Dmitry Ponomarev: “Venedikt Petrovich Dzhelepov for me is an example of an excellent organiser and brilliant scholar who made a significant contribution to world science”
Dmitry Ponomarev has been working at the Department of Nuclear Spectroscopy and Radiochemistry since 2015. His areas of scientific interest are neutrino physics, the search for rare processes, and the development of new methods for studying physical phenomena. The study of background conditions in low-background experiments takes a special place in the scientist's research.
Dmitry participates in several scientific projects. For instance, in the νGeN experiment, which aims to search for coherent scattering and the magnetic moment of reactor neutrinos, Dmitry is responsible for testing new detectors, monitoring the neutron background at the experiment site and assembling the spectrometer, and he works with the experimental data acquisition system. In the EDELWEISS and Ricochet experiments (France), the scientist's area of responsibility is the development and advancement of new methods for detecting extremely low neutron fluxes using iodine-containing scintillators. Successful completion of this task will create an alternative to helium-3 counters for monitoring neutron backgrounds not only in the EDELWEISS and Ricochet experiments but also in other low-background research.
Among his most significant achievements, D. V. Ponomarev counts his participation in the creation of the νGeN setup at the Kalinin Nuclear Power Plant and the development of new methods for detecting low neutron fluxes, which served as the basis for his recent defense of his candidate dissertation.
The head of the Department of Nuclear Spectroscopy and Radiochemistry, S. V. Rozov, nominated his researcher for the Dzhelepov Scholarship. Dmitry Ponomarev notes that he was able to receive the prestigious scholarship largely due to the work and influence of his mentors and supervisors: Viktor Borisovich Brudanin, Evgeny Aleksandrovich Yakushev, and Sergey Vladimirovich Rozov.
In 2024, the scientist plans to continue working within his current experiments. Thus, in the νGeN experiment, the main task will be the creation of a new data acquisition system, which will allow for pulse-shape analysis of signals, leading to a reduction in the influence of various noises on the experimental results. Dmitry will also participate in the experiment to search for the double beta decay of zirconium-96 to excited states of molybdenum-96.
"The contribution of Venedikt Petrovich Dzhelepov to the establishment of DLNP JINR cannot be overestimated. He stood at the origins of not only the laboratory but of the entire institute. Venedikt Petrovich Dzhelepov for me is an example of an excellent organiser and brilliant scholar who made a significant contribution to world science. One can only envy his hard work, intellect, and organizational skills. I am very pleased to receive the scholarship named after the outstanding scientist Venedikt Petrovich Dzhelepov."
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