Dr. Michael Creutz

Quarks are tiny particles, but a force like the weight of 14 tons binds them together. That's one of the findings of physicists investigating quantum chromodynamics (QCD), the theory describing the "strong force" that binds subnuclear particles called quarks and gluons. The Office of Science has supported the development of various computer-based techniques for performing the difficult calculations of QCD. Theorists at Brookhaven National Laboratory, Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, and elsewhere have made relevant calculations. Michael Creutz of Brookhaven demonstrated that properties of QCD could be computed numerically using a lattice of discrete points of time and space instead of a continuum. Creutz provided strong evidence that quarks cannot be isolated (the force between quarks does not decrease, even as they are moved farther apart), thus mathematically confirming QCD. He won the American Physical Society's Aneesur Rahman Prize for Computational Physics in 2000. Another project involving Columbia University, Brookhaven, and the Riken Institute produced the world's fastest multipurpose, noncommercial supercomputer. The computer turns space and time into a four-dimensional lattice (or a three-dimensional grid for any moment in time) and enables scientists to calculate interactions between quarks at larger distances than possible with other methods. The "do it yourself" approach to construction limited costs to about $1.8 million for the entire project and won the 1998 Gordon Bell Award for most cost-effective computing.

Scientific Impact: Creutz's methods have been applied to various theoretical problems in physics; lattice calculations are the best estimates for the temperature of the elusive quark-gluon plasma, a form of matter dating back to the Big Bang creation of the universe. The Brookhaven supercomputer's speed will enable scientists to simulate and predict the behavior of such subatomic particles and phenomena.

Social Impact: The supercomputer project has led to affordable teraflop-scale (1 thousand billion calculations per second) computing engines. Algorithms developed for QCD computations have potential applications in superconductivity, development of magnetic materials, and other fields of commercial interest.

Reference: "Monte Carlo study of quantized SU(2) gauge theory," M. Creutz, Phys. Rev. D21, 2308-2315 (1980).

Quarks, Gluons, and Lattices, M. Creutz (Cambridge Univ. Press, 1983).

Nuclear Physics B—Proceedings Supplements, Volume 83-84 (2000).

Proceedings of the XVIIth International Symposium on Lattice Field Theory, Pisa, Italy, 29 June 1999.

URL: http://penguin.phy.bnl.gov/~creutz/

Technical Contact: Dr. Michael Creutz, creutz@bnl.gov

Press Contact: Jeff Sherwood, DOE Office of Public Affairs, 202-586-5806

SC-Funding Office: Office of High Energy and Nuclear Physics