2004 Ph.D. Physics, Stanford University
2002 M.S. Physics, Stanford University
1999 B.A. Physics and Mathematics, Graduated with Honors, University
of Wisconsin-Madison
Research Experience
2004-present, University of California-Berkeley, Postdoctoral Researcher,
Advisor: Professor William Holzapfel.
Design and construction of the receiver for the South Pole Telescope (SPT).
2000-2004, Stanford University, Graduate Research Assistant, Advisor: Professor Sarah Church. The Sunyaev-Zel.dovich Infrared Experiment (SuZIE), a millimeter wavelength receiver designed to measure the spectrum of the SZ effect.
1998-1999, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Senior Honors Thesis, Advisor: Professor Donald Cox. Hydro-dynamical modeling of shocked interstellar gas.
1998, National Solar Observatory, NSF REU Researcher, Advisor: Dr. Thomas
Rimmele. I analyzed the performance of a Fabry-Perot Interferometer, and observed the FeI 557.6 nm line in the solar photosphere to study the origins of the solar 5-minute p-mode oscillations.
1996-1998, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Undergraduate Research Assistant, Advisor: Professor Dan
McCammon. The X-ray Quantum Calorimeter (XQC), a rocket-borne array of Super-conducting Transition Edge Sensors designed to measure the diffuse X-ray Background.
1996-1998, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Undergraduate Research Assistant, Advisor: Dr. Brian Hoffman
I separated soil samples, and cataloged artifacts from excavations at Agayadan Village on Unimak Island, Alaska. I measured the soil pH, composition, and elemental abundances.
Refereed Publications
Benson, B.A., Church, S.E., Ade, P.A.R., Bock, J.J.,
Ganga, K.M., Henson, C.N., & Thompson, K.L., 2004,
Measurements of Sunyaev-Zel.dovich Scaling Relations
for Clusters of Galaxies, ApJ, 617, 829
Benson, B.A., Church, S.E., Ade, P.A.R., Bock, J.J.,
Ganga, K.M., Hinderks, J.R., Mauskopf, P.D., Philhour, B.,
Runyan, M.C., & Thompson, K.L., 2003,
Peculiar Velocity Limits from Measurements of
the Spectrum of the Sunyaev-Zeldovich Effect
in Six Clusters of Galaxies, ApJ, 592, 674
Robert A. Benjamin, Bradford A. Benson, & Donald P. Cox,
2001, A Useful Approximation to the Cooling Coefficient
of Trace Elements, ApJ, 554, L225
Other Publications
Church, S.E., Benson, B.A., Thompson, K.L., 2005, Recent Results from the
SuZIE Experiment: An Investigation of SZ Scaling Relationships, ASPC, 339, 157C
Bradford A. Benson, 2004, Spectral Measurements of
the Sunyaev-Zel'dovich Effect, PhD thesis
Robert A. Benjamin, Bradford A. Benson, Donald P. Cox, 2001,
A Useful Approximation to the Cooling Coefficient of Trace Elements,
198th AAS Meeting, Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, Vol. 33, 873
Robert A. Benjamin, Bradford A. Benson, Donald P. Cox, 2001,
An Approximation to the Cooling Coefficient of Trace Elements,
AIP Conference Proceedings, Vol. 565, 222
Bradford A. Benson, 1999, An Approximation to the
Cooling Coefficient of Trace Elements, undergraduate honors
thesis
Publications Submitted or in Prep
Church, S.E., Benson, B.A., Ade, P.A.R., Bock, J.J.,
Ganga, K.M., & Thompson, K.L., 2006,
Limits on a Bulk Flow in the Intermediate Redshift
Universe, in prep
Winter 2003, TA, Physics 107, Intermediate Laboratory: Lasers & Optics
Fall 2002, TA, Physics 50, Observational Astronomy
Fall 2001, TA, Physics 105, Intermediate Laboratory: Analog Electronics
Spring 2000, TA, Physics 107, Intermediate Laboratory: Lasers & Optics
Fall 1999, TA, Physics 47, Light & Heat
Scholarships and Awards
2003 Graduate Mentor Fellowship
1999 Graduated with Honors and Distinction from the University of
Wisconsin-Madison
1999 Wisconsin Space Grant Consortium
1998 Peer Mentor Teaching Scholarship
Personal
Birth: July 21, 1977, Madison, Wisconsin
Citizenship: USA