RICHLAND -- Six scientists at the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory have been named fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

-- Scott Chambers researches crystalline oxide films that can be used in the semiconductors that enable most modern electrical devices. He's known for growing these films and exploring their structures and ability to transform electricity from chemicals responding to light.

-- Yuehe Lin's research delves into nanotechnology, or devices made with tiny particles that are a hundred thousand times smaller than a human hair. The technologies he's developing can detect important molecules in biological systems, explosives and pesticides and could deliver drugs within the human body to fight cancer.

-- Moe Khaleel specializes in computational engineering, which involves designing and developing computational tools to solve engineering and scientific problems, particularly those related to solid oxide fuel cells and lightweight materials. He has created a cost-effective process for forming aluminum sheet materials that are used to make lightweight vehicles.

-- Philip Rasch is recognized for his contributions to climate modeling, or designing computation programs that mimic the atmosphere. He also studies geoengineering, or the intentional manipulation of the atmosphere to counteract global warming.

-- John Wacker's insights into the field of nuclear signature are followed by government and scientific leaders. Nuclear signatures, or the chemical and radiological indicators of nuclear processing, are of interest to national security officials and in the emerging area of nuclear forensics, which traces nuclear material to its source.

-- Sotiris Xanthea's electron structure calculations on water-based molecular clusters are valuable to physical chemistry scientists. Among the many applications of his work is providing a better understanding of the structure of solid compounds incorporating water on the ocean's floor that store the greenhouse gas methane.