Ghashami looks to harness excess heat in next-gen nanoelectronics

The tiny electronic parts and pieces situated within smartphones, laptops, and more can experience large amounts of excess heat through a process known as near-field thermal radiation. The University of Nebraska–Lincoln’s Mohammad Ghashami is studying this phenomenon in-depth, paving the way for strategies that would control and transform excess heat into an asset that could generate electricity, extend battery life and improve device efficiency. (4/14/23)

Aich aims to mitigate impact of "forever chemicals"

NCMN's newest member, Nirupam Aich, civil and environmental engineering, has gained international attention for his research using nanomaterials in water treatment processes that could remove per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances that don’t degrade easily.

“My research mainly focuses on advanced materials and advanced nanomaterials for water treatment. We look at different emerging contaminants, particularly PFAS, and how to remove them using nanotechnology and nanomaterials,” he said. “For environmental solutions, we want to make sure these nanomaterials don’t become a problem later, so that’s why we are making safer-by-design nanomaterials for water treatment and environmental limitation.” (4/11/23)

Xu earns named professorship

Xiaoshan Xu is one of nine professors awarded professorships from the Office of the Executive Vice Chancellor. Xu will be Susan J. Rosowski associate professor in physics and astronomy and in the Nebraska Center for Materials and Nanoscience. Xu conducts research on metal oxides with emphasis on quantum materials, particularly in ferroic materials involving quantum magnetism, ferroelectricity, and the magnetoelectric multiferroics. (4/5/23)

Accolades, March 2023

Shudipto Dishari, chemical and biomolecular engineering, received the Early Investigator Award from the American Chemical Society’s Division of Polymeric Materials: Science and Engineering. The award recognizes the professional accomplishments of early-career investigators who are emerging leaders in the field of polymer science and engineering across academia, industry, and national labs.
Srivatsan Kidambi, chemical and biomolecular engineering, was selected to join the 2023 Science Outside the Lab Program. The program focuses on the federal government’s relationship to science and technology, including the links between science, innovation, policy, and societal outcomes. (4/5/23)

Dishari receives award from EVC office

Shudipto Dishari, Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, is one of 23 faculty and staff to receive an award from the Office of the Executive Vice Chancellor for 2023. Dishari was honored with a College Distinguished Teaching Award, which recognizes faculty with excellence in teaching. (3/27/23)

Cui praises NUtech workshop

Bai Cui, R. Vernon McBroom Associate Professor of Mechanical and Materials Engineering, was one of many participants offering praise for the Business Model Canvas workshop hosted by NUtech Ventures. Cui, who is also co-founder of PromeMaterials LLC, said, “These workshops provide valuable opportunities for scientists such as me to learn more about how to convert research concepts into business ideas. The lectures in this workshop shared the most critical knowledge for beginners, and the class discussions helped me to refine my business plans. Also, the NUtech Ventures team has been supporting and encouraging me in the journey to commercializing some new material and manufacturing technologies developed from my lab, including 3D printing.” (3/27/23)

Dishari team developing polymers to boost hydrogen cell efficiency

Shudipto Dishari, chemical and biomolecular engineering, is leading a research team that is designing polymers to find a solution to ion transport limitations in hydrogen fuel cells by making charge-bearing ions run faster across the cells. They aim to develop new, biological ion channel-inspired ionomers to boost the movement of those charges and improve the performance of clean energy technologies to meet the cost-performance-durability targets set by the Department of Energy. (3/8/23)

New technique yielding insights, potential inhibitors of disease-related enzyme

A team led by David Berkowitz, Willa Cather Professor of chemistry, recently revealed a technique for recording the enzyme serine racemase in action, tracking its reactions, and screening for inhibitors that could influence its activity. The platform – which is also useful for studying other enzymes – will enable researchers to learn about serine racemase’s chemistry in detail and facilitates the hunt for potential pharmaceutical-grade inhibitors. (3/6/23)

Atom-thin walls could smash size, memory barriers in next-gen devices

Evgeny Tsymbal and an international team have demonstrated how to construct, control and explain the oxygen-deprived walls of a nanoscopically thin material suited to next-gen electronics. These walls can talk in several electronic dialects that could allow the devices housing them to store even more data, and they can retain their data states even if their devices turn off. Tsymbal's team published its findings in the journal Nature.

Top Sponsored Awards, December 2022

The following awards from public entities include grants of $200,000 or more between Oct. 16 and Nov. 15, 2022, as reported through NUgrant:

Patrick Dussault (chemistry), R. Powers, T. Helikar; $659,073; University of Nebraska Medical Center; Further Development of 5-AED (Androstenediol, Neumune) for the Protection from Acute Radiation Syndrome (ARS)
(2/9/23)

Berkowitz featured on Molecular Moments podcast

David Berkowitz, chemistry, was the featured guest on the Molecular Moments podcast on Jan. 6. He discussed his educational background, his involvement with the National Strategic Research Institute, his work with enzymes, how higher education has changed over the years and his participation in the Lincoln Marathon. (2/9/23)

NRIC 2023: Topology & Valley-Driven Quantum Phenomena

The 2023 Nebraska Research and Innovation Conference (NRIC) -- Topology and Valley-Driven Quantum Phenomena -- will take place Friday, March 17, at the Embassy Suites Hotel in downtown Lincoln. This all-day meeting includes invited speakers and poster sessions with EQUATE student and post-doctoral researchers. The cost to attend this event is free, however, pre-registration is required. (1/11/23)

U.S.-Issued Patents, October-December 2022

The following list includes U.S.-issued patents granted by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to NCMN researchers from Oct. 1, 2022, to Dec. 31, 2022, as reported by NUtech Ventures:

Hybrid Additive Manufacturing Method, Michael Sealy, Guru Charan, Reddy Madireddy, Haitham Hadidi, Cody Kanger - 11,491,718

Single Site Robotic Device and Related Systems and Methods, Thomas Frederick, Shane M. Farritor, Eric Markvicka, Joe Bartels, Jack Mondry - 11,529,201
(1/11/23)

Top Sponsored Awards, November 2022

The following awards from public entities include grants of $200,000 or more between Oct. 16 and Nov. 15, 2022, as reported through NUgrant:

Stephen Morin, $478,683, Department of Defense-U.S. Army Research Office, Powering Soft Actuators Directly with Small Molecule Fuels for Operational Versatility
(1/11/23)

Nebraska engineers, national labs partner on energy-related research

More than $1.4 million in funding from the U.S. Department of Energy will allow two College of Engineering teams to expand innovative energy-related research in partnership with national laboratories.

Jongwan Eun, associate professor of civil and environmental engineering; Seunghee Kim, assistant professor of civil and environmental engineering; and Yuris Dzenis, R. Vernon McBroom Professor of mechanical and materials engineering, received $675,000 over three years to investigate how inorganic microfibers can make a more resilient barrier material to improve the long-term storage capabilities of vessels that contain high-level nuclear waste and spent nuclear fuel.

Peter Sutter, professor of electrical and computer engineering, and Eli Sutter, professor of mechanical and materials engineering, received $747,387 over three years to study new classes of semiconductors for use in photovoltaics and information processing. (1/3/23)

NU Annual Report: Reducing greenhouse gas emissions

Jongwan Eun, associate professor of civil and environmental engineering, and colleague Yunwoo Nam, associate professor of community and regional planning, are studying how to remediate gas emissions from landfills with an innovative ground-covering system. They’re using a cover made from an extruded geomembrane with an ethylene vinyl-alcohol layer sandwiched between two inner, low-density polyethylene layers. The team is comparing this system in field tests to traditional covering systems made of low-density polyethylene and no covering. Read more about the project here. (12/13/22)

NU Annual Report: faculty earn CAREER Awards

NCMN faculty made up three of the seven Nebraska researchers to earn CAREER Awards in 2022. Wei Bao is working to expand access to quantum simulators. Ruiguo Yang is exploring cell-cell junctions and their link to human health. Nicole Iverson is using and developing nanosensors to detect disease. (12/13/22)

NU Annual Report: Markvicka named 2021 Innovator of the Year

Eric Markvicka, assistant professor of mechanical and materials engineering, is the Emerging Innovator of the Year for his robotics research. By combining computer and materials science knowledge, Markvicka studies how materials interact with the human body and the surrounding environment. His work has applications for wearable medical devices, biosensors, soft robotics, and multifunctional materials. The honor recognizes a researcher, often a junior faculty member, for recent innovative contributions. (12/13/22)

Top Sponsored Awards, October 2022

The following awards from public entities include grants of $200,000 or more between Sept. 16 and Oct. 15, 2022, as reported through NUgrant:

