Appointments Enhance Computing Resources at Diamond

Dr Andrew Richards has joined Diamond Light Source as its new Head of Scientific Computing, following the earlier appointment of Ulrik Pedersen who became Head of Diamond’s Beamline Controls Group in September. Alongside the Data Analysis and Data Acquisition Groups, they are responsible for delivering the computing capability to underpin the science facility’s cutting edge research and operational activities.

Dr Richards joins Diamond from the University of Oxford, where he led the Advanced Research Computing facility and was an Associate Director of the Oxford e-Research Centre. One of the country’s leading figures in e-infrastructure developments, he is a member of the UK National e-Infrastructure Project Directors Group, in which he continues to be involved.

Ulrik Pedersen joined Diamond in 2005 from CERN, Geneva, as a Software Systems Engineer to design, commission and maintain control systems on Diamond Phase-I and II beamlines. In his new role he now leads the Beamline Controls Group – a team of engineers that design, build and maintain the software and hardware of the control systems on beamlines, enabling scientists to control, monitor and synchronise instrumentation to perform their experiments.

Diamond’s CEO, Andrew Harrison, said: “With their many years of experience in developing e-infrastructure and software development, Andrew and Ulrik are great additions to the Diamond team. They and their colleagues provide vital support to the globally important research conducted at our facility and ensure we are well placed to serve the international science community.”