REU Alumni

Summer 2024 Participants

REU 2024 group photo

Jake Abraham, Haverford College
Calculating the Wavefunction of Hydrogen in Momentum Space using Spherical Coordinates (J. Freericks)

Hadi Benkorah, Northern Virginia Community College
Analyzing Magnetic Interactions using Machine Learning (A. Liu)

Carly Healy, University of Mary Washington
Ro-vibrational Spectroscopy for Quantum Mechanics (J. Freericks)

Annabel Johnson, University of Alabama at Birmingham
Silk Fibroin Microspheres for Synthetic Lung Surfactant Delivery in Premature Infants Photon (M. Paranjape)

Sunny Kang, Worcester Polytechnic Institute
Simulating Single Photon Mach-Zehnder Interferometer on IBM’s Quantum Computers (J. Freericks)

Jamie Talmor, Oberlin College
Crystal Structure Determination of a Novel Cocrystal Phenoxazine:TCNQ (E. Van Keuren)

Huy Tran, University of Florida
Fermi Surface Transport Property Calculation Using Quantum Geometry (G. Yin)

Summer 2023 Participants

REU 2023 participants

Abigail Hancock, University of Houston
Quantitatively Analyzing the Ordering of the Sediment of Colloidal Rods (J. Urbach)

Aliya Kaplan, Virginia Tech
Exploration of Electrodeposited High Entropy Alloy Thin Films (K. Liu)

Christine Kinzfogl, Colby College
Optical Excitations of 2D Materials on Patterned Substrates
(P. Barbara)

Bennett Lamb, University of Virginia
Constructing a Factorization Chain for an Anharmonic Superpotential
(J. Freericks)

Anna Mazhar, Columbia University
Single Shot Factorization with the Confluent Hypergeometric Functions
(J. Freericks)

Vy Le, Pennsylvania State University
Cost-Efficient Carbon Monoxide Sensor Design Using Nanoscale MoS2 and Copper
(M. Paranjape)

Gabriel Pickard, Colgate University
Analysis of Pre-Spinodal Fluctuations in Aqueous Solutions
(E. Van Keuren)

Ramkrishna Sharma, Northern Virginia Community College
Constructing a Factorization Chain for an Anharmonic Superpotential
(J. Freericks)

Summer 2022 Participants

REU 2022 participants

Samuel Becker, University of Rochester
Fluorescence Correlation Spectroscopy Study of Nanocapsules (E. Van Keuren)

Samuel Felsenfeld, University of Maryland
Transport Through Mn12-Coated Graphene Quantum Dots (A. Liu)

Paola Gomez, Bates College
Yielding and Flow Cessation in Model Soft Solids (E. Del Gado)

Livia Guttieres, University of Chicago
Computational Projects with the Landau-Zener Problem for Quantum Instruction (J. Freericks)

Thomas Hulse, University of Louisville
Electrodeposition of Copper-Manganese onto Porous Nanowire Foams (K. Liu)

Shannon Markward, Towson University
Order and Disorder in Sediments of Colloidal Rods (J. Urbach)

Joseph Noonan, Michigan State University
Generalized Rodrigues formula for wavefunctions (J. Freericks)

Benjamin Sailors, University of Pennsylvania
Epitaxial CVD Growth of MoS2/WS2 Heterostructures for Devices (P. Barbara)

Andrew Schwartz, Rutgers University
Multiport Magnetotranport in a Magnetic Network (G. Yin)

Kristina Trifonova, Emory University
Investigating Confined Water in the Stratum Corneum Lipid Matrix (P. Olmsted)

Summer 2021 Participants

Bradley Fugetta,* Georgetown University
Designing Better Magnets: Simulating Hysteresis Loops for Image Classification via Machine Learning (A. Liu, G. Yin)

Morgan Hale, Roanoke College
Simulating Single Molecule Magnet Mn12 on Graphene with a Vacancy Defect (A. Liu)

Melis Jensen, Loyola University Chicago
Analyzing a Quantum Mechanics MOOC (L. Doughty)

Hansen Lian,* Georgetown University
Visualizing Wave-Particle Duality (J. Freericks)

Catherine McCarthy,* Georgetown University
Modeling Ion-Specific Effects in Cement Alternatives (E. Del Gado)

Alessandro Orjuela, Bowdoin College
Operator-Based Derivation of the Time Evolution of a Gaussian Wave Packet in Free Space (J. Freericks)

Nelly Lin-Schweitzer, Williams College
Three Types of Image Fusion: Highlighting Effects of Novel Contrast Agents in Mouse Brains (E. Van Keuren)

*Supported by other funds

2019

REU 2019 group photo

Summer 2019 Participants

Abigail Firme, University of Wyoming
Hydroxide-based magneto-ionics (K. Liu)

Andrew Fitzgerald, Stonehill College
Modeling co-crystal formation in solution (Van Keuren)

Michael Johnson, Arizona State University
The driven Hubbard model connected to a dissipative bath (Freericks)

Joseph Lee, Columbia University
Quantum algorithms for quantum chemistry (Freericks)