• Jongwan Eun, Yuris Dzenis, Seunghee Kim; $675,000; DOE-Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research; Development of Novel Barrier Materials for Geological Repository to Advance Long-term Storage of High-level Nuclear Waste (HLW) and Spent Nuclear Fuel (SNF)
• C. Zuhlke, G. Gogos, Siamek Nejati, Jeff Shield; $553,821; University of Nebraska Omaha; Controlling the Wetting Properties of Surfaces to Liquid Propellants using Femtosecond Laser Surface Processing with Applications to Fuel Tanks
• Peter Sutter, Eli Sutter; $747,387; DOE-EPSCoR; Tunable Few-Layer van der Waals Crystals and Heterostructures as Emerging Energy and Quantum Materials
• Alexei Gruverman; $252,000; National Science Foundation; Mechanical Control of the Electronic Properties of 2D Ferroelectrics
• Evgeny Tsymbal; $486,189; DOE; Quantum phenomena in two-dimensional ferroelectrics

EQUATE awards SEED grants

Mohammad Ghashami, mechanical and materials engineering, and Martin Centurion, physics and astronomy, were both recently awarded SEED grants from the Emergent Quantum Materials and Technologies (EQUATE) project to study quantum topics in their work. Centurion's project is titled: Characterization of the ultrafast structural response in photoexcite materials. Ghashami's project is titled: Quantum Size Effect on Radiative and Electronic Transport. (12/5/22)

College of Engineering faculty honored with new named professorships

This fall, four NCMN members from the College of Engineering have been honored with named professorships. They join the ranks of ten other faculty who have continuing professorships. Congratulations to all!

Fall 2022 New Professorships

• Jian Wang, Wilmer J. and Sally L. Hergenrader Chair of Mechanical and Materials Engineering
• Vitaly Alexandrov, Richard L. McNeel Associate Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
• Bai Cui, R. Vernon McBroom Associate Professor of Mechanical and Materials Engineering
• Ruiguo Yang, Robert F. and Myrna L. Krohn Associate Professor of Biological Engineering

• Shannon Bartelt-Hunt, Donald R. Voelte and Nancy A. Keegan Chair of Civil and Environmental Engineering
• Yuris Dzenis, R. Vernon McBroom College Professor of Mechanical and Materials Engineering
• Natale Ianno, Lott Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering
• Yongfeng Lu, Lott University Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering
• Kamlakar P. Rajurkar, Distinguished College Professor of Mechanical and Materials Engineering
• Ravi Saraf, Lowell E. and Betty L. Anderson Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
• Mathias Schubert, J.A. Woollam Distinguished Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering
• Jeffrey Shield, Robert W. Brightfelt Professor of Mechanical and Materials Engineering
• Joseph Turner, Robert W. Brightfelt Professor of Mechanical and Materials Engineering
• Hendrik Viljoen, College Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering

Scilight: Iron nanoparticles boost magnetocaloric effect

A paper authored by Chrisitan Binek, Jeff Shield, and colleagues from North Carolina A&T (NCAT) was recently published in the Journal of Applied Physics. The article "Large refrigerant capacity in superparamagnetic iron nanoparticles embedded in a thin film matrix" was also chosen by AIP's editors to be featured in a "Scilight" - a science highlight showcasing the most interesting research published in AIP Publishing Journals. NCAT was also recently awarded a $10 million grant from the Department of Energy to establish a center focused on clean energy initiatives led by paper co-author Dhananjay Kumar. (11/23/22)

Ghashami, Wang selected for Neb. EPSCoR FIRST Awards

Mohammad Ghashami and Yanan Wang were among the recipients of Nebraska EPSCoR's annual FIRST Awards. Funded by the National Science Foundation's (NSF) infrastructure grant to Nebraska EPSCoR, the competitive FIRST Award grant program assists Nebraska's early-career, tenure-track faculty. The grants are designed to help early career faculty initiate their research programs and compete more effectively for NSF CAREER grants. (11/23/22)

Pannier says ‘future is so bright’ for gene therapy

Angie Pannier, Swarts Family Chair of Biological Systems Engineering, delivered the Nebraska Lecture on Nov. 17, laying out the history of her field and both the challenges and promises ahead. “It’s an exciting time to be in this field,” Pannier said. “It’s an exciting time to be a patient that might have their life dramatically changed by these therapies.” (11/18/22)

Watch on YouTube

Teamwork by Hong and Schubert leads investigation of remote surface optical phonon scattering in ferroelectric oxide-gated graphene

The October 2022 edition of the Journal of Applied Physics features research from a collaboration led by Xia Hong and Mathias Schubert. Their study reveals the room temperature mobility limit in graphene imposed by the ferroelectric oxide gate, providing important material information for designing high-performance ferroelectric/graphene transistors for high frequency, low power nanoelectronic applications. Learn more at https://aip.scitation.org/doi/full/10.1063/5.0106939. (11/10/22)

Top Sponsored Awards, September 2022

The following awards from public entities include grants of $200,000 or more between Aug. 16 and Sept. 15, 2022, as reported through NUgrant:

Arman Roohi; $260,664; NSF; Integrated Sensing and Normally-off Computing for Edge Imaging Systems
(11/7/22)

Yang wins Outstanding Achievement award

Yiqi Yang, Charles Bessey professor in the Department of Textiles, Merchandising and Fashion Design, is the recipient of the 2021 Olney Medal for Outstanding Achievement in Textile Science from the American Association of Textile Chemists and Colorists. The Olney Medal is AATCC’s highest scientific award, established in 1944 in honor of Louis Atwell Olney, the founder and first president of AATCC. The award consists of a gold medal, a scroll, and an honorarium. Yang received the award at the AATCC Textile Discovery Summit in Charlotte, North Carolina, on Oct. 6, where he also delivered the traditional Olney Medal Address. His talk was titled “A Step Toward a More Sustainable, Responsible and Profitable Textile Industry.” (11/2/22)

Research Roundup: Uneven Flow

Xiao Cheng Zeng, Chancellor’s University Professor emeritus of chemistry, recently teamed with colleagues in China and the United States to study how the length of the nanotubes can influence how fast they transport water. On the macroscale, water flow typically slows as a tube lengthens. But simulations run by the team suggest that in relatively narrow carbon nanotubes — those less than a nanometer in diameter — the speed of water flow instead increases as those nanotubes lengthen from zero to 0.37 nanometers. Beyond that length, the rate of water transport either slowly decreases or slightly varies, according to the simulations. (11/2/22)

Sabirianov named Milo Bail Chair

At the University of Nebraska at Omaha's 2022 Faculty Honors Convocation, Renat Sabirianov was recognized as a recipient of the Milo Bail Chair in Physics. Named chairs and professorships highlight achievements in teaching, research, innovation, and commitment to supporting students. (10/14/22)

Li chosen for Big Ten leadership program

Yusong Li, Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Associate Dean for Faculty and Inclusion in the College of Engineering, has been chosen by the Office of the Executive Vice Chancellor to participate in a Big Ten Academic Alliance leadership program this year. Li has been selected for the Academic Leadership Program. ALP Fellows attend three 3-day seminars, each at a different Big Ten campus. They also participate in on-campus meetings throughout the academic year with members of our university's academic leadership. (10/12/22)

U.S.-Issued Patents, July-September 2022

The following list includes U.S.-issued patents granted by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to NCMN researchers from July 1, 2022, to Sept. 30, 2022, as reported by NUtech Ventures:

Robotic Device with Compact Joint Design and Related Systems and Methods, Thomas Frederick, Shane M. Farritor, Dmitry Oleynikov, Eric Markvicka, 11,406,458

Method of Fabricating a Continuous Nanofiber, Yuris Dzenis, 11,414,790
(10/10/22)

Top Sponsored Awards, September 2022

Top sponsored awards are awards from public entities, including grants of $200,000 or more between July 16 and Aug. 15, 2022, as reported through NUgrant.

