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Southern Illinois University Edwardsville’s George Pelekanos, PhD, professor and undergraduate program director in the Department of Mathematics and Statistics in the College of Arts and Sciences, has achieved the rank of Distinguished Research Professor for his significant scholarly contributions to inverse scattering.

The distinction is the highest academic rank a faculty member at SIUE can achieve. It is awarded to a prestigious group of tenured faculty members in recognition of outstanding and sustained contributions to research and creative activities. The accolade has previously been conferred on 16 faculty members.

“Dr. Pelekanos has received international recognition for his contributions to inverse scattering theory for acoustic, elastic and electromagnetic waves,” said Jerry Weinberg, associate provost for research and dean of the Graduate School. “His outstanding work raises the reputation of SIUE as a premier teacher-scholar institution, where students can receive an education that encompasses cutting edge scholarship.”

Pelekanos’ impressive publication output includes 30 research peer-refereed journal articles and seven educational peer-refereed journal articles. He has given 22 national and international conference presentations and invited talks. Pelekanos is co-investigator of a $829,979 National Science Foundation STEP-UP project, titled Student Teams Engaging Peers for Undergraduate Progress (STEP-UP), with funding through summer 2018.

“This is an important initiative, as it recognizes and rewards timely and relevant scholarly research with outstanding contributions to enthuse other SIUE faculty members to conduct high-quality academic research,” Pelekanos said. “I would like to thank the Graduate School for creating such an opportunity for faculty to gain recognition, and an opportunity to dedicate more time to their research.”

The acclaimed researcher is known by colleagues for working on problems at the “frontiers of applied mathematics.”

“Inverse electromagnetic scattering deals with Maxwell’s equations, which are some of the most important equations in physics because of their direct impact on many technologies, including computer chip design, wireless communications, oil exploration, remote sensing and several medical and military applications,” explained Pelekanos.

“I am passionate about my research since it brings deep theoretical mathematical computations and proofs to life, with yet an impact to latest technologies. I consider this recognition as Distinguished Research Professor an important building block of my academic career, as it has provided an incredible motivational boost.”

Recipients of the Distinguished Research Professor honor are provided one semester of time devoted to research, along with a $1,000 increase in their academic year base salary. They also receive a medallion to be worn with their academic regalia and their name is placed on a plaque displayed in Rendleman Hall.

Photo: George Pelekanos, PhD, professor in the Department of Mathematics and Statistics in the SIUE College of Arts and Sciences.