Patrick earned his Ph.D. in mechanical and aerospace engineering in 2008 at the University of Virginia. His research proposal for the Truman Fellowship, “Interfacial Electron and Phonon Scattering Processes in High-powered Nanoscale Applications,” investigates the effects of electron and phonon boundary scattering in structurally imperfect regions at interfaces involving both traditional and novel nanostructures used in high-powered nanoelectronic and energy conversion applications.
Systems of interest include solid-state nanostructures, metal films, and metal-semiconductor interfaces. In addition, the experimental capabilities will provide thermal transport diagnostics for Sandia. The modeling will provide codes and analyses for other groups to predict thermal transport in exotic materials.
The research is separated into three thrusts:
“The Truman Fellowship program has given me a unique opportunity to independently investigate various aspects of condensed matter and solid-state physics related to nanoscale thermal transport. With this fellowship, I have been able to work with several state-of-the-art systems and design original experimental setups to test various aspects of thermal transport in thin films and nanocomposites. In addition, through collaboration with Sandia scientists and engineers, I have expanded my modeling and theoretical studies to aspects of physics related to nanoscale heat transfer that I otherwise would not have explored.
The opportunities that I have been given as part of this program are unrivaled. As this Fellowship program allows me to pursue my independent proposed research project, I continue to research in an area of physics and engineering that I am greatly interested in while still expanding my knowledge through various interactions and collaborations around Sandia.”
Truman Fellows regularly contribute to relevant technical publications as part of their work. Patrick has the following refereed publication accomplishments:
Bryan earned his Ph.D. in biochemistry at the University of Texas at Austin in 2007. His research proposal for the Truman Fellowship, “Development and Characterization of 3D, Nano-Confined Multicellular Constructs for Advanced Biohybrid Devices,” builds upon recent breakthroughs in cell encapsulation and 3-D biocompatible microfabrication to build foundational technologies employing cellular machinery for use as sensors and actuators in artificial systems.
Bryan’s research will provide Sandia with a new and unique technology for building almost any structure with proteins. He developed his own research program in optical molecular biology and pioneered a new technique for making arbitrary, three-dimensional microstructures by employing multiphoton-induced chemistry to the photo-crosslinking of proteins. The uses for these three-dimensional protein structures are only now being explored and the possibilities seem groundbreaking, from studying cell signaling to developing new sensor technologies based on living cells. Bryan's research impacts nanotechnology, microfluidics, sensors, cell signaling, and photochemistry.
“The Truman Fellowship is a one of a kind opportunity to direct a high-risk research program at the postdoctoral level, and for myself, a chance to chart new territory in the development of materials and device systems comprised of living and non-living components. The robust integration of biological systems into materials and devices may enable a broad range of applications such as extreme environmental sensing, biocomputation, bioenergy conversion, and artificial tissue fabrication. Nevertheless, the challenges are both exciting and daunting.
Sandia is a fun and truly rewarding place to work, with world-class facilities and expertise. I would encourage any recent graduates seeking a chance to pioneer new and potentially high-impact ideas to look into the unique opportunity the Truman Fellowship has to offer ”
Truman Fellows regularly contribute to relevant technical publications as part of their work. Bryan has the following refereed publication accomplishments:
Anatole earned his Ph.D. at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Lausanne in 2005 and has held postdoctoral appointments at University of California, Los Angeles, New York University, and the Max-Planck Institute (Germany). His research proposal for the Truman Fellowship, “Multiscale schemes for the predictive description and virtual engineering of materials,” brings together skills he’s acquired in the course of his scientific development for the virtual design of tailored materials.
“This fellowship is providing me with the exceptional opportunity to independently assemble a wide variety of computational tools, physical theories, and well-controlled assumptions in order to identify chemical compounds with targeted characteristics. As the number of potentially stable compounds is mind-bogglingly large, such an endeavor can also be viewed as attempting to tailor materials by leveraging sophisticated optimization algorithms in a challengingly structured space of candidates.
It has been great to realize that Sandia does not only provide generous funding to pursue my proposed research, it also offers a stimulating and exciting scientific working environment and infrastructure, allowing me to frequently interact with, and gather crucial insights and advice from, many other highly trained scientists.”
Ilke holds B.S. and M.S. degrees in physics from the University of Illinois-Chicago and a Ph.D. in physics from the University of California, Davis. Her research at Sandia focuses on the implementation and application of advanced techniques in the electron microscope to understand the structure-property relationships of semiconductor nanomaterials.
“I've been a Truman Fellow at Sandia for nine months, and it has provided me with a tremendous learning experience so far. My research focuses on understanding the fundamental properties of semiconductor nanostructures, such as GaN and other multi-shell nitride-based nanowires, by using atomic-resolution electron microscopy, three-dimensional electron tomography, and compositional analysis using high-energy-resolution spectroscopic methods in the microscope.
Being a Truman Fellow is not like anything else I experienced as a graduate student or a supervised postdoc. For the first time, I was given the freedom to choose the projects I want to work on, and I get to decide where to go with them next. Although I have had excellent guidance from my mentor and manager whenever I needed it, the atmosphere is very different from a standard position in which you work primarily on other people's ideas. It is a chance to make the transition from student to independent researcher in a nurturing environment, yet still a challenge to come up with good ideas and begin to build a strong program.
The high level of science and intellect around me every day at Sandia is helping me to not only grow as a scientist, but also acts as a standard to aim for and live up to myself. I have made several new fantastic collaborations with researchers in both Sandia/California and Sandia/New Mexico, all of whom have taught me a lot, and they are never too busy to discuss my latest results or ideas with me. Overall, working at Sandia has been an extremely positive experience for me thus far, and I am really looking forward to the next two years.”
