Peter Rakitzis

T. Peter Rakitzis is a Professor of Atomic, Molecular, and Optical Physics at the University of Crete's Department of Physics and leads the Polarization Spectroscopy group at IESL-FORTH. His work focuses on developing cavity-based polarimeters and producing spin-polarized hydrogen isotopes for applications in magnetometry, polarized beams, and nuclear fusion. He has held academic ranks from Lecturer (2001) to Professor (2016).

Education:

• B.A. in Physics and Chemistry (1992), Cornell University
• Ph.D. in Chemistry (major) and Physics (minor) (1997), Stanford University

Research Interests: Spin-polarized atoms/molecules, cavity ringdown spectroscopy, angular momentum polarization, photodissociation dynamics, and parity non-conservation experiments. His group specializes in ultrahigh-density spin-polarized hydrogen production and chiral sensing technologies.

Key Projects:

• PREFER collaboration for polarized fusion research
• Signal-reversing cavity polarimetry for chiral detection
• Laser-ion acceleration using polarized isotopes

Labs/Teams: Polarization Spectroscopy group at IESL-FORTH, collaborating with international partners on fusion and chiral sensing initiatives.