Dr. Pavel Tsvetkov

Associate Professor, Nuclear Engineering
Director, Graduate Program, Nuclear Engineering

Dr. Tsvetkov leads the Advanced Energy Systems Laboratory where he directs research related to, System Analysis & Optimization Methods, Complex Engineered Systems, System Design, Symbiotic Nuclear Energy Systems, Waste Minimization, Sustainability, High Temperature Gas Reactors (HTGRs) & Co-Generation Systems, Direct Nuclear Energy Conversion Systems, and many more topics.

Education:

• Ph.D., Nuclear Engineering, Texas A&M University – 2002
• M.S., Theoretical & Experimental Reactor Physics, Moscow State Engineering Physics Institute – 1995

Contact:

• Email: tsvetkov@tamu.edu
• Phone: 979-845-7078
• Office: AIEN M205B

Ryan Brownfield

Ryan Brownfield is a Research Engineer currently working on the MSRR Instrumentation and Control System. He has received his Bachelors and Masters in nuclear engineering from Texas A&M. He aided in the development of the I&C concept for the MSRR PSAR, and is now working on the writing and development on the same subject for the MSRR FSAR. He is also interested in advanced nuclear systems and nuclear thermal propulsion.

Dahvien Dean

After obtaining his Bachelors in Chemical Engineering, Dahvien developed an interest in advanced nuclear reactors. He began attending Texas A&M University in order to explore that interest. Currently, his research focuses on the development of molten salt reactors from the molten salt perspective. He has researched the chemical features of molten salts and how they affect the thermodynamics and neutronics of the nuclear reactor. He graduated in December 2021, and he plans to continue progressing the work in the realm of nuclear fast reactors.

Jason Hearne

Research Engineer

J. Tyler Gates

Hailing from Ringgold, Georgia, Tyler moved to College Station in the fall of 2018 to pursue his graduate studies. He is currently working on developing an advanced fiber-optic based power monitor including computation modelling and experimental testing. He has been passionate about advanced reactor technologies since high school and obtained his B.S. in Nuclear and Radiological Engineering from Georgia Tech.  While at Georgia Tech he worked in the Computation Reactor Engineering group working on Advanced LEU Nuclear Thermal Propulsion systems. He was previously a 2018 Summer Fellow at the Center for Space Nuclear Research working on Plutonium Production for NASA’s MMRTG program.

Ryan Kelly

Ryan was born in Baltimore, Maryland and decided to attend Texas A&M University after developing an interest in nuclear engineering during his junior year of high school.  He obtained his Bachelor of Science and Master of Science from the nuclear engineering department there and continued onward in pursuit of a doctorate while studying genetic algorithms that can be utilized for optimization problems in relation to deterministic transport solvers.  His goal is to obtain employment at a national lab or one of the larger research corporations here in the United States to continue the development of new nuclear plants and applications of nuclear engineering technology.  His hobbies include reading, swimming, and soccer.

Matthew Johnson

Ph.D. Student

Daniel L.P. Watson

Daniel Watson joined Texas A&M as a Nuclear Engineering PhD student and research assistant in the fall of 2022 on the MSRR project, developing a systems model for I&C analysis.  His PhD research utilizes multiphysics systems modelling, artificial intelligence, and reactor analysis tools.  He is the inventor of two pending patents, and has interned at the Center for Space Nuclear Research (2022).  Daniel holds a MS in Nuclear Engineering from Kansas State University, with research emphasis in radiation sensors, and a BS in Nuclear Engineering from Missouri S&T.

M. Scott Walls

Scott was raised in Farmington, New Mexico and attended New Mexico State University from 2015 to 2019. He achieved a B.S. in Engineering Physics with a concentration in Mechanical Engineering, and minors in both Government and Nuclear Chemical Engineering. He was a member and officer of a local student organization called the Society for Engineering and Physics (SEPh) which is now working to spread as a national organization (of which he is a board member). During his time as an undergrad he worked in an applied physics laboratory that performs research in fiber optics, but he aspires to work in and perform research on/with nuclear power plants – particularly SMRs and MSRs. He also intends to spend some time involved in nuclear policy and lobbying later in life. His current research topic involves the design of a “nuclear battery” – a self-sustaining micro-reactor that will produce a steady power output for 10 years or more without the need for refueling.

