fellow of the American Institute of Physics and a Fellow of the American Physical Society. This means he was recognized as a leading expert in physics.
In 2001, he was chosen to be a Member of the National Academy of Sciences. This is a very high honor for a scientist in the United States. They specifically praised his skill in creating new materials from different oxides. These materials led to discoveries in high-temperature superconductivity.
In 1996, Cava won the Bernd T. Matthias Prize for finding new superconducting materials. He also received the Humboldt Prize in 2011 and the Linus Pauling Award in 2012. In 2014, he received an honorary degree from the Gdańsk University of Technology in Poland. He also won the 2021 David Adler Lectureship Award in the Field of Materials Physics.
Besides his research, Professor Cava is also a great teacher. He has won several teaching awards, including the Excellence in Teaching Award from Princeton University in 2002. In 2016, he was elected a Foreign Member of the Royal Society (ForMemRS). This is a very old and respected scientific group in the United Kingdom.
Robert Cava's Personal Interests
Robert Cava was born in New York City. He is a big fan of the New York Yankees baseball team. He also loves looking at the stars and is an enthusiastic astronomer. In his free time, he enjoys making his own beer.
Images for kids
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Professor Robert J. Cava during the ceremony of receiving the Doctor Honoris Causa degree from the Gdańsk University of Technology
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Professor Robert J. Cava and rector of the Gdańsk University of Technology, Professor Henryk Krawczyk, during the ceremony of receiving the Doctor Honoris Causa degree
