Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50 Page 51 Page 52 Page 53 Page 54 Page 55 Page 56 Page 57 Page 58 Page 59 Page 60 Page 61 Page 62 Page 63 Page 64 Page 65 Page 66 Page 67 Page 68 Page 69 Page 70 Page 71 Page 72 Page 73 Page 74 Page 75 Page 76 Page 77 Page 78 Page 79 Page 80 Page 81 Page 82 Page 83 Page 84 Page 85 Page 86 Page 87 Page 88 Page 89 Page 90 Page 91 Page 92 Page 93 Page 94 Page 95 Page 96 Page 97 Page 98 Page 99 Page 100 Page 101 Page 102 Page 103 Page 104 Page 105 Page 106 Page 107 Page 108 Page 109 Page 110 Page 111 Page 112 Page 113 Page 114 Page 115 Page 116 Page 117 Page 118 Page 119 Page 120 Page 121 Page 122 Page 123 Page 1242015 | ANNUAL REPORT 15 As with any close collaboration, it’s important to keep the lines of communication flowing between the principal investigator (PI), the tech lead and the rest of the collaborators on the experiment. It’s not uncommon for a tech lead to juggle several NSUF experiments in addition to the work he or she is doing in other areas of the lab. If the tech lead is left out of communications relating to the experiment, it’s much more difficult to help. “The PI needs to be very engaged in order for us to have successful outcomes, because that’s how we will deliver the most value for the NSUF and for the nuclear science community,” Guillen said.“It’s our job to make sure these experiments succeed and provide value for the customer.” NSUF users will benefit from working with a technical lead who can help researchers navigate the experiment process while avoiding issues. Tribal knowledge is common in every lab, so it makes sense to team up with others who have experience and know the ins and outs of a specific facility. For instance, Idaho National Laboratory has a strict quality assurance program that includes planning and documentation requirements for items, processes and services. These requirements can be a stumbling block to users from universities or other labs who might not be accustomed to these procedures. Assel Aitkaliyeva, Ph.D. B.S. in physics from Kazakh National University, M.S. in nuclear engineering and a Ph.D. in materials science from Texas A&M University Assel Aitkaliyeva started a yearlong internship at INL in 2011, and joined INL full time as an NSUF technical lead following her graduation in December 2012. Her scientific work at INL is focused on understanding the equilibria and kinetics of plutonium-based fuels in contact with cladding materials. Her studies are designed to close the gap in the understanding of the progression of the fuel-cladding chemical interaction (FCCI). Her work in pioneering focused ion-beam sample preparation methods has made her widely sought after as an adviser by domestic and international laboratories. She has authored more than 20 peer-reviewed journal publications and 30 presentations at professional meetings. She has published six peer-reviewed journal papers based on her INL research. As a principal investigator, Aitkaliyeva has secured more than $3.2 million in research funding for her work, including a $593,000 grant for research equipment that benefits many others within the lab.