Hui-Yu Hsieh

Hui-Yu Hsieh joined Texas A&M University as a graduate assistant at the Nuclear Engineering Department in 2021. Her PhD research focuses on machine learning and reactor analysis. She obtained her M.S. in the same department in 2023, where her focus was on the sensitivity and parametric fluctuations of an integral reactor configuration. She was a 2023 summer research fellow at the Center for Space Nuclear Research working on the CNTP project. Before joining Texas A&M University, she completed her B.S. in Medical Imaging and Radiological Science from Chung Shan Medical University in 2020, and was a summer medical radiographer intern at Singapore General Hospital in 2019.

Michael Parnell

Michael Parnell grew up in Missouri City, Texas, where he earned the Eagle Scout Award and developed an interest in physics. In the Fall of 2019 he became a student at Texas A&M University and chose to major in physics. He completed minors in English and Astrophysics, and he performed research at the Texas A&M Cyclotron Institute during his senior year. In the Spring of 2023 he graduated with a Bachelors of Science in Physics with the honor of Summa Cum Laude. In the Fall of 2023, he began his studies as a graduate student at Texas A&M in the Nuclear Engineering department and joined AESL. He is a recipient of the Aviles-Johnson Fellowship, and plans to graduate with his PhD in 2028.

Rowan Johnson

Originally from Weatherford, TX, Rowan Johnson started his time at Texas A&M University in 2019 as an undergraduate student. At that time, his focus on research varied from machine learning applications in cube satellite image recognition to applications in nuclear materials safeguards. He has also held an internship at Y-12 National Security Complex in the area of nuclear criticality safety and an internship at Los Alamos National Laboratory in the area of international safeguards and non-proliferation. After graduating with his BS (2023) in nuclear engineering, he decided to pursue a graduate degree in the same department. His research interests include nuclear criticality experimental design as well as simulation, utilizing both stochastic and deterministic methods.

Seray Cerezo

Seray Cerezo is a graduate student under Dr. Tsvetkov working on Systematic Uncertainty Quantification in nuclide concentrations from MCNP fuel burnup simulations. She earned a Master of Science in nuclear engineering with a nuclear nonproliferation specialization in May of 2024. She previously graduated with a Bachelor of Science in nuclear engineering from Texas A&M in May 2022.

Claire Lewis

Claire is a Class of 2026 undergraduate engineer in the Department of Nuclear Engineering. She grew up just outside of Houston, Texas where she was able to learn about nuclear energy and grow her passion for physics. She is interested in pursuing a career in reactor design or safety.

Harrison Herndon

Harrison is a Class of 2026 undergraduate engineer in the Department of Nuclear Engineering. Born and raised in Houston, Texas, he developed an interest in nuclear energy and physics. He is currently interested in analysis studies of reactor systems.

John Ludwick

John Ludwick at the age of sixteen joined the graduating class of 2026 at the Texas A&M University and joined the Nuclear Engineering Department a year later.  Growing up surrounded by engineers fueled his passion for engineering and at a young age became fascinated by nuclear reactors. He is interested in the TRIGA Simulator project.

Sydney Ballard

Sydney Ballard is an undergraduate student in the Department of Nuclear Engineering, Class of 2026. Originally from Del Rio, Texas, she is pursuing a degree in nuclear engineering with a minor in sociology. Sydney’s research focuses on the intersection of socioeconomics and demographics to identify optimal locations for building nuclear reactors.

Chris Walk

Chris is a Class of 2027 undergraduate student currently attending Georgia State University for a bachelor’s degree in computer science after obtaining an associate degree at Eastern Florida State College in 2022. He is currently assisting the Advanced Energy Systems Laboratory, where he is currently utilizing code to create a local AI chatbot with the use of MCP tools for researchers to use to assist them in finding relevant documents from the NRC ADAMS database alongside google searching. He also has experience in creating Graphical User Interfaces (GUIs) through which he assisted Georgia Tech in 2024-2025 at their LANNS lab.

Timothy Davila

Timothy is an undergraduate nuclear engineering student in the class of 2026. Originally from San Antonio, Texas, Timothy developed an interest in nuclear engineering after his first year at Texas A&M and his interest in the field has only grown as he learned more and more about it. He is primarily interested in the nuclear safety field, specifically risk assessment and accident analysis.

Joseph Wolf

Joseph Wolf is from Houston, Texas, and is an undergraduate nuclear engineer (Class of 2027) with minors in Engineering Project Management and Radiological Health. His research involves exploring the deployment process for nuclear reactors and identifying, analyzing, and quantifying trends and delays/procedural bottlenecks in nuclear energy projects during the pre-application phase.