Jeff Shield, $444,124, NSF, Non-equilibrium Phase Discovery in Finite-sized Systems

M. Vuran, Christos Argyropoulos, Y. Ge, Q. Liu, S. Nie, S. Pitla; $1,000,000; NSF; CNS Core: Medium: Field-Nets: Field-to-Edge Connectivity for Joint Communication and Sensing in Next-Generation Intelligent Agricultural Networks
(10/10/22)

Pannier to present Nebraska Lecture Nov. 17

Angie Pannier, Swarts Family Chair in biological systems engineering, will present the Nov. 17 Nebraska Lecture, “DNA and RNA Delivery: From Novel Therapies to Vaccines that End Pandemics.” Pannier’s laboratory has worked to understand and innovate DNA and RNA delivery and to develop methods to transfer those molecules more efficiently into human cells.  Her talk will describe the history of gene therapy, the events in 2020 that changed the field, and the future technologies that will revolutionize medical therapies. (10/5/22)

Hu wins pitch contest at Energy Center workshop

Jiong Hu won first place in a pitch contest held as part of an Energy Center Entrepreneurship Workshop hosted by the Nebraska Center for Energy Sciences Research, Nebraska Public Power District, NUtech Ventures, and Innosphere Ventures.
“I just wanted to thank NUtech and NCESR for hosting this Energy Center Entrepreneurship Workshop,” Hu said. “As a researcher, we always want our research products to be applied and used, as it will benefit not just us at UNL but also the entire society. However, we don’t always think from the entrepreneurial viewpoint, which often narrows the opportunities and limits the impact on the larger community. The workshop gave us a comprehensive view of how to better position ourselves to put our products on the market. It was also a great experience to pitch our research products in front of the guest panel with local entrepreneurs and funding organizations and receive constructive feedback from the experts. I look forward to opportunities that might present in the near future. Once again, thanks for all the efforts in organizing the workshop.” (10/5/22)

NCMN Faculty and Staff earn Service Awards

The following NCMN faculty and staff were honored with Employee Service Awards during a ceremony held on September 28.
5 Years: Samone Behrendt, NCMN
10 Years: Steve Michalski, NCMN
15 Years: Angela Pannier, BSE; Rebecca Lai, CHEM; Alexei Gruverman, PHYS
20 Years: Yongfeng Lu, ECE; Eva Schubert, ECE; Zhaoyan Zhang, MME; Kirill Belashchenko, PHYS; Evgeny Tsymbal, PHYS
25 Years: Joseph Turner, MME; Jiashi Yang, MME; Herman Batelaan, PHYS
30 Years: Hendrik Viljoen, CHME; Andrzej Rajca, CHEM
50 Years: David Sellmyer, PHYS (in memoriam)
(10/5/22)

Berkowitz, Morin work featured in Research Roundup

The latest 'Research Roundup' highlighted some of the latest work from the labs of David Berkowitz and Stephen Morin. The Berkowitz Group penned an 81-page overview of how large biological molecules have stimulated the discovery of innovation-driving catalysts and chemical reactions that recently graced the cover of Chemical Reviews. Morin's group has developed a simple, scalable, and inexpensive method of adhering certain metals to commercially viable plastics — an appealing option for engineers of wearable electronics, smart packaging, and other technologies. (9/21/22)

Binek awarded IOP Trusted Reviewer status

Christian Binek has been awarded 'IOP Trusted Reviewer' status from IOP Publishing. 'Trusted Reviewer' status is achieved following the submission of a top-quality review report, indicating a high level of peer review competence and the ability to constructively critique scientific literature to an exceptional standard without the need for training. (9/12/22)

Top Sponsored Awards, July 2022

Top sponsored awards are awards from public entities, including grants of $200,000 or more between June 16 and July 15, 2022, as reported through NUgrant.

Herman Batelaan, physics and astronomy; $588,032; NSF; Coherent Electron Control (9/6/22)

Four NCMN faculty selected for Research Leaders Program

The Office for Research and Economic Development has announced the third cohort of its Research Leaders Program. Four of the 15 faculty selected belong to NCMN: Ozan Ciftci, food science and technology; Jiong Hu, civil and environmental engineering; Nicole Iverson, biological systems engineering; Alexey Kovalev, physics and astronomy. The program is aimed at identifying and developing the next generation of research leaders and is believed to be the first of its kind in the Big Ten and among the first nationally. (8/31/22)

Berkowitz Lab review article on Chemical Reviews cover

A review article from the lab of David Berkowitz, Willa Cather Professor of Chemistry, is featured on the cover of Chemical Reviews, a journal published by the American Chemical Society. The review, “Biomacromolecule-Assisted Screening for Reaction Discovery and Catalyst Optimization,” was co-authored by doctoral alumni Stephany Ramos De Dios and Christopher McCune, postdoctoral researcher Virendra Tiwari, and former Husker postdoc Ranjeet Dhokale. (8/26/22)

Li team tracks tiny particle movement through pipes

Yusong Li, and colleague Jae Sung Park, are working on a three-year, $418,120 National Science Foundation grant to learn how small particles – some less than 10 microns – better move through confined fluid flows in transport systems, such as pipes. The study looks to determine better ways for energy and environmental sectors to achieve greater efficiency at mitigating contamination or in providing cheaper fuel. (8/24/22)

NSF Funds NV Quantum Sensing Capabilities for NCMN Attocube System

NCMN is pleased to announce that the National Science Foundation has decided to fund our Major Research Instrumentation proposal, "Acquisition of optical access in a cryogenic scanning probe microscope for quantum sensing capabilities." This instrument will leverage the existing scanning probe microscopy capabilities we have at NCMN and add the first commercial quantum sensing device to the set of characterization facilities at NCMN. There are only a few instruments of this kind available throughout the country. Christian Binek is the PI, and Xia Hong, Abdelghani Laraoui, and Xiaoshan Xu are Co-PI's.
We can’t wait to set the system up and see it producing scientific results. (8/18/22)

Kidambi named Neb. Governance and Technology Center faculty fellow

Srivatsan Kidambi is among the newest cohort of faculty fellows for the Nebraska Governance and Technology Center. The fellows are drawn from across the university and are interested in the challenges of changing technology. The goal of the Fellows program is to form a unit of academics who study technology in interdisciplinary terms. (8/15/22)

Top Sponsored Awards, June 2022

The following awards from public entities include grants of $200,000 or more between Feb. 16 and March 15, 2022, as reported through NUgrant:

• Wei Bao; $234,046; Department of Defense-Office of Naval Research-Defense University Research Instrumentation Program Advanced Spectroscopy System for Micro- and Nanolaser Measurement and Characterization
• Eva Schubert; $343,615; NSF; NSF-DFG: Advances in Ion-Surface Interaction-Driven Manufacturing of One-Dimensional Metal Oxide Heterostructures
• Keegan Moore; $404,621; DOD-Air Force Office of Scientific Research YIP: Digital Engineering the Test and Modeling Process: Autonomous Methods for Reconciling Test and Model Results
• Keegan Moore; $235,290; NSF; Detecting Gait Phases with Raised Metabolic Cost using Robotic Perturbations and System Identification for Enabling Targeted Rehabilitation Therapy
• Micheal Sealy, Kamlakar Rajurkar, J. McQuillan; $300,000; Department of Commerce-National Institute of Standards and Technology, Manufacturing USA Technology Roadmap for Cellular Agriculture: Initiative for Convergent-manufacturing of Agriculture and Food for Equity (I-CAFE)
• Robert Streubel; $517,069; NSF; Magnetic Order in Disordered Dipolar Nanostructures
• Ozan Ciftci, E. Cahoon, J. Auchtung, A. Benson, T. Clemente, M. Danao, K. Frels, D. Holding, A. Ramer-Tait, D. Rose, J. Schnable, P. Velander, M. Wilkins, C. Xu; $742,668; Department of Agriculture-National Institute of Food and Agriculture; Expanding Opportunities in Agricultural Sciences: Crop-to-Food Innovation

(8/1/22)

Researchers predict climate impacts on herbicide runoff

Yusong Li and Shannon Bartelt-Hunt (with colleague Chuyang Liu) have used supercomputers to run 2,000 simulations to predict the climate of a research site near Shelton, Neb. in the years 2056 through 2059. The researchers aim to understand the characteristics of atrazine (a popular herbicide) runoff in a future affected by climate change. The team concluded that climate variability will generally matter only if atrazine degrades slowly in soils, or if those soils are poor at clinging to and absorbing the herbicide. Given the potential importance of atrazine degradation rates, future research should investigate the factors that influence those rates, the researchers said. (7/26/22)

Nebraska researchers look to further understand energy requirements of walking in older adults

Scientists who have studied the metabolic cost of different phases of the walking gait cycle have difficulty collecting data — partly due to physical demands on the test subjects and because measurements aren’t collected quickly enough to be of great value. In collaboration with researchers from the University of Nebraska at Omaha, Keegan Moore looks to use cutting-edge digital technologies — such as artificial intelligence and machine learning — to improve the current collection methods and develop algorithms that can further research. The team at UNO will conduct motion-capture experiments in which they will influence different phases using a robotic waist tether. Engineers in Moore’s lab will use data from these experiments to develop algorithms to estimate fluctuations in a person’s metabolism during different phases of their gait cycle. (7/22/22)

