MSE News and Events
Prof. Daniel Gall receives the Bill Sproul Award and Honorary ICMCTF lectureship from the Advanced Surface Engineering Division of the Americal Vacuum Society for outstanding scientific and/or technological contributions in the fields of surface engineering, thin films, and related topics.
Edwin Fohtung and coworkers demonstrate an X-ray Bragg coherent diffractive imaging technique to spatially resolve the evolution of nanoscopic ferroelastic needle-like domains in individual BaTiO3 nanocrystals under external pressure, published in the May 2020 issue of Advanced Electronic Materials and selected for the back cover.
With input from our students, we have adjusted the curriculum for the ARCH Summer 2020 semester to focus on skill sets that can be developed remotely including data dexterity, modeling, simulations and engineering math techniques. Laboratory-intensive courses previously scheduled for the summer will now be offered in the Spring and Fall 2021 semesters.
Prof. Liping Huang has been selected to became a fellow of the American Ceramics Society in recognition of her contributions to fundamental understanding of atomic structure and mechanical behavior of amorphous materials.
Professor Pawel Keblinski was named 2020 Materials Research Society Fellow for influential contributions to the development of computational methods leading to fundamental understanding of thermal transport in materials on nanometer length scales.
Institute News
Self-Built Protein Coatings Could Improve Biomedical Devices
Fouling is a natural phenomenon that describes the tendency of proteins in water to adhere to nearby surfaces. It’s what causes unwanted deposits of protein to form during some food production or on biomedical implants, causing them to fail. Researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute are harnessing this process, which is typically considered a persistent challenge, to develop a versatile and accessible approach for modifying solid surfaces.
Fouling is a natural phenomenon that describes the tendency of proteins in water to adhere to nearby surfaces. It’s what causes unwanted deposits of protein to form during some food production or on biomedical implants, causing them to fail. Researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute are harnessing this process, which is typically considered a persistent challenge, to develop a versatile and accessible approach for modifying solid surfaces.
Bacteria May Be the Key To Understanding the Health of Aquatic Ecosystems
The surface of a pristine, transparent freshwater lake may not reveal to ecologists the reality of what’s occurring in its depths. Evaluating the cumulative effects of climate change, pollutants, acidification, or invasive species requires more precise methods. But even the most dynamic and sensitive sensors commonly used today are not always able to tell researchers what they need to know.
Polymerized Estrogen Provides Neuroprotection in Preclinical Testing
A novel form of polymerized estrogen developed at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute can provide neuroprotection when implanted at the site of a spinal cord injury — preventing further damage. This promising result, found in a preclinical model, was recently published in ACS Chemical Neuroscience, and it lays the groundwork for further advancement of this new biomaterial.
Rise of Connected Autonomous Vehicles Will Require New Models for Managing Traffic
Future roads will likely carry autonomous vehicles that communicate with one another in a system where vehicles relay information — like destination, speed, or upcoming lane change — and then receive real-time feedback about decisions like route changes necessary to avoid traffic.