Plasma Processing Science and Societal Grand Challenges

At the beginning of the 21st century, humanity faces significant grand challenges in the areas of energy, human health, and environmental sustainability. Low temperature plasmas will at the heart of many key enabling technologies that are needed to provide solutions for these grand challenges. The 2010 Gordon Research Conference on Plasma Processing Science will feature a comprehensive program that will highlight the most cutting edge scientific advances in low temperature plasma science and will explore the applications of low temperature plasma technology relative to many grand societal challenges. Fundamental science sessions will focus on plasma kinetics, plasma surface interactions, and recent trends in plasma generation and multi-phase plasmas. Application sessions will explore the impact of plasma technology in renewable energy and the production of fuels from renewable feedstocks, plasma-enabled medicine and sterilization, and environmental remediation and waste treatment. The conference will bring together in an informal atmosphere leaders in the field with junior investigators and graduate students. The special format of the Gordon Conferences, with programmed discussion sessions and ample time for informal gatherings in the afternoons and evenings, will provide for a fertile atmosphere of brainstorming and creative thinking among the attendees.