Roohi, Kidambi receive Layman Awards

Arman Roohi and Srivatsan Kidambi will recieve Layman Awards from the Office of Research and Economic Development, which fund work that enhances a researcher’s ability to obtain external funding to support prominent scholarship.
Roohi received his award through the Layman Seed Program for his project, “Enabling robust quantized neural network acceleration in federated edge computing.” The Layman Seed Program funds new projects by early-career faculty who are nontenured at the time of submission.
Kidambi received his award through the New Directions Program for his project, “Synthetic biomimetic environment (BEASTS) to investigate the role of stiffness in altered redox signaling and inflammation in placenta during HDP.” The New Directions Program funds tenured faculty who are branching into new research directions or need funding to support pilot or developmental work toward the next step in a funded research program. (7/12/22)

Team achieves ‘significant breakthrough’ in data-encoding material

Bucking years of conventional wisdom, Husker researchers have shown that hafniumm oxide's most technologically appealing property can emerge from unexpected conditions. In a new Nature Materials study, a team led by Nebraska’s Xiaoshan Xu, Evgeny Tsymbal and Alexei Gruverman has demonstrated that growing a higher-quality, larger-grained crystal of hafnium oxide can actually generate higher polarization and potentially more reliable ferroelectricity. The quality of the crystal, meanwhile, is offering sharper insights into how and why that ferroelectricity occurs. (7/11/22)

Kidambi co-authors new paper on cyberbiosecurity

Srivatsan Kidambi is among the co-authors of a newly published paper that examines the emerging and expanding interdisciplinary field of cyberbiosecurity. The paper explores the concept of "biohacking,” in which an attack is conducted both from the cyber and biological domain. The paper also examines the use of deep learning technologies to safeguard DNA sequencing against such attacks. (7/8/22)

Krasnoslobodtsev receives grant to study nanomaterials with medical applications

UNO biophysicist Alexey Krasnoslobodtsev, in collaboration with colleagues, was awarded an $814,324 grant from the National Science Foundation to study a new class of biomaterials that respond to external stimuli and to develop Nebraska’s growing biotechnology workforce. The materials, called programmable nucleic acid nanoparticles (NANPs), will be suitable for a broad range of biomedical applications. (7/6/22)

U.S.-Issued Patents, April - June 2022

The following list includes U.S.-issued patents granted by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to NCMN researchers from April 1, 2022, to June 30, 2022, as reported by NUtech Ventures:

Circuits Based on Magnetoelectric Transistor Devices; Andrew Marshall, Peter A. Dowben, Nishtha Sharma, Dmitri E. Nikonov; 11,349,480

Nanoporous Starch Aerogels Impregnated with Phytosterols and Methods of Preparing the Nanoporous Starch Aerogels, Ozan Nazim Ciftci, 11,369,895
(7/5/22)

New device gets scientists closer to quantum materials breakthrough

Researchers from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and the University of California, Berkeley, have developed a new photonic device that could get scientists closer to the “holy grail” of finding the global minimum of mathematical formulations at room temperature. Finding that elusive mathematical value would be a major advancement in opening new options for simulations involving quantum materials. Wei Bao is the corresponding author of a paper reporting this research, published in Nature Materials. (6/17/22)

Hage wins 2022 AACC Merit Award

The American Association for Clinical Chemistry (AACC) has chosen David Hage as the winner for its 2022 award for Outstanding Contributions to Education in Clinical Chemistry. This award recognizes an individual who has devoted a major portion of his/her professional life to enhancing the practice and profession of clinical chemistry through education. Hage and his students are interested in the theory, development, and use of affinity-based separations in high-performance liquid chromatography and capillary electrophoresis, with an emphasis on clinical and biomedical applications. He has been a research mentor to over 80 undergraduate students and 75 graduate students, resulting in roughly 80 Ph.D. or M.S. degrees and with many of these students entering the fields of clinical chemistry or biomedical research. (6/1/22)

NCMN researchers appointed NSRI Fellows

Christos Argyropoulos, Eric Markvicka, and Angela Pannier have been named National Strategic Research Institute (NSRI) Fellows. According to Maj. Gen., USAF (Ret.) Rick Evans, NSRI executive director, "(NSRI's) objective is to bring the might of the University of Nebraska System's intellectual and physical research capability and capacity to the DOD and the Nation." The aim of an NSRI Fellow is to contribute their expertise to the strategic deterrence and countering weapons of mass destruction mission areas. (5/4/22)

Iverson receives CAREER Award

Nicole Iverson has received a five-year, $550,000 grant from the National Science Foundation's Faculty Early Career Development Program. The award supports her team's research into using carbon nanotubes to diagnose diseases like diabetes or certain forms of cancer. It also will be used for community outreach to expand understanding of nanotechnology. (5/4/22)

Top Sponsored Awards, March 2022

The following awards from public entities include grants of $200,000 or more between Feb. 16 and March 15, 2022, as reported through NUgrant:

Bai Cui; $300,000; West Virginia University; Additively Manufactured Graded Composite Transition Joints for Dissimilar Metal Weldments in Advanced Ultra-Supercritical Power Plant
Ruiguo Yang; $536,907; National Science Foundation; CAREER: Characterization of the Rate-Dependent Mechanical Behavior of the Cell-Cell Adhesion Interface (5/4/22)

Husker team demonstrates that MoS₂ is ferroelectric

Alexei Gruverman, Alex Sinitskii, and colleagues (including Evgeny Tsymbal) have demonstrated that molybdenum disulfide (MoS₂) is ferroelectric. The vertical separation and arrangement of negative vs. positive charges in ferroelectric materials can be instantaneously flipped just by applying some voltage. Those oppositely aligned, or polarized, states can be read or stored as the 1s and 0s of binary data, with the states remaining even when a power source has been cut. (4/27/22)

Gruverman earns University Professorship

Alexei Gruverman will be Charles J. Mach professor of physics and astronomy. Gruverman currently holds a Charles Bessey professorship and conducts research related to ferroelectric materials, which are critical elements of modern electronics. He pioneered the use of piezoresponse force microscopy for nondestructive imaging of ferroelectric domains and his method is now actively used in ferroelectric research worldwide. His research into applications of PFM has resulted in over 240 publications, many in journals of international stature. The impact of Gruverman's research spans more than 15,000 citations of his work and numerous invitations to seminars. He has received many awards and honors, most notable being the Humboldt Research Award and being named an International Fellow of the Japan Society of Applied Physics. Gruverman has won, led, and participated in about 20 research projects as PI or co-PI with total funding of more than $34 million ($3 million as principal investigator) over his career. He played a major role in the success of the National Science Foundation-funded Materials Research Science and Engineering Center, as well as several other large multi-investigator grants. (4/25/22)

NCMN faculty receive promotion, tenure

Congratulations to the following NCMN faculty members receiving promotions in 2022!

Promoted to associate professor and granted tenure:
- Shudipto Dishari, Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
- Jongwan Eun, Civil and Environmental Engineering
- Nicole Iverson, Biological Systems Engineering
- Forrest Kievit, Biological Systems Engineering
- Ruiguo Yang, Mechanical and Materials Engineering

Promoted to professor and granted tenure:
- Jiong Hu, Civil and Environmental Engineering

Promoted to professor:
- Xia Hong, Physics and Astronomy & Nebraska Center for Materials and Nanoscience
(4/20/22)

Mourning the death of Ralph Skomski

Dr. Ralph Skomski suddenly passed away at home on April 10. Skomski was a gifted theoretical researcher, publishing over 425 papers, books, and book chapters in his career. He was a Fellow of the American Physical Society and a member of the Editorial Boards of IEEE Magn. Lett., J. Phys. D and J. Magn. Magn. Mater.
Skomski began working at UNL as a Visiting Assistant Professor in 1998. He was promoted to Research Assistant Professor in 2000, Research Associate Professor in 2003, and Research Full Professor in 2012. He was an active researcher working for many years with Professor David Sellmyer, who died only a few weeks ago. (4/19/22)

Yang advancing work on cell-cell junctions and their link to human health

Ruiguo Yang is using a $540,000 grant from NSF’s Faculty Early Career Development Program to explore how cell-cell bridges respond to strains of different magnitudes and rates. Since these junctions maintain tissue integrity and regulate cell-to-cell signaling, understanding their response to strain could shed light on the mechanics of diseases like cancer, genetic mutations in the heart, autoimmune skin conditions and more — and offer clues about how to effectively treat them. (4/15/22)

