Dr. Rian Bahran serves as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Nuclear Reactors, leading a broad portfolio spanning research, development, demonstration, and deployment of advanced nuclear reactors, as well as technologies essential to sustaining and strengthening the nation’s commercial nuclear fleet.

A career member of the Senior Executive Service, Dr. Bahran began at Los Alamos National Laboratory, where he spent more than a decade as an experimentalist and program manager. He later served across multiple administrations as a senior advisor to the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy, providing strategic guidance on nuclear policy, energy security, homeland defense, and resilience. For his service, he received the Secretary of Defense Medal for Exceptional Public Service.

He also served in the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy as Assistant Director for Nuclear Technology and Strategy, leading policy development on nuclear fission and fusion energy, national security applications, and emerging technologies to strengthen resilience and global competitiveness.

Dr. Bahran holds a Ph.D. in nuclear science and engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, where his doctoral research was funded by U.S. Naval Reactors in support of the Knolls Atomic Power Laboratory Advanced Reactor Program. He also earned dual bachelor’s degrees in nuclear engineering and engineering physics from RPI.