Maverick Science mag 2013-14

Tribute w Na’il Fazleev (1948-2013)
Scholar with a noble heart loved physics, the outdoors
Na’il Fazleev will be remembered as a brilliant physicist whose
research in condensed matter theory, surface physics, nanomagnetism,
and positron physics earned him international acclaim.
But to those close to him, he will also be remembered as a hardworking
professor who cared for his colleagues and students, and
a gifted musician and athlete.
Dr. Fazleev, an associate professor in the Department of
Physics, died October 9 at age 65 from complications of a stroke
suffered two days earlier. A celebration of life service was held on
October 11 at Moore Memorial Gardens followed by a reception
and memorial at UT Arlington in the University Club in Davis
Hall.
“Na’il was a key person in the history of our department,” said
Alex Weiss, professor and chair of the UT Arlington physics department,
and also a good friend and frequent collaborator of Dr.
Na’il Fazleev
Fazleev. “He made tremendous contributions to our department in increasing the
number of graduate students. He was always upbeat, always enthusiastic and always
encouraging. I’ve heard from many faculty and staff telling me how much he had
touched their lives, how he was a true gentleman and of how he will be sorely missed.”
John Fry, a professor emeritus in physics who retired in 2009 after 39 years at UT
Arlington, also collaborated with Dr. Fazleev and formed a close friendship with him.
Fry said that Dr. Fazleev and his wife, Rezeda, were like a brother and sister to him
and his wife, Marilyn.
“He was a true scholar and lover of life, and he will be missed by UTA and all his
friends in Texas,” Fry said at the celebration of life service. “Na’il was an important
part of the graduate program in physics in both teaching and research. He brought
millions of dollars of funding from the National Science Foundation and the Department
of Education to support graduate students and research at UTA.”
Dr. Fazleev’s involvement with UT Arlington began in 1982, when he spent a year
studying physics with Fry on an International Research and Exchange Board scholarship.
He returned in 1992 on a Senior Fulbright Lectureship and never left, serving
as a visiting professor and associate professor. In 2004, he was hired as a full-time
assistant professor, and he was promoted to associate professor in 2009.
Tribute w Asok Kumar Ray (1948-2013)
6 Maverick Science 2013-14
He was the driving force behind the department’s push to receive
a Graduate Assistance in Areas of National Need (GAANN)
grant from the Department of Education, heading the grant proposal
committee. The department has received the research grant
twice, providing critical financial support for graduate students.
Suresh Sharma, a professor of physics who met Dr. Fazleev in
1982 and wrote numerous papers with him, recalled his late friend
as an extremely hard worker who had a penchant for procrastination.
“We once had a grant proposal that was due at 5 p.m., and he
came in my office at 4:30 asking to read over the proposal again,”
Sharma said. “He had already read it a million times and made as
many changes, but he wanted to check everything one last time.
He took it in his office and came back 10 minutes later and said it
was OK. He cared about details.”
James Rejcek, a former Ph.D. student of Dr. Fazleev’s who earned B.S., M.S. and
doctoral degrees at UT Arlington, said his mentor was passionate about physics and
saw it as a noble profession.
“He always thought physicists should never stop looking for problems to solve. He
worked hard and studied hard, and he expected the same of his students,” Rejcek said.
“He was a deep and caring man. He really helped me when I was having a hard time
in my life.
“He’s gone too soon.”
Dr. Fazleev’s research interests included magnetic properties of solids, electron
paramagnetic resonance, nuclear magnetic resonance, nonequilibrium statistical thermodynamics,
surface physics and positron physics, among others. He was a member
of the department’s Theoretical Condensed Matter Physics Group.
Dr. Fazleev was born on January 25, 1948 in Kazan, Russia to the late Gregor Fazleev
and Katherine Fazleev, who were well-known academicians themselves. As a
student he focused on science, math and English and excelled, completing the Russian
standard 11 year curriculum as the top student in his class and receiving scholarships
Fazleev continued on page 8
Mentor demanded much but gave even more in return
Asok Ray was known as a strict, demanding professor, but he
never expected any more from his students than he did from himself.
Dr. Ray, a longtime UT Arlington physics professor, took a personal
interest in his students’ lives and wanted the best for them.
For that to happen, he knew they had to give their best in the classroom
and in the lab – and he would accept nothing less.
“Asok was a rigorous teacher, demanding high levels of performance
in all his classes,” said John Fry, professor emeritus in
physics and a good friend of Dr. Ray. “Students complained about
the difficulty of his courses but continued to enroll in large numbers
at undergraduate and graduate levels because they knew that
their training in his classes would be rigorous and complete.”
Dr. Ray died on October 11 at age 65 of complications from Asok Ray
cardiac issues he had been dealing with for months. A private burial
ceremony was held October 16 at Moore Memorial Gardens in Arlington. The loss
was particularly difficult for the Department of Physics since it came just two days
after the passing of another longtime faculty member, Na’il Fazleev.
Dr. Ray came to UT Arlington in 1982 and spent the next 31 years making a huge
impact on the department, the College and the University. He was instrumental in
developing the department’s doctoral program and served as the physics graduate advisor
for over 10 years. He also worked tirelessly on the graduate studies committee
and graduate admissions committee.
“He played a very important role in building our doctoral program,” said Alex
Weiss, professor and chair of the physics department. “He helped get it off the ground,
going literally from one student up to the 50 or more that we have now.”
He was mentor to 24 master’s and 11 doctoral students, as well as six master’s and
two doctoral students at the time of his death. He also directed 15 post-doctoral fellows.
“He really cared for his students,” Weiss said. “Many of them looked at him as a
kind of father figure, because many of them were here from India or elsewhere and
had no family here. He was very devoted to helping them however he could. He was
demanding of his students, but he was also very giving of his time
and knowledge.”
Muhammad Huda, a UT Arlington assistant professor of
physics, met Dr. Ray when he came to UT Arlington as a master’s
student in 1999 and went on to earn his Ph.D. under Dr. Ray’s
mentorship.
“As a mentor, he had a very caring personality,” Muhammad
said. “He was very keen and strict on doing meaningful research
and getting it published. I learned so much from him.”
Dr. Ray’s research interests included computational condensed
matter physics, electronic structures of the actinides, material
sciences, nanoscience, nanotechnology, supercomputing
and parallel computing. He was an integral part of the department’s
Condensed Matter Theory group and he received numerous
honors and awards during his career, including the UT
Arlington College of Science Research Excellence Award in 2005 and the UT Arlington
Award for Distinguished Record of Research or Creative Activity in 2011.
“Asok was a real scholar,” Fry said. “He wrote many papers and was able to get
funding for his research, a difficult task for many theoretical physicists. He performed
fundamental research on clusters of molecules of all kinds, doing chemistry on a computer
instead of in a test tube. He received recognition for his research at UT Arlington
and also served as an editor on international journals. His style of writing papers was
elegant and rigorous. He learned his trade well.”
He authored or co-authored nearly 200 peer-reviewed publications, presented 170
research papers at national and international conferences, and served as referee for
45 publications and departments. He received over $3 million in grants for his research
which was continuously funded over the course of his career. He also had a
long record of service on dozens of department and University committees.
Dr. Ray was born in Kolkata, India, on Sept. 11, 1948. He earned a B.S. in Physics
from the University of Calcutta in 1967. He also earned a bachelor of technology degree
Ray continued on page 9