Datz, head of Atomic Physics in the ORNL Physics Division, was selected to receive the doctorate for his work on physics programs he designed and initiated during a Tage Erlander professorship at the university in 1990-91. With continuing support from Datz, who is a member of the faculty of natural sciences, the programs have proven extremely successful.
As a senior corporate fellow of Lockheed Martin Energy Research Corporation, a rare distinction awarded to only nine others, Datz is a leading authority in the field of accelerator-based physics and collision physics.
Within his specialty of atomic collision physics, Datz is internationally recognized for the first successful study of a chemical reaction using molecular-beam techniques, which was begun when he joined ORNL in 1951. This work was the foundation for the present field of chemical dynamics. He also has contributed to studies in high-energy atomic collision phenomena and particle-surface interactions.
Datz is a fellow of the American Physical Society and the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
After earning a bachelor's in chemistry and an master's in physical chemistry from Columbia University, he received a doctorate in physical chemistry from the University of Tennessee.
Datz has served as a guest professor at seven institutions in Europe and the United States, chaired nine conferences and edited four books on collision processes. He is the author of more than 200 articles and has held five editorial positions with various journals.
ORNL, one of DOE's multiprogram national research and development facilities, is managed by Lockheed Martin Energy Research Corporation.