Jorge Piekarewicz

Jorge Piekarewicz is a theoretical nuclear physicist and Robert O. Lawton Distinguished Professor of Physics at Florida State University (FSU). His research focuses on nuclear theory and nuclear astrophysics, particularly the behavior of nuclear matter under extreme conditions, the equation of state of neutron-rich matter, neutron stars, neutron skins, and the nuclear symmetry energy.

Education and career

Piekarewicz received a B.Sc. from the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) in 1981 and a Ph.D. in theoretical nuclear physics from the University of Pennsylvania in 1985. He subsequently held postdoctoral appointments at the California Institute of Technology from 1985 to 1987 and at Indiana University from 1987 to 1990.

In 2016, he was named a Distinguished Research Professor at Florida State University. He was selected as a Robert O. Lawton Distinguished Professor.

A major area of his research concerns the nuclear symmetry energy, which describes how the energy of nuclear matter changes with neutron–proton imbalance. He has studied correlations between the density dependence of the symmetry energy, the neutron-skin thickness of heavy nuclei, and neutron-star properties such as stellar radii and crust structure.

Piekarewicz has also studied the Lead Radius Experiment (PREX), which measures the neutron distribution of lead-208 using parity-violating electron scattering. His theoretical work has examined how measurements of the neutron skin and weak-charge form factor can constrain nuclear models and the equation of state of neutron-rich matter. Following the PREX-2 measurement, this work was extended to investigate its implications for the density dependence of the symmetry energy and neutron-star structure.

Another area of his research concerns the use of astrophysical observations to constrain dense matter. Following the detection of gravitational waves from binary neutron-star mergers, his work examined relationships between tidal deformability, neutron-star radii, and nuclear observables such as the neutron skin of lead-208.

His research also includes relativistic nuclear models and nuclear density functional theory, the structure of neutron-rich nuclei, neutron-star crusts, and statistical methods for quantifying uncertainties in theoretical nuclear models.

Piekarewicz has also contributed to reviews of the relationship between nuclear experiments and neutron-star observations, including the use of neutron-skin measurements to probe neutron-rich matter.

Honors and awards

Piekarewicz was elected a Fellow of the American Physical Society in 2005. He received Florida State University's Distinguished Research Professor designation in 2016. In 2018, he received the Jesse W. Beams Award of the Southeastern Section of the American Physical Society.

Selected publications