Eva Pontrelli, Boston College
Ion-selective electrodes for blood-free potassium sensing (Paranjape)

Mike Rushka,* Georgetown University
A complete algebraic solution of the simple harmonic oscillator (Freericks)

Evan Strong, St. Olaf College
Nonuniform flows of cellulose nanocrystal glass (Urbach)

Emily Waite, Cornell University
Moving towards highly oriented WS2 growth (Barbara)

Kelly Watanabe, Claremont McKenna College
Giardia lamblia growth in viscoelastic fluids (Urbach, Elmendorf)

Timothy Willard, North Carolina State University
Interactions of carbon nanotube vacancy defects with gas molecules (A. Liu)

* Supported by other funds

2018

REU 2018 group photo

Summer 2018 Participants

Roman Alvarado, University of Wisconsin River Falls
Characterization of ventral flagellar beating in Giardia lamblia (Urbach)

Aidan Burleson, Georgia College and State University
Demonstrating the simplest driven dissipative quantum system and preparing it to run on a quantum computer (Freericks)

Autumn Cook, University of Maryland Baltimore County
The rheology and dynamics of active matter suspensions (Blair)

Hannah Fejzic, California State University San Bernadino
Organic charge transfer crystal preparation and characterization (Van Keuren)

Cecile Noirot,* ESPCI
Molecular dynamics to model the structuring of colloidal suspensions (Del Gado)

Ava Self, Pennsylvania State University
Traction forces generated by colloidally reprogrammed cells (Urbach)

Kaila Trawitzki, New Jersey Institute of Technology

Zachary Wall, Rhodes College
Quantum chemistry on quantum computers (Freericks)

Eli Weissler, Harvey Mudd College
Creating thermal states on a quantum computer (Freericks)

* Supported by other funds

2017

REU 2017 group

Summer 2017 Participants

Jonathan Boretsky,* McGill University
New proof of Hubbard model spin and pseudospin towers (Freericks)

Alexis Braunrot, Wesleyan University
Mechanism of attachment for Giardia lamblia (Urbach, Elmendorf)

Armando Cardenas, Arizona State University
Single-layered molybdenum disulfide/graphene photodetectors on flexible substrates (Barbara)

Suchintak Dash,* KIIT University (Khorana Scholar)
Ion-selective membrane functionalized carbon nanotubes (Paranjape)

Jesse Hsu, Ithaca College
Surface-crosslinked polymer nanoparticles as vessels for MRI contrast agents (Van Keuren)

Matthew Ishimaru, Brown University
Adapting PNIPAM polymer for immunology research (Blair)

Cameron Kuchta, Beloit College
Endothelial gap growth (Del Gado)

Mary Korendyke, St. Mary’s College of Maryland
Calculating the vibrational spectra of 2H-TaS2 (Liu)

Chris Quinones, Carnegie Mellon University
Simulation of active fluids (Olmsted)

Nicole Voce, James Madison University
Defective carbon nanotubes as sensors for biomolecular detection (Paranjape)

Forest Yang, U. C. Berkeley
Keldysh quantum computing (Freericks)

* Supported by other funds

2016

2016 REU alumni

Summer 2016 Participants

Iman Ahmed, Howard University
Nanoparticle fabrication using gold dewetting and chitosan nebulization (Paranjape)

Shankar Balasubramanian, MIT
Time-evolved Wilson molecule algorithm (Freericks)

Joshua Carr, Roanoke College
Temperature dependence of vibrational modes in two-dimensional transition metal dichalcogenides (Barbara)

Charles Dawson, Harvey Mudd College
Chaotic mechanisms of self-healing and the glass transition in active particle systems (Egolf)

Angel Gutarra-Leon, Northern Virginia Community College/George Mason University
Using a fluid chamber to measure the deformation of soft gels (Urbach)

Samantha Hung, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
Structural and electrical properties of PTZ-TCNQ (Van Keuren)

Katrina Raichle, Ursinus College
Self-assembly properties of rods and helices on the air-water interface (Urbach)

Amanda Ratajczak, Dickinson College
Temperature dependence of transition-metal-dichalcogenide vibrational properties (Liu)

Gabrielle Roberts, Yale University
Non-homogeneous flow behaviors in dense emulsions (Del Gado)

Daniel Rosen, Shippensburg University
Fabrication of a PVDF(-TrFE) piezoelectric nanofiber generator (Paranjape)

2015

2015 REU alumni

Summer 2015 Participants

Kahlil Dixon, Howard University
Designing mixtures of ultracold atoms with higher temperature transition to ordered checkerboard ordered phases (Freericks)

Abigael Furman, University of Alabama

Hyun Jae (Michael) Lim, Harvard University
Can a diabatically driven quantum simulator be described with an effective temperature? (Freericks)

Gavriel Kleinwaks, Haverford College
Piezoelectric response of aligned PVDF nanofibers (Paranjape)

Rebecca McCann, University of Arkansas
Thickness dependence of vibrational spectra in 2D tantalum disulfide (Liu)