David holds a B.S. and Ph.D .in materials science from Pennsylvania State University. He was a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellow from 2001 to 2004. His current research involves investigating the piezoelectric and electrical properties of zinc oxide nanostructures.
“I have now been at Sandia for about a year and a half — how the time has flown! It has been a great experience so far. The fellowship has allowed me to build upon my base of skills acquired during my dissertation research and leverage that to move into a new area of research, which is very rewarding. I have been exploring the material properties of zinc oxide nanostructures, specifically the piezoelectric and electrical transport properties. These materials provide an ideal test bed for studying material properties and vibrations in nanostructures, and will be used in ultrasensitive detectors for chemical and biological species.
The newness of the research area for me has given me lots of opportunities to talk to different scientists and engineers in different disciplines. The joy of working at Sandia is the ability to walk down the hall and talk to an expert in almost any given field. I directly benefit from several world-class research groups that do everything from nanostructure growth to materials characterization. The mentoring and collaborative atmosphere at the Labs is helping me grow as a scientist. Additionally, the access to facilities and equipment is amazing, the great library and online resources are immensely helpful, and the support that Sandia provides to present research at technical conferences is refreshing.
It is particularly rewarding to be pursuing research that I initially proposed. The freedom to explore the challenges and opportunities as they arise is very fulfilling. My time here has been very challenging and enjoyable, and I look forward to another two years of focused research.”
Youssef holds B.S., M.S., and Ph.D. degrees from MIT. His research at Sandia (in the Reacting Flow Research Department) has focused on Bayesian inference for inverse problems and optimization, with applications to fluid dynamics, source inversion, and gene regulatory networks.
“I've been a Truman Fellow at Sandia for just under one year, and thus far it's been a great experience. The fellowship has provided the opportunity to move my research into new areas, beyond what I investigated in my doctoral thesis, and that process has been both exciting and a lot of hard work. My research is focused on Bayesian inference for inverse problems—casting problems of inference from noisy real-world data and uncertain models in a rigorous probabilistic framework, and developing computational tools to make this possible on the large-scale systems that are simulated here at the Labs.
I've benefited a great deal from the mentorship of several colleagues at Sandia, whether on day-to-day issues or on broader questions of how to guide my research. And I've also learned a great deal through technical discussions with staff in my own department and in others; in fact, these have been quite invaluable as I encounter unfamiliar terrain. I almost always find that people are willing to go to the white board and think about a problem together, or to share their own experience with a research challenge that I've come upon in my work. Even simple things like recommending books and frequently passing along journal articles have created a climate of shared inquiry that has been stimulating and motivating.
Working at Sandia has also afforded many other resources for facilitating research: access to large computer systems, the opportunity to present my work at conferences around the world, a responsive technical library, and support for inviting guest speakers and external visitors.
Beyond that, my first year has seen a few other transitions: commuting instead of biking or walking to work, giving up cold Boston winters for mild California temperatures all year-round. All in all, it's been a tremendously positive experience, and I look forward to my next two years as a Truman Fellow.”
Gregory received his bachelor’s degree from Utah State University and his master’s and Ph.D. from MIT. His research at Sandia is a continuation of his doctoral research and focuses on implementing and refining a new actuation technique for MEMS switches that will allow switching speeds 10 to 1,000 times faster than current MEMS devices. Gregory invented and developed the theory for the technique as part of his thesis. He works in the MEMS Devices & Reliability Physics Department.
“The Truman Fellowship has provided me with a truly unique experience. It has given me the opportunity to think about, explore, and apply the research I initially proposed in an environment of very capable people with expertise in a wide variety of fields, and with facilities and equipment that are among the best available in microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) research in the world.
As I have pursued my work under the fellowship, a number of people around the labs and in a variety of departments have given me valuable advice and feedback and have provided avenues for me to explore applications of my proposed work. The MEMS designers here at Sandia have been an important resource for me as I have worked to optimize the mechanical structure and the control systems for my devices. The process engineers associated with the microfabrication facilities have provided significant contributions as I’ve worked with them to create the custom process flows required to optimize the performance of my proposed devices.
One of the most important aspects of any research for me is whether or not the research is going to have an impact. That is, will there be an application for it at the end of the day. I’ve had the pleasure of working with several different people on finding applications for my work and have been encouraged at the success we’ve already had in finding important ways that the work supported by the fellowship may have an impact in a variety of applications at Sandia.
In addition to the exceptional people who I’ve had the opportunity to work with, I have been very pleased at the excellent microfabrication and test facilities available here at Sandia. It would be difficult to find better microfabrication facilities for MEMS research than what is available here. By allowing me access to Sandia’s facilities and people, the fellowship has made it possible for me to achieve unprecedented levels of performance from my devices.
Finally, one aspect of my experience with the fellowship that I didn’t anticipate was the opportunity to view Sandia National Laboratories from a unique vantage point. The fellowship has allowed me to meet and visit with people from all levels within Sandia and to see the workings of many departments and centers within the labs. It has been extremely interesting to me to see how Sandia is adapting to the changing role the nation is asking the national labs to play.
Overall, the fellowship has been a really interesting and motivating experience for me. I’ve had many opportunities for personal and professional growth, have been able to interact with exceptional people, have been able to demonstrate MEMS performance never before attained with my research, and have been exposed to the inner workings of the labs in ways I didn’t anticipate. It has so far been a really valuable opportunity for me and I look forward to the experiences awaiting me in the remaining two years.”
