Synchrotron Facility Named for Its Inventor

The Synchroton Radiation Center on May 3 formally named its Stoughton facility for the man behind its creation, the late Ednor M. Rowe.

Rowe, who died in July 1996, is widely considered the “father” of synchrotron radiation, and was one of the first to see the potential of this technology for materials studies. He was instrumental in getting the center off the ground in the mid-1960s, and served as its first director for 16 years.

A group of 160 people, including researchers from across the country who played a role in Rowe’s life, attended a ceremony during which a new sign was unveiled. The center is part of the Kegonsa Research Campus, at 3731 Schneider Road in Stoughton.

Synchrotron radiation is the light created from spinning electrons in storage rings. Before Rowe and others began harnessing it as a research tool, it was seen as a useless byproduct. For decades, the center has made possible many fundamental discoveries in the semiconductor and micro-electronics fields. It is opening the door for new research on materials sources for higher-temperature superconductivity.