David Matters, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Mechanical & Nuclear Engineering Department
United States Naval Academy
590 Holloway Road
Annapolis, MD 21402-5042
(410) 293-6536
matters@usna.edu
Air Force Institute of Technology, 2016
- Doctor of Philosophy, Applied Physics
- Dissertation: “Nuclear Structure of 186Re”
- Master of Science, Nuclear Engineering
- Master of Business Administration
- Master of Arts, Mathematics
- Bachelor of Arts, Mathematics
- Neutron-induced reactions
- Gamma-ray spectroscopy
- Nuclear weapons effects
- Assistant Professor, U.S. Naval Academy (July 2026 – Present)
- Nuclear Data Scientific Engineer, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (October 2024 – May 2026)
- U.S. Army Nuclear and Countering WMD officer (June 2013 – August 2024)
- U.S. Army Aviation officer (May 2004 – May 2013)
- D. A. Matters, A. M. Hurst, and T. Kawano: “Westcott g Factors Extended to Arbitrary Neutron Spectra,” Atomic Data and Nuclear Data Tables 170, 101807 (2026).
- C. J. Chiara, J. J. Carroll, M. P. Carpenter, J. P. Greene, D. J. Hartley, R. V. F. Janssens, G. J. Lane, J. C. Marsh, D. A. Matters, M. Polasik, J. Rzadkiewicz, D. Seweryniak, S. Zhu, S. Bottoni, A. B. Hayes, and S. A. Karamian: “Isomer Depletion as Experimental Evidence of Nuclear Excitation by Electron Capture,” Nature 554, 216-218 (2018)
- D. A. Matters, F. G. Kondev, N. Aoi, Y. Ayyad, A. P. Byrne, M. P. Carpenter, J. J. Carroll, C. J. Chiara, P. M. Davidson, G. D. Dracoulis, Y. D. Fang, C. R. Hoffman, R. O. Hughes, E. Ideguchi, R. V. F. Janssens, S. Kanaya, B. P. Kay, T. Kibédi, G. J. Lane, T. Lauritsen, J. W. McClory, P. Nieminen, S. Noji, A. Odahara, H. J. Ong, A. E. Stuchbery, D. T. Tran, H. Watanabe, A. N. Wilson, Y. Yamamoto, and S. Zhu: “In-beam γ-ray Spectroscopy Studies of Medium-Spin States in the Odd-Odd Nucleus 186Re,” Physical Review C 96, 014318 (2017).
- D. A. Matters, A. G. Lerch, A. M. Hurst, L. Szentmiklósi, J. J. Carroll, Zs. Révay, J. W. McClory, S. R. McHale, R. B. Firestone, B. W. Sleaford, M. Krticka, and T. Belgya: “Investigation of 186Re via Radiative Thermal-Neutron Capture on 185Re,” Physical Review C 93, 054319 (2016).
- D. A. Matters, N. Fotiades, J. J. Carroll, C. J. Chiara, J.W. McClory, T. Kawano, R. O. Nelson, and M. Devlin: “New Transitions and Feeding of the Jπ = (8+) Isomer in 186Re,” Physical Review C 92, 054304 (2015).
- Legion of Merit Medal, 2024
- Air Force Institute of Technology Mervin Gross Award for academic achievement, 2014
- Bronze Star Medal (2 awards), 2007 and 2009
- Air Medal (3 awards), 2007
- American Physical Society
- American Nuclear Society
- Project Management Professional
