INFN-LNF Laboratori Nazionali di Frascati
Our colleague Riccardo Pompili, Scientific coordinator of the SPARC_LAB Facility and of the Plasma Working Area of the EuPRAXIA@SPARC_LAB project, is the winner of the “Hogil Kim” Prize, for his many important contributions in the plasma accelerators developments, culminated in the first worldwide demonstration of FEL lasing driven by a Plasma Accelerator (Beam Driven) at SPARC_LAB.
The “Hogil Kim” Prize is one the four prizes the Asian Committee for Future Accelerators (ACFA) awarded during the 16th International Particle Accelerator Conference (IPAC’25) that took place in Taipei (Taiwan) from 1 to 6 June, 2025. The Hogil Kim Prize is awarded for early-career achievements in accelerators.
In the motivation, ACFA explains that Riccardo Pompili was awarded for his “broad experience in accelerators and plasma physics witnessed by several pioneering works published as corresponding author”.
Riccardo Pompili got his PhD in Physics in 2013 at the University of Rome Tor Vergata with a thesis related to the development of an Electro-Optical Sampling diagnostics conceived for beam-driven plasma wakefield accelerators and for which he was awarded in by the “Young Scientist Prize” of the Italian Synchrotron Light Society.
Riccardo’s scientific career has grown at LNF where he started working in 2009 for the preparation of his master thesis, and since 2015 he is a staff member of the Accelerator Division of the Laboratory. In 2023 he has been promoted “Senior Researcher” and took the scientific coordination of the test facility SPARC_LAB and of one of the most relevant Working Area of the EuPRAXIA@SPARC_LAB project.
The prize, which includes monetary award and gives the winners the opportunity to give a plenary seminar during IPAC’25, highlights the great contribution of INFN and LNF to present and future accelerator science.
Congratulations to Riccardo Pompili from all the LNF staff.