Chemistry & Physics students can conduct research in collaboration with faculty research through several programs, including the Welch Scholar Program, UGROW and EURECA. Research areas for faculty are listed below, along with a faculty contact link.
Chemistry Research
Dr. Hallford's students work on the development of high-level inorganic-organometallic ab initio analysis and investigations with computed thermodynamic and spectroscopic analysis. These projects have focused in the combined area of inorganic-organometallic computational methods and spectroscopic analysis of phthalocyanine precursor moieties in collaborative work with Dr. Chris Hansen and Dr. Jianguo Shao. The particular interest is in catalytic development for the reduction of DDT in contaminated biospheres.
Dr. Hallford is also a member of the Non-Linear Research group headed by Assistant Professor of Physics Dr. Preet Sharma. Non-linear phenomena are common in living systems and, in particular, failures of these systems. Investigation is principally theoretical biophysics with some computational components.
Dr. Hansen's students work in several areas of organic synthesis primarily targeting small molecules. Examples include the synthesis of aryl substituted methylene malonates and macrocyclic and substituted azadipyrromethenes. Molecules are studied for their electrochemical properties and use in catalytic dechlorination of chlorine-containing chemicals.
Dr. Liang's students work in the elucidation of biochemical and biophysical properties of protein molecules with primary focus on protein aggregation-prone diseases such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's. Research involves protein purification using fast-protein liquid chromatography (FPLC) and protein characterization by SDS-PAGE, Western blotting, fluorescence microplate reading, NMR spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy. Other research involves evolution of chaperone, protein targeting and translocation across cellular membranes.
Dr. Machunis-Masuoka holds joint appointments in biology and chemistry. Her students use biochemical tools to study the spread of antibiotic-resistance genes among migrant and resident bird populations. The lab focuses primarily on investigating the correlation between metabolic and genetic diversity in gut bacteria and the manifestation of resistance phenotypes in birds.
Dr. Shao's students work in the electrochemistry and spectroelectrochemistry of macrocyclic phthalocyanines, porphyrins, porphyrazines and corroles. The lab also explores the use of these macrocyclic molecules in the electro-catalytic dechlorination of chlorine-containing pesticides.
Physics Research
Research InterestsThe research is focused on the synthesis of carbon nanotubes, graphene, and semiconductor thin films, 3D nanomaterials and dye synthesized solar cells (DSSC) examining their useful physical properties, and modifying those properties for practical applications in mechanical, electronic, and optoelectronic devices. Interest in other aspects of the nanotechnology field of study include environmental, industrial, biological, and medical applications. Emphasis is in a particular electrodeposition, Sol-gel Processes, Sputtering, Chemical Bath Deposition (CBD), Atomic Layer Deposition (ALD), Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD), Autoclave, and other low temperature or solution-based approaches for semiconductors used in electronics, optoelectronics, and energy applications.
Work with an undergraduate student on their senior research project on reducing the bandgap of nanomaterial thin film; Cu2O, ZnO, CdS, etc.
Current/Previous Research:
- Processing CNTs and Graphene
- Processing and testing CdS Nanogenerators
- Processing and testing device applicable CNTs, Graphene, CdS, Cu2O, TiO2, ZnO, NiO, AZO
- Processing and testing polymers, Pyrrole, Thiophene, PEDOT-PSS, and Aniline
Technique/Device Experience:
Hands-on experience includes work with Oxygen Plasma Etching, Device Characterization. Photoluminescence Spectroscopy (room temperature and low temperature), Hall Effect and Resistivity, UV-Vis Spectroscopy (reflection, transmission, and absorption), X-Ray Diffraction, Raman Spectroscopy, Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA), and Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM).
High Energy Particle Physics
𝜏-CP violation: CP violation in the SM is restricted to the quark sector and is forbidden in lepton decays. Moreover, the SM explanation of CP violation does not fully account for the large discrepancy between matter and anti-matter in the present universe. However, extensions to the SM, do permit CP violations in 𝜏 decay. Searching or CP-violating decays in the lepton sector may help identify the missing contribution to the matter-antimatter asymmetry in the Universe. Among the three charged leptons, CP violation with the 𝜏 lepton has not been extensively studied. Hence searches for CP violation in 𝜏 decays are interesting probes for new physics scenarios. In the SM, the decay of the 𝜏 lepton to final states containing a KS 0 will exhibit a nonzero decay rate asymmetry due to CP violation in K 0 − K̄ 0 mixing.
Non-Equilibrium Physics of Complex Systems/Biosystems
The world of physics, as we generally talk about, is the collaboration of ideas and concepts which are very logically explicable. In other words, when we talk about physics, we generally tend to point towards equilibrium physics. This is the physics of macroscopic systems in a stable state which are very beautifully defined by smooth systems with the very minimum or no disturbance or fluctuations. In reality, this is far from the truth. The systems which we deal with everyday are non-equilibrium systems. Non-equilibrium systems are usually characterized by the presence of a current, which is associated with the motion of particles or energy carriers. However, even when these systems evolve to a steady state, their dynamics can be complex, with anomalous properties and statistical fluctuations dominating the average behaviors.
Understanding the non-equilibrium is considered a basic challenge in an authoritative report issued in 2007 by the Department of Energy of the United States with the significant title Directing Matter and Energy: Five Challenges for Science and the Imagination. Most of the processes that characterize energy flow occur far from equilibrium. These range from very large systems, such as weather patterns or ocean currents that remain far from equilibrium owing to an influx of energy, to biological structures from humans to horseflies whose very existence requires the maintenance of non-equilibrium conditions through the consumption of energy.
Programming Languages: Python, R-programming, Mathematica, FeynCalc, CalcHEP