The award was presented by Daniel Sälzer, Managing Director of Pfeiffer Vacuum+Fab Solutions in Asslar, together with Professor Thomas Nilsson, Scientific Managing Director of GSI and FAIR, during a ceremonial colloquium.
With his groundbreaking research into the origins of materials in our solar system, Dr Guy Leckenby contributed valuable insights to the global scientific community, completing a 30-year quest among scientists to calculate accurate astrophysical decay rates for lead-205 and thallium-205 in stellar environments. His research project on measuring bound-state beta decay in fully-ionized thallium-205 ions was also among the major motivations for constructing the SIS-FRS-ESR* facility complex at GSI. This powerful chain of accelerators and storage rings produces, selects, and examines rare and heavy ions for cutting-edge nuclear and atomic research. Thallium-205 is stable as a neutral atom but decays when all bound electrons are removed – a phenomenon that can only be studied at heavy-ion storage rings like the ESR (Experimental Storage Ring) at GSI.
The FAIR-GSI PhD Award is presented annually by Pfeiffer Vacuum+Fab Solutions and GSI/FAIR for outstanding dissertations supported by GSI/FAIR through strategic partnerships with universities in Darmstadt, Frankfurt, Gießen, Heidelberg, Jena, and Mainz.
Pfeiffer Vacuum+Fab Solutions and GSI maintain a long-standing partnership. For decades, the company’s high and ultra-high vacuum solutions have enabled critical and groundbreaking experiments at GSI/FAIR.
Daniel Sälzer (on the right), Managing Director of Pfeiffer Vacuum+Fab Solutions in Asslar, presented the award together with Professor Thomas Nilsson (on the left), Scientific Managing Director of GSI and FAIR, to Dr Guy Leckenby. Source: GSI/FAIR
Pfeiffer Vacuum+Fab Solutions and GSI/FAIR Honor Young Researcher with FAIR-GSI PhD Award 2025
Dr Guy Leckenby has been awarded the FAIR-GSI PhD Award 2025 for his outstanding doctoral thesis on the study of bound-state beta decay with experiments conducted at the GSI/FAIR Experimental Storage Ring (ESR). His precision measurement of fully-ionized thallium-205 ions helped resolve a decades-old puzzle about the origin of lead in our solar system and represents a flagship achievement for GSI/FAIR.
For Pfeiffer Vacuum+Fab Solutions, it is of great importance to support cutting-edge research. Vacuum technology is an indispensable tool, as it provides precise, controlled, and reliable conditions for experiments. We extend our highest recognition to Dr Guy Leckenby for his outstanding achievements and are proud that our solutions helped create the conditions necessary for his groundbreaking discoveries.
* SIS – Heavy Ion Synchrotron (from German SchwerIonensynchrotron), which accelerates heavy ions to high energies. FRS – Fragment Separator, a high-resolution magnetic spectrometer that selects and separates rare/exotic isotopes produced by the SIS beam. ESR – Experimental Storage Ring, where these highly charged ions are stored, cooled and used for precision experiments.