Daniel O’Brien, Holy Cross College
Biomedical nanofiber scaffolds formed by electrospinning and STRAND spinning technique (Paranjape)

Robert Smith, New College of Florida
Preparation and characterization of organic charge-transfer crystals (Van Keuren)

Cameron Togrye, Vanderbilt University
Computation approach to cell recognition and flagellar frequency determination in Giardia Lamblia (Urbach)

Qing Wong, University of Central Florida
CVD growth of single-layer MoS2 and graphene in heterostructured devices (Barbara)

2014

2014 REU alumni

Summer 2014 Participants

Haley Bauser, College of William and Mary
Creating Organic Solar Cells Made from Titanyl Phthalocyanine Nanoparticles and Semiconducting Polymers (Barbara, Zhang)

Liliana Frye, Vassar College
Nano co-crystallization of carbamazepine and saccharin by reprecipitation (Van Keuren)

Keenan Hunt-Stone, Howard University
Rheological Properties of Suspensions of Bacterial Flagella (Urbach)

Nick Johnson, University of Alabama
Fast Adiabatic Passage in Ion Trap Quantum Simulators (Freericks)

Arianna Levitt, Cornell University
Entrapment of Glucose Oxidase in Conductive Nanofibers for Glucose Sensors (Paranjape)

Sarah Moran, Barnard College
Electronic Properties of 2D Transition Metal Dichalcogenide (TMD) Bilayers (Liu)

Elizabeth Nance, St. Mary’s College of Maryland
Gelation of Poly(methyl Methacrylate) Particles (Blair)

Forbes Turley, Vanderbilt University
Dry-Spinning Fabrication of a Tissue Scaffold (Paranjape)

Joseph Woo, Rutgers University
Characterization of the Backbone Rigidity of Semiconducting Polymers (Zhang)

Jim Wu, Harvey Mudd College
Fabrication of Polydimethylsiloxane Surfaces for Traction Force Microscopy of Collagen (Urbach)

2013

2013 REU alumni

Summer 2013 Participants

Roxanne Accola, University of Wisconsin in Eau Claire
Nanoparticle use in multimodal MRI image fusion (Van Keuren)

Jake Cohen, University of Pennsylvania
Characterization of PDMS as a substrate for collagen networks (Blair)

Ariel Ekblaw, Yale University
Motility of Giardia Lamblia in viscoelastic mucus (Urbach)

Franklin Feingold, Clark University
How surface waves affect oil and gel layers (Blair)

Edward Moan, Bates College
Electrons, phonons, and superconductivity in hole-doped single-layer MoS2 (Liu)

Patrick Smith, University of San Diego
Rheology of concentrated DNA suspensions (Urbach)

Marybeth Stork, Washington University in St. Louis
Equilibrium positions and phonon modes in an ion Paul trap (Freericks)

Farheen Syeda, Loyola University of Chicago
Development of water-insoluble electrically conductive nanofibers (Paranjape)

2011

2011 REU alumni

Summer 2011 Participants

Marian Ackun-Farmmer, George Washington University
Evidence of shape dependence in MRI contrast agents (Van Keuren)

Mattias Fitzpatrick, Middlebury College
Quench dynamics in integrable quantum systems (Rigol)

David Gold, Grinnell College
Nanocomposite networks of SU-8 rods (Urbach)

Eileen Haffner, Hartwick College
Redesigning the Georgetown glucose sensor microheaters (Paranjape)

Adam Keith, North Carolina State University
Theory for quantum simulation with cold ions in a Penning trap (Freericks)

Jacquelyn Lewis, New York University
BC3 functionalized by Li for H2 storage (Liu)

Andrew McVicker, Elon University
Yield properties of oil-water emulsions (Blair)

Nikhil Prakash, Duke University
Immobilization of C-reactive protein antibody on PDMS for the development of a microfluidic chip with a sandwich ELISA (Paranjape)

Kayla Spector, College of New Jersey
Stiffening in collagen networks due to repeated step stress: collagen holds a grudge (Blair)

Olha Townsend, Connecticut College
Mechanical guidance in neuron growth (Urbach)

2010

2010 REU alumni

Summer 2010 Participants

Maxell Micali, Yale University
Piezoelectrics and their novel applications (Paranjape)

Stephanie Miller, Loyola University of Chicago
Carbon nanotube growth and application as gas sensors (Barbara)

Katherine Sage, Loyola University of Chicago
Nanoparticle formation by reprecipitation (Van Keuren)

Quentin Sherman, Haverford College
Hydrogen storage on Ca-coated boron fullerenes (Liu)

Alan Tabatabai, Gonzaga University
Fibrous silk e-gel creation (Blair)

Colleen Treado, University of Massachusetts
Mechanics of cancer cell migration through 3D networks (McAllister, Urbach)

Paul Vines, Roanoke College
Switching speed of carbon nanotube memory devices (Barbara)

Lorraine Weis, Olin College
Optical power limiting of hyperbranched polymers (Van Keuren)