Elena Long

Education Long was educated at Kent State University where she successfully defended her PhD thesis in 2012, on Polarized 3He(e, e'n) Asymmetries in Three Orthogonal Measurements which provides important tests of models that use Helium-3 as a neutron target. Long earned a bachelor's degree in Physics from Juniata College in 2006

Research and career Long's research in atomic physics focuses on understanding how the quarks inside of protons and neutrons interact to form atomic nuclei. She has worked on the deuteron structure as well as attempts to detect the first measurement on the quasi-elastic tensor asymmetry Azz. The Azz experiment can provide information about nucleon-nucleon calculations at the relativistic level, as well as provide new experimental constraints on decade-old questions about deuteron wavefunctions. An explanation of the Azz experiment described for a six year old can be found on Long's research page.

Long's postdoctoral research at the University of New Hampshire, involved the construction of the polarised target lab in DeMeritt Hall. Long held this position until 2016.

Public engagement In 2009 Long founded the LGBT+ Physicists organisation which serves as a networking resource for gender and sexual minority (GSM) physicists as well as providing a yearly award named the Acknowledgement of Excellence Awards. Long worked with the American Physical Society for their 2012 meeting, ensuring invited speakers and participants were able to share their experiences as LGBT+ physicists in a special session which was attended by over 100 people. A summary of the discussions titled Gender and Sexual Diversity Issues in Physics: The Audience Speaks co-written by Long, is quoted as the start of a grassroots movement to produce guides for the LGBT+ scientific community. Long was honoured as one of Nature's 10: Ten people who mattered this year in 2016 as a 'Diversity trailblazer'. As part of this recognition, Long was named as one of the architects of a first-of-its-kind survey called LGBT+ Climate in Physics run by the American Physical Society (APS), gathering experiences of physicists in the LGBTQ+ community.

Awards and honors Long's awards and honors include: 2017: University of New Hampshire Kidder Fund 2017: Juniata College Young Alumni Achievement award 2016: Nature's 10: Ten people who mattered in 2016 2016: Jefferson Science Associates Postdoctoral Prize 2014: Jefferson Science Associates Promising Young Scientist 2014: oSTEM Global STEM Service Award