J. J. and Noriko Sakurai Dissertation Award in Theoretical Particle Physics

Nominations will be accepted for any doctoral student studying at a college or university in North America including their study-abroad programs, for dissertation research carried out in the field of experimental particle physics. Nominees must pass their thesis defense not more than 24 months before the nomination deadline of September 1.

A candidate may be renominated once for this award in the year following their original nomination provided all other eligibility criteria are still met. In this case a new nomination package must be submitted to the Committee, stating that the candidate had been nominated the previous year.

The nomination package should include:

1. APS Prizes and Awards nomination form (nominee’s contact information, thesis date).
2. A full copy of the nominee's Ph.D. thesis, along with up to four publications and/or reports describing the work.
3. A thesis summary of no more than two pages prepared by the nominee.
4. A brief summary of the thesis suitable for distribution as the basis of an article in the popular press.
5. A complete curriculum vitae of the nominee, including a list of publications.
6. A letter from the thesis advisor stating (a) the date of the thesis defense and the date the final thesis document was presented to the graduate school, (b) the names of those who will be writing letters supporting the nomination, (c) the role of the nominee in writing any parts of the thesis that have been published or submitted for publication (please identify these parts of the thesis), and (d) the specific contributions of the nominee, making comparisons with others.
7. At least two letters supporting the nomination.

The award was established in 2010 by the DPF Executive Committee with funding coming from the J.J. Sakurai Prize Fund, in recognition of the role of Noriko Sakurai in the establishment and growth of the fund.