Nebraska, Buffalo researchers create first magneto-electric transistor

Christian Binek, Peter Dowben, Will Echtenkamp, Ather Mahmood, and colleagues from the University at Buffalo have teamed up to fabricate a new type of transistor that could curb energy consumption of microelectronics and reduce the number of transistors needed to store certain data by as much as 75%. This new transistor could cut 5 percent from the world's digital energy budget, while also saving space and retaining memory in the event of a power loss. (4/11/22)

Xu paper on cover of Crystal Growth & Design

A paper on organic ferroelectrics by Xiaoshan Xu and colleagues was recently published as a cover story in Crystal Growth & Design. The article is titled "Highly Oriented Organic Ferroelectric Films with Single-Crystal-Level." (4/6/22)

Remembering the life and work of David Sellmyer

Founding director of the Nebraska Center for Materials and Nanoscience, David J. Sellmyer, 83, died at home surrounded by his family on March 25. Sellmyer was the driving force behind the creation of NCMN, the Voelte-Keegan Nanoscience Research building, and the Nebraska Nanoscale Facility. Dan Claes, current department chair and professor of physics and astronomy said of Sellmyer's leadership, "I don’t believe there’s anyway we could overstate the impact Dave has had on the department, university and specifically our materials science program. It’s a legacy that will be with us this forever.”

Condolences can be left on the Wyuka website, and a recording of the funeral service is available on YouTube. (4/5/22)

Wang receives MPMD Distinguished Scientist/Engineer Award

Jian Wang has received the Distinguished Scientist/Engineer Award from the Materials Processing and Manufacturing Division of The Minerals, Metals, and Materials Society. The award recognizes an individual who has made a long-lasting contribution to the design, synthesis, processing, and performance of engineering materials, with significant industrial applications. Wang was honored for his efforts to understand the structure-properties relationships of structural materials. (4/5/22)

US-Issued Patents, January - March 2022

The following list includes all U.S.-issued patents granted by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to University of Nebraska-Lincoln researchers from Jan 1, 2022, to March 31, 2022, as reported by NUtech Ventures.

Decomposition of Organic Peroxides and Hydrogen Peroxide by the Iron Thiolates and Related Complexes; Patrick H. Dussault, Andrew Olson; 11,242,296

Hall Bar Device for Memory and Logic Applications; Christian Binek, Ather Mahmood, Will Echtenkamp; 11,233,192
(4/5/22)

Top Sponsored Awards, February 2022

Top sponsored awards are awards from public entities including all arts and humanities grants of $10,000 or more and all other grants of $200,000 or more between Jan. 16 and Feb. 15, 2022, as reported through NUgrant.

Nicole Iverson; $550,000; NSF; CAREER: Extracellular Hydrogen Peroxide and Nitric Oxide Detection and Quantification Via Biocompatible Carbon Nanotubes

J. Park, Yusong Li; $418,120; NSF; Exploring Flow Enhancements of Hydrophobic Particles in Confined Fluid Flow

(4/5/22)

Nebraska researchers published in Advanced Materials

Christian Binek and Peter Dowben were among the authors of a study recently published in Advanced Materials. Imagery from the article, "Graphene on Chromia: A System for Beyond-Room-Temperature Spintronics," was chosen for the back cover of the journal. (3/29/22)

Hage to receive ACS Award in Chromatography

On March 24, David Hage will receive the 2021 ACS Award in Chromatography from the American Chemical Society at the Spring 2022 ACS National Meeting and Exposition in San Diego. Recipients are recognized for outstanding contributions to the field of chromatography, with particular consideration given to the development of new methods. (3/18/22)

Angela Pannier elected to 2022 Class of the AIMBE College of Fellows

Angela Pannier was elected to the 2022 American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering College of Fellows. Fellows comprise the top 2% of medical and biological engineers in the country and are selected for their contributions to teaching, research, and innovation. Pannier was recognized for her contributions to understanding and engineering biomaterials and cellular systems for applications in gene therapy, tissue engineering, and vaccination. (3/8/22)

Top Sponsored Awards, January 2022

Top sponsored awards are awards from public entities including all arts and humanities grants of $10,000 or more and all other grants of $200,000 or more between July 16 and August 15, 2021, as reported through NUgrant.

Jian Wang, $219,838, Auburn University, Technical Basis of Microstructure Criteria and Accelerated Testing for Qualifying Additively-manufactured 316H Stainless Steel for High-temperature Cyclic Service

Forrest Kievit, J. Zempleni, J. Guo; $630,000; USDA-NIFA; Biopharming: Engineering Nanoparticles in Milk for Use in Drug Delivery
(3/8/22)

Saraf receives Family and Friends Recognition Award

Ravi Saraf was one of 46 employees to receive a Family and Friends Recognition Award for their support of students during a ceremony on March 4; nominations are made by family and friends of students. This was Saraf's first time receiving the award. (3/7/22)

Schubert on international team published in Nature

A study published six years ago by Mathias Schubert planted the seeds for what grew to an international collaboration and the discovery of a new material class that could impact the future of emerging biotechnology and nanotechnology. Schubert and his colleagues had their latest paper, Hyperbolic shear polaritons in low-symmetry crystals, published in Nature. The group believe their results “will motivate new directions for polariton physics … greatly expanding the material base and extending design opportunities for compact photonic devices.” (Other articles: Nebraska EPSCoR, College of Engineering, Max Planck Society, Vanderbilt University)
(3/6/22)

Olympic Physics: Gay breaks down the bobsled run

Tim Gay continues his masterclass in winter Olympic physics with a new video explaining the key principle behind "sliding sports" like the bobsled and luge - the conservation of energy; “The team that best keeps the loss of kinetic energy to a minimum,” Gay said, “wins the gold.” (2/16/22)

Bao's CAREER Award supports work to make quantum simulators function at room temperature

Quantum simulators are key tools in the study of quantum systems, but their use is limited because they must operate with bulky ultra-low-temperature vacuum systems beyond the capacity of many research labs. With a five-year, $756,713 grant from the National Science Foundation’s Faculty Early Career Development Program, Wei Bao hopes to find a way to make those simulators function at room temperature; this would greatly expand the scope and accessibility of work with quantum simulators. (2/16/22)

Olympic physics: Gay breaks down a figure skater's spin

Although you can usually find Tim Gay talking about the physics of football, in honor of the Winter Olympics he breaks down the physics behind a figure skater's spin in a recent video. (2/14/22)

Argyropoulos paper featured on cover of Nanoscale

Christos Argyropoulos, and graduate students Boyuan Jin and Dhananjay Mishra, published an article titled ‘‘Efficient Single-Photon Pair Generation by Spontaneous Parametric Down-Conversion in Nonlinear Plasmonic Metasurfaces” in the journal Nanoscale. Journal editors selected the paper to be featured on the cover, an honor given to the best papers of each issue. (2/8/22)

Top Sponsored Awards, December 2021

Top sponsored awards are awards from public entities including all arts and humanities grants of $10,000 or more and all other grants of $200,000 or more between Nov. 16 and Dec. 15, 2021, as reported through NUgrant.

Wei Bao; $756,713; National Science Foundation; CAREER: Towards Room-Temperature Quantum Simulators Enabled by Halide Perovskites (2/8/22)

Second Hong "Nano Matters" podcast interview released

A second podcast interview between Xia Hong and Lisa Friedersdorf, Director of the National Nanotechnology Coordination Office has been released on YouTube. In this episode, Hong describes how she and her team are creating and studying complex oxide nanostructures and interfaces for advanced electronics. (2/2/22)

Yang team working to improve strength, color of feather-based fibers

A team led by Yiqi Yang is developing a process that would transform chicken feathers - largely considered a waste product of chicken production - into fibers that find a place in natural fabrics. In a recent study, Yang’s team experimented with a cross-linking class known as saccharide aldehydes. By modifying the molecular structure and concentration of the aldehydes, the team developed keratin fibers substantially stronger than those produced via another popular cross-linker, citric acid. (1/12/22)

U.S.-Issued Patents, July-December 2021

The following list includes all U.S.-issued patents granted by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to University of Nebraska-Lincoln researchers from July 1, 2021, to Dec. 31, 2021, as reported by NUtech Ventures.

Oxygen Reactive Polymers for Treatment of Traumatic Brain Injury; Forrest Kievit, P. Stayton, M. Ypma, P. Chiarelli, J. S. H. Park, R. Ellenbogen, J. M. Xu, P. Mourad, D. Lee, A. Convertine; Issued July 20, 2021

Expedited PCR with Stirring; Hendrik J. Viljoen; Issued Oct. 26, 2021

Methods of Making and Using Lignin Derivatives; Barry Cheung, M. A. Helle; Issued Oct. 26, 2021

Substrate Delivery of Embedded Liposomes; Srivatsan Kidambi, S. L. Hayward; Issued Dec. 21, 2021 (1/11/22)

Top Sponsored Awards, November 2021

Top sponsored awards are awards from public entities including all arts and humanities grants of $10,000 or more and all other grants of $200,000 or more between Oct. 16 and Nov. 15, 2021, as reported through NUgrant.

James Takacs, J. Checco, J. Clarke, E. Dodds, C. Eichhorn, J. Guo, Rebecca Lai, M. Morton, W. Niu, R. Powers, J. Riethoven, M. Wilson, Y. Zhou; $10,667,732; U.S. Department of Health and Human Services-National Institute of General Medical Sciences; Nebraska Center for Integrated Biomolecular Communication, Phase 2

Shannon Bartelt-Hunt; $326,090; Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services; NWSS Laboratory Workplan

Jian Wang; $333,267; National Science Foundation; A Metamodeling Framework for Multiscale Mechanical Modeling of Nano-Architectural Crystalline-Amorphous Composites (1/11/22)

Accolades, December 2021

Xia Hong was featured on the podcast “NanoTube,” which is produced by the National Nanotechnology Initiative. During the episode, Hong described her work investigating the properties of complex oxide nanostructures and interfaces.

Christos Argyropoulos, along with co-author Yang Li of Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology, published “Multiqubit entanglement and quantum phase gates with epsilon-near-zero plasmonic waveguides,” an article that was selected as an Editor’s Pick by the editors at Applied Physics Letters. Editor’s Picks are selected to highlight noteworthy articles that have excellent scientific quality. (1/11/22)

Tsymbal team's data-decoding approach could lead to faster, smaller digital tech

Evgeny Tsymbal and colleagues have published a new study showing that spin-independent conductance in compensated antiferromagnets and normal metals can be efficiently exploited in spintronics. The team identified ruthenium oxide as just such an antiferromagnet, as well as titanium dioxide as the barrier through which electrons can tunnel. Critically, the atoms of the two respective oxides form the same crystalline structure, resulting in a seamless match that allows electrons to maintain their momentum — and their momentum-dependent spin — as they move between the materials. This research was supported, in part, from the National Science Foundation's $20 million grant facilitating Nebraska's EPSCoR-EQUATE project. (1/6/22)

Hong featured on "Stories from the NNI" podcast

A podcast interview between Xia Hong and Lisa Friedersdorf, Director of the National Nanotechnology Coordination Office has been released online. In this episode, Hong discusses her work investigating the properties of complex oxide nanostructures and interfaces. The podcast interview is available on YouTube. (12/16/21)

Markvicka, Gay in the national news: November 2021

For Eric Markvicka and colleagues, droplets of liquid metal are emerging as a protagonist in the quest to dissipate heat — and prevent overheating — in wearable technology, soft robotics and other microelectronic-packed applications. Phys.org and Technology.org ran articles on the research.

Tim Gay was featured in a recent NFL Films video. He discussed the physics behind a well-thrown football pass. (12/3/21)

NCMN faculty/staff receive Celebration of Service awards

The following NCMN faculty and staff were honored at the 2021 Celebration of Service, which celebrates faculty and staff employed with the University in five-year increments.

• 5 years: Ruiguo Yang, Anand Sarella, Prahalada Rao, Siamak Nejati, Seunghee Kim, Forrest Kievit, Jacob John, Jongwan Eun, Shudipto Dishari
• 10 years: Xia Hong, Sangjin Ryu, Alexander Sinitskii, Jian Zhang
• 15 years: Shannon Bartelt-Hunt, Hui Li
• 20 years: Florin Bobaru, Jeffrey Shield, Zhiguang Sun, Yiqi Yang
• 25 years: Shireen Adenwalla
• 30 years: David Berkowitz, Stephen Ducharme
• 40 years: Natale Ianno

Shield and team look to boost heat transfer of copper

Jeff Shield and colleagues have been investigating how to improve the heat transfer of copper used in pool boiling. In a new study, the team increased the surface area of copper by firing 4-picosecond-long laser pulses at it. However, this also coated the surface with oxides that curbed the otherwise improved heat transfer. So the team tried cleaning the surface with different acids, and found that citric acid worked best, but only when the number of laser pulses remained below a certain threshold. (11/15/21)

Markvicka team's design could curb overheating, up performance of soft electronics

A new study from a team led by Eric Markvicka has shown that embedding a silicone material with gallium-based droplets — and, crucially, embedding those droplets with microscopic spheres of hollow glass — can mostly retain the boost in heat dissipation without sacrificing the material’s lightweight pliability. This design could greatly impact things like the computing power of microelectronics and thermoregulatory garments. Markvicka's team included NCMN members Sangjin Ryu and Jeff Shield. (11/15/21)

Advancing the Second Quantum Revolution

A feature story in the 2020-2021 Nebraska Research Report described the Emergent Quantum Materials and Technologies (EQUATE) collaboration, made possible by a five-year, $20 million award from the National Science Foundation. The EQUATE project is a key component to achieving the goals of Nebraska's Quantum Science and Engineering Grand Challenge. (11/9/21)

NNF featured in Annual Research Report

The Nebraska Nanoscale Facility was the star of a feature story in the 2020-2021 Nebraska Research Report. The story highlights the importance of the facility for advancing academic and industry nanoscience research in the Midwest, the success the facility saw in it's first five years, and the education and outreach activities that are key to the facility's mission. (11/9/21)

Annual Research Report Highlights

Siamek Nejati, James Takacs, and David Hage were all featured in the 2020-2021 Nebraska Research Report. Nejati received a CAREER award for his work on building 3D porous organic frameworks. Takacs was named an American Association for the Advancement of Science Fellow in 2020; he was recognized for contributions to synthetic organic chemistry. And Hage earned the 2021 ACS Award in Chromatography from the American Chemical Society. (11/9/21)

EQUATE Awards SEED Grants

Siamak Nejati and Yanan (Laura) Wang were awarded SEED grants from the EQUATE project to study quantum topics in their research. Nejati proposed “Heterostructures of 2D Materials and Porphyrin-Based Covalent Organic Frameworks as a Tunable Device Platform for Quantum Technologies," and will work with Alexander Sinitskii on this research. Wang proposed “Dynamic Control of 2D Single-Photon Quantum Emitters via Strain Engineering,” and will work with Christo Argyropoulos. Both researchers will receive $56,000 for their projects. (11/4/21)

Markvicka named Emerging Innovator of the Year

Eric Markvicka received the Emerging Innovator of the Year award at NUtech Ventures 2021 Innovator Awards, held as part of Nebraska Research Days. The award recognizes an individual, often a junior faculty member, for recent innovation contributions. Markvicka’s research, positioned at the intersection of computer and materials science, aims to transform how materials interact with the human body and the external environment. His systems have applications for wearable biosensors, soft robotics, and multifunctional materials. (11/3/21)

Tan, Sealy join NSF I-Corps Program

Li Tan and Michael Sealy served as faculty leads for two of three Nebraska teams that joined the National Science Foundation's 2021 Innovation Corps. The I-Corps program uses experiential education to help researchers gain valuable insight into starting a business and industry requirements and challenges. During the program Husker researchers, along with graduate students and business mentors, learned entrepreneurship concepts, explored technology commercialization and conducted 100 interviews with prospective customers. (10/27/21)

Nebraska students win NNCI image contest

'A Micro Blooming Lotus,' the image submitted by Aofei Mao and Peixun Fan to the National Nanotechnology Coordinated Infrastructure's (NNCI) Plenty of Beauty at the Bottom image contest, was the winning entry in the Most Stunning category. The contest is held yearly in honor of National Nanotechnology Day and winning artists will receive up to $1,000 in travel support to a professional conference of their choice. (10/25/21)

Saraf advances work on first-of-its-kind ‘living’ transistor chip

Ravi Saraf and his team are one step closer to developing a new kind of transistor chip that harnesses the biological responses of living organisms to drive current through the device, shedding light on cellular activity at an unprecedented level of sensitivity. Eventually, this “living” chip may enable faster and simpler diagnosis of sepsis, illuminate understanding of antibiotic resistance and bolster efforts to develop neuromorphic devices, which mimic the human brain. (10/11/21)

Zeng's simulations show dissolved salt reassembling at the nanoscale

Xiao Cheng Zeng and colleagues recently ran computer simulations to determine how sodium chloride and lithium chloride might respond when submerged in a nanoscopic stream of water bordered by two smooth, water-repellent walls. The findings suggest that, when confined to a nanoscopic space, sodium and chlorine atoms can reassemble after being dissolved. The team's simulations also found the same with lithium and chlorine atoms. (10/1/21)

Top Sponsored Awards, August 2021

Top sponsored awards are awards from public entities including all arts and humanities grants of $10,000 or more and all other grants of $200,000 or more between July 16 and August 15, 2021, as reported through NUgrant.

• David Hage, David Berkowitz; $575,000; National Science Foundation; New Approaches to Catalyst Screening and Development
• Eric Markvicka; $354,293; National Science Foundation; Additive Manufacturing of Functional Emulsions: Materials and Printing for Designer Microstructures
• Xia Hong; $450,000; National Science Foundation; DMREF: Accelerated Discovery of Artificial Multiferroics with Enhanced Magnetoelectric Coupling

Hong team develop technique to measure anisotropy of rhenium disulfide

Xia Hong and colleagues (including Evgeny Tsymbal and Stephen Ducharme) have developed a new technique that allows them to study and more precisely measure the anisotropy of a promising semiconductor - rhenium disulfide. By layering a ferroelectric polymer atop the rhenium disulfide, then flipping the polarization of a narrow sliver within the polymer, the team discovered that rhenium disulfide’s conductivity greatly depends on the orientation of the path itself. They also found the anisotropy was largest when measuring it in rhenium disulfide that was four atomic layers thick. (9/22/21)

Cheung team develops more durable hemp-based biocomposite for hydroponics

Barry Cheung and colleagues recently introduced an approach that chemically couples a structure-granting component of hemp fibers, lignin, with “linking molecules” that fortify the resulting biocomposite. Unlike prior techniques, the team’s approach requires only water as a solvent, yielding harmless inorganic salts rather than VOCs as byproducts. Mechanical testing revealed that the new biocomposite is more durable than a standard hemp-based counterpart, holding its shape far better when subjected to compressive forces. It can also hold roughly twice as much water as pure hemp fiber, putting its capacity nearly on par with commercial peat moss. (9/15/21)

Bartelt-Hunt selected for Big Ten leadership program

Shannon Bartelt-Hunt is one of 11 faculty selected by the Office of the Executive Vice Chancellor to participate in a Big Ten Academic Alliance leadership program this year. Bartelt-Hunt was chosen for the Department Executive Officers Progam, where fellows will attend a virtual program to learn about leadership at a departmental level, including unique perspectives and challenges regarding faculty development, performance, communication, conflict resolution, time management, and mentoring. (9/13/21)

Hong, Wang, selected for Research Leaders Program

Xia Hong and Jian Wang are among 15 faculty members selected for the second cohort of ORED's Research Leader's Program. These research-active faculty will learn the information, skills and connections needed to assemble and lead teams in the pursuit of major extramural funding. (9/7/21)

Argyropoulos named senior member of SPIE

Christos Argyropoulous has been named a senior member of SPIE, the international society for optics and photonics. Senior members are honored for their scientific excellence across the broad spectrum of optics and photonics research and applications, their active involvement with the optics community and SPIE, and significant performance that distinguishes them. Argyropoulos is the principal investigator for Nebraska’s Plasmonics, Metamaterials, and Integrated Nanophotonics Lab. (9/6/21)

Top Sponsored Awards, July 2021

Top sponsored awards are awards from public entities including all arts and humanities grants of $10,000 or more and all other grants of $200,000 or more between June 16 and July 15, 2021, as reported through NUgrant.

Alexander Sinitskii; $627,324; University of Pittsburgh; Topological Spin Qubits Based on Graphene Nanoribbons

David Hage, D. Snow; $400,000; National Science Foundation; Ultrafast Affinity Extraction Fundamental Studies and Use in Environmental Applications

Prahalada Rao, K. Cole; $250,000; National Science Foundation; UFAST: Ultrafast Additive Simulation Technology (9/3/21)

John earns NNCI Outstanding Staff Award

Jacob John, Coordinator and Program Manager of the Nebraska Nanoscale Facility, has been awarded a 2021 Outstanding NNCI Staff Member award in the category of 'User Support.' The awards, presented by the National Nanotechnology Coordinated Infrastructure (NNCI), acknowledge the significant efforts by NNCI site staff members who endeavor to provide excellent service and support to all network users. (8/20/21)

Haghshenas Fatmehsari team looking at corn, soybean oil to recycle asphalt

Hamzeh Haghshenas Fatmehsari and colleagues are studying the efficacy of using corn and soybean oil in the process of recycling asphalt. The rising cost and environmental impact of using crude oil in the process prompted Haghshenas Fatmehsari to explore greener alternatives. He knew that vegetable oils, specifically corn and soybean oil, were great options for recycling asphalt in the short term. Now he and his team are trying to improve the long-term performance of the recycled asphalt pavement (RAP) material containing these oils. (8/4/21)

Top Sponsored Awards, June 2021

Top Sponsored Awards include awards from public entities includes all arts and humanities grants of $10,000 or more and all other grants of $200,000 or more between May 16 and June 15, 2021, as reported through NUgrant:

Siamek Nejati; $593,240; National Science Foundation; CAREER: Molecular Layer Deposition of Porous Organic Frameworks

Mathias Schubert and R. Korlacki; $499,987; U.S. Department of Defense-Air Force Office of Scientific Research; Terahertz Electron Paramagnetic Resonance Ellipsometry Defect Characterization in Ultrawideband Gap Monoclinic Gallium Oxide and Related Alloys
(7/30/21)

Binek, Pannier on Grand Challenges steering committee

Christian Binek and Angela Pannier have been selected for a steering committee created to guide the next steps of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln's Grand Challenges process. “This committee will serve as a bridge from the N2025 Strategic Plan to the development of a process for implementing our Grand Challenges,” said Rick Bevins, committee co-chair. “In our first meeting, it was clear that the members care deeply and will work hard to ensure success.”  (7/30/21)

Lu team develop method to guard carbon fiber against oxidation

Yongfeng Lu and colleagues have developed a low-cost, scalable method of protecting carbon fibers from oxidation when exposed to extreme temperatures. They found that dipping carbon fibers into a molten salt mixture containing titanium and chromium powders triggers a spontaneous reaction that leaves the fibers with a three-layer protective coating. The coated carbon fibers remained undamaged when exposed to 2,200 degrees Fahrenheit and extreme environmental conditions simulated with an oxyacetylene flame. Bai Cui is also involved in this research. (7/26/21)

Pannier named inaugural Swarts Family Chair

Angela Pannier has been named the University of Nebraska–Lincoln’s inaugural Swarts Family Chair in Biological Systems Engineering. The named chair is an honor decades in the making, taking root in 1997 when a scholarship gift sparked a friendship between Pannier (then an engineering student) and Dr. Carol Swarts, a pioneering Nebraska physician. “I am humbled and grateful that I not only get to hold the endowed chair, but I get to hold the Swarts family endowed chair, endowed by a person who has meant and continues to mean so much to me,” Pannier said. (7/20/21)

Nejati earns CAREER award

Siamak Nejati has received a five-year, $593,240 Faculty Early Career Development Program grant from the National Science Foundation to build on his previous research on molecular structures. The goal of Nejati’s CAREER project is to realize a new green pathway that enables the high-precision deposition of ultra-thin porous and covalent organic frameworks. He will use a molecular layer deposition approach to construct films that feature a wide and tunable range of porosity in a solvent-free coating process. (7/16/21)

NCMN Faculty receive Layman Awards

The Office of Research and Economic Development has announced the recipients of its 2021-22 Layman Awards program, which funds work that enhances a researcher’s ability to obtain external funding to support prominent scholarship.

Robert Streubel received an award through the Layman Seed Program track, which funds new projects by early-career faculty who are nontenured. Shireen Adenwalla and Gustavo Larsen received their awards through the New Directions Program tract, which funds tenured faculty who are branching into new research directions or need funding to support pilot or developmental work toward the next step in a funded research program. (7/2/21)

Top Sponsored Awards, May 2021

Top Sponsored Awards include awards from public entities includes all arts and humanities grants of $10,000 or more and all other grants of $200,000 or more between April 16 and May 15, 2021, as reported through NUgrant:

Rebecca Lai; $339,325; University of Connecticut; A Wireless, Closed-Loop Neural Probe for Optogenetics, Pharmacology and Neurochemical Monitoring (7/2/21)

U.S.-Issued Patents, April-June 2021

The following includes U.S.-issued patents granted by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to University of Nebraska-Lincoln researchers from April 1, 2021, to June 30, 2021, as reported by NUtech Ventures:

• Portable Laparoscope System; Dennis Alexander, C. Are, M. Are; 11,006,818
• Fast Spin-Polarized Electron Source; Timothy Gay, Herman Batelaan, E. Brunkow, E. Jones; 11,011,337
• Control of Change of Phase Through Physical Surface Shaping; Dennis Alexander, Sidy Ndao, G. Gogos, T. Anderson, C. Zuhlke; 11,047,053

(7/1/21)

Sellmyer honored with endowed chair

David Sellmyer has been recognized for his achievements at Nebraska with an endowed faculty chair named in his honor. The David J. Sellmyer Chair in Condensed Matter Physics was established with a gift from John Woollam to the University of Nebraska Foundation. The Sellmyer Chair will be used to recruit faculty members with a strong publication record, proven effectiveness in building experimental collaborations, and success in securing collaborative grants. Additionally, the chair holder will grow the stature of the condensed-matter physics program, be dedicated to mentoring graduate students, and promote excellent physics education at all levels. (6/24/21)

Skomski receives REPM 2021 award

Ralph Skomski was honored with an REPM award at the 26th International Workshop on Rare-Earth and Future Permanent Magnets and their Applications. The award recognizes Skomski for his outstanding work on the research and development of permanent magnet materials. (6/10/21)

EQUATE project feature of WebMD article

The EPSCoR-EQUATE project (funded by a $20 million NSF grant) was the topic of a recent WebMD news article. The article highlighted Nebraska's unique position in the 'Silicon Prairie' to build a qualified workforce of quantum experts between the coasts. Christian Binek was interviewed and discussed the importance of the quantum science revolution and some of the advances in electronics, lasers, and medicine this grant will support. (6/9/21)

Streubel team advances understanding, control of magnetic droplets

In 2019, a team that included Robert Streubel managed to endow liquid droplets with permanent magnetism, partly by embedding them with tens of billions of iron oxide nanoparticles. Now, the team has shown the ability to tailor the magnetic properties of those droplets in multiple ways. The researchers were especially interested in learning how to tailor the magnetic properties of the droplets and, by extension, gain greater control over their movement. See the study. (6/8/21)

Recent publications: Streubel and Tsymbal

Robert Streubel and Evgeny Tsymbal are co-authors of a perspective published in the Journal of Applied Physics titled, Magnetism in curved geometries.
Streubel is also co-author of a study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA titled, Ferromagnetic liquid droplets with adjustable magnetic properties. (6/1/21)

Morin demonstrates control over the transport of microscopic droplets

By stretching and relaxing their specially designed films, Nebraska chemists Stephen Morin and Ali Mazaltarim have demonstrated unprecedented control over the movement of liquid droplets on flat surfaces. That control could make the technique useful in self-cleaning materials, water harvesting and other applications. See the study. (5/28/21)

Kim awarded Nebraska Environmental Trust grant

Seunghee Kim was one of 23 Nebraska researchers who received a 2021 grant from the Nebraska Environmental Trust. Kim received $196,467 for his work to assess greenhouse gas sequestration resources in Districts 5, 6 and 7 to improve carbon management opportunities in Nebraska. (5/25/21)

NCMN faculty named NSRI Fellows

The National Strategic Research Institute at the University of Nebraska has launched NSRI Fellows to amplify the university system’s research contributions to the Department of Defense and other federal agencies with national security missions. The following NCMN members are part of the inaugural group, featuring 31 University of Nebraska-Lincoln faculty out of 74 researchers from across the NU system: David Berkowitz, Chemistry; Rebecca Lai, Chemistry; Sy-Hwang Liou, Physics & Astronomy; Eric Carnes, Chemical Engineering at UNMC; Patrick Dussault, Chemistry. (5/20/21)

$20 million grant for EQUATE announced

The University of Nebraska has received a five-year, $20 million award from the National Science Foundation’s Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR) to create a research and education cluster aimed at enhancing the state’s competitiveness in the field of emergent quantum materials and technologies, and boosting the participating institutions’ research and education capacity. The Nebraska EPSCoR-Emergent Quantum Materials and Technologies (EQUATE) collaboration will revolutionize quantum science and create opportunities in education and through economic development. This announcement was also featured in the Lincoln Journal Star. (5/24/21)

Binek named Charles Bessey professor of physics and astronomy

Christian Binek was one of six professors recently awarded professorship from the Office of the Executive Vice-Chancellor. The Charles Bessey/Willa Cather professorship was established in 2001 to recognize faculty members with the rank of professor who have established exceptional records of distinguished scholarship or creative activity.

Binek is internationally recognized in the field of magneto-electric phenomena related to spintronics, which explores and exploits the quantum spin on atoms, molecules, or assemblies as the basis for a new generation of electronic and data storage devices. He has written 122 peer-reviewed papers, co-authored a textbook on thermodynamics, published a monograph on Ising-Antiferromagnets, three book chapters, and five patents. Binek is involved with many initiatives that pursue major grant-funded research objectives and regularly speaks at domestic and international venues, including 2018 testimony on nanotechnology before a Congressional Committee. Binek serves as director of the university’s Nebraska Nanoscale Facility and as director of the Nebraska Center for Materials and Nanoscience. (5/10/21)

NCMN faculty receive promotion, tenure

Promotion and tenure recipients for 2021 have been announced and include the following NCMN faculty members: Promoted to Associate Professor and Granted Tenure: Christos Argyropoulos, Electrical and Computer Engineering; Michael Sealy, Mechanical and Materials Engineering; Vitaly Alexandrov, Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering. Promoted to Professor: Martin Centurion, Physics and Astronomy. (4/26/21)

Morin to speak in MRS Webinar Series

Stephen Morin will be speaking in a webinar on 'Materials Challenges in Soft Robotics' hosted by the Materials Research Society (MRS). The webinar will take place on Wednesday, April 28 at 7 a.m. The event is free, but you must register to attend. Register here. (4/26/21)

Pocket Science feature: Lu's lasers and flames

Yongfeng Lu and colleagues (including Rebecca Lai and Bai Cui) have shown how a laser can modify chemical reactions taking place within a flame, allowing them to coat materials with performance-enhancing chemicals while avoiding a side effect that reduces the performance of semiconductors and other microelectronic components. View the study. (4/23/21)

Binek to present for W2S webinar

Christian Binek will present his topic, 'Voltage controlled Néel vector rotation in zero magnetic field,' as part of the Webinar series on Spintronics hosted by the National Institute of Science Education and Research Bhubaneswar in India. The webinar will take place on April 21 at 11 p.m. CST. Please contact Dr. Subhankar Bedanta at sbedanta@niser.ac.in if you would like to attend. (4/20/21)

Hage, Yang receive Family and Friends Recognition Award

David Hage and Ruiguo Yang are two of 75 recipients of the 2020-2021 Family and Friends award. The Family and Friends Awards, formerly known as the Parents’ Recognition Awards, recognize faculty and staff who have made a significant difference in students’ lives. All nominations are submitted by parents, family and friends of students who include a short explanation of why this person was nominated. This is a first-time award for both professors. (4/12/21)

Binek, Dowben, Gruverman team makes breakthrough with antiferromagnetic material

After years of toil, a team led by Christian Binek, Peter Dowben, and Alexei Gruverman have developed a quantum material whose magnetic states can be altered by electric means alone, and above room temperature. The antiferromagnetic material - chromium oxide with a dash of boron - has properties that could make it a practical candidate for drastically improving the power consumption and speed of digital memory. The study was published in Nature Communications. (4/5/21)

Dishari receives 3M Award

Shudipto Dishari has received the 3M Non-Tenured Faculty Award for 2021. This highly competitive award recognizes the outstanding young faculty across the U.S. who excel in STEM research, academic leadership and experience, and is designed to help them achieve tenure by providing an unrestricted gift of $15,000 per year for up to three years. (4/5/21)

Ndao article in top 100 downloads in 2020

Sidy Ndao's article - NanoThermoMechanical AND and OR Logic Gates - received 2,191 downloads in 2020, placing it as one of the top 100 downloaded physics papers for Scientific Reports in 2020. The journal published more than 800 physics papers in 2020. (4/1/21)

Iverson featured in "She's a Scientist" series

Nicole Iverson, assistant professor of biological systems engineering, was featured in University Communications "She's a Scientist" video series this week. Iverson is currently working to develop nanoscopic sensors aimed