Thirty-two years ago, Research Professor Chuck Melcher published work characterizing a new scintillating crystal known as LSO.

Today, LSO is the top scintillator used in positron-emission tomography (PET), a medical tool used to diagnose patients with brain or heart conditions and metabolic disorders like cancer.

“It is exciting to see my research having a global impact on healthcare,” said Melcher, who holds a joint faculty position in the nuclear engineering and materials science departments and serves as director of UT’s Scintillation Materials Research Center. “Cancer and Alzheimer’s remain major challenges, but progress is being made, and I am thrilled to be a part of it.”

Scintillators emit light when struck by radiation. For a PET scan, patients are injected with a radioactive tracer that travels to the organ or tissue of interest. As the radionuclide decays, it emits gamma rays that strike the scintillator, producing light that is translated into the scan image.

LSO’s light responses are uniquely bright and quick, resulting in highly sensitive and efficient PET scans.

In recognition of the scintillator’s discovery, development, and lasting impact on PET technology, the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) will honor Melcher with the 2025 Marie Sklodowska-Curie Award.

Established in 2008 and sponsored by the IEEE’s Nuclear and Plasma Sciences Society (NPSS), the annual Marie Sklodowska-Curie Award honors scientists who have made outstanding contributions to the fields of nuclear and plasma science and engineering. The award includes a bronze medal, a certificate, and a $10,000 honorarium.

Melcher will receive the award in November of 2025 at the NPSS Nuclear Science Symposium, Medical Imaging and Room-Temperature Semiconductor Conference in Yokohama, Japan.

Contact

Izzie Gall (865-974-7203, egall4@utk.edu)