Obituary of William T. Oosterhuis

Dr. William (Bill) Tenley Oosterhuis, Team Leader for Condensed Matter Physics and Materials Chemistry in the Division of Materials Sciences and Engineering, Office of Basic Energy Sciences, U. S. Department of Energy, died on 16 November 2005 at the Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, MD, from complications associated with a kidney transplant procedure.

Bill was born in Mount Vernon , New York on 28 March 1940 and was raised in Platteville , Wisconsin. He earned his bachelor’s degree at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville majoring in physics, chemistry and mathematics. He was also a model student-athlete at UW-Platteville where he played on the varsity basketball team. Bill earned his master’s and doctorate degrees in physics at the Carnegie-Mellon University in 1964 and 1967 respectively. After completing his NSF-sponsored postdoctoral research in Mössbauer spectroscopy at the Atomic Energy Research Establishment in Harwell , England , Bill accepted a faculty position at Carnegie-Mellon in 1969. During his brief academic career at Carnegie-Mellon, from 1969-1974, he carried out research on magnetic and paramagnetic materials and iron transport proteins, and published over 30 original research papers.

He joined the Division of Materials Research (DMR) at the National Science Foundation in 1974, only two years after DMR was created. Bill had an important influence on the evolution of the Division, particularly in the areas related to solid-state physics, instrumentation, and user facilities including the National Magnet Laboratory. While at NSF, he was a major force in the development of synchrotron radiation facilities at Cornell, Wisconsin and Stanford, and in launching the DMR instrumentation program. He was detailed by NSF to the Division of Construction, Environment and Safety at DOE in 1985-1986 for the specific purpose of learning how large facilities were built. During this time he also played a key role in the review of several major facility construction projects at DOE. He was assigned to the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy in 1986-1987 where he was concerned with issues involving materials research. Subsequently, Bill served as Section Head for Condensed Matter Physics at NSF from 1987 to 1990. During this period, Bill also helped guide the NSF Science and Technology Centers Program in its early stages, and his wide-ranging experience helped to further strengthen inter-agency cooperation after he moved to DOE in 1991.

After 17 very productive years at the NSF, Bill accepted a position as the Branch Chief for Solid State Physics and Materials Chemistry in the Office of Basic Energy Sciences at DOE in 1991. New programs that were developed and grew under Bill’s vision and leadership in his tenure at DOE included X-ray and Neutron Scattering, Theoretical and Computational Materials Physics, Biomolecular Materials, and the Operations of Basic Energy Sciences User Facilities (now evolved into the Division of Scientific User Facilities within DOE-BES).

Bill had an abiding excitement for innovative and original science, and was especially interested in the magnetic, electronic and superconducting behavior of inorganic and organic materials, phase transformations and biomolecular materials. His great passion for magnetism and magnetic materials was vividly reflected in his occasional remark, “I have never met a magnet that I didn’t like”. He was highly esteemed by his colleagues for his ability to recognize original scientific ideas and for his support of them, regardless of whether or not they conformed to currently popular or trendy topics and approaches.

His professional recognitions included being elected a Fellow of the American Physical Society in 1999 and the American Association for the Advancement of Science in 2002. Both these were in recognition of his steady support for materials research, condensed matter physics and the construction of large national user facilities. He also received the Distinguished Alumnus award from the University of Wisconsin-Platteville in 1986 and the Exceptional Service Award from DOE in 1993.

His colleagues recall him as one with a positive outlook and an inspiring yet realistic optimist. Bill was an avid golfer and had a great interest in fine arts including classical music, drama and stage shows. He will be greatly missed for his passion for materials research, dedication to scientific excellence, keen sense and sharp vision for revolutionary discoveries, and most of all, for his ultimate optimism. Bill has left a remarkable legacy both as a scientist and a federal program manager after over 30 years of service to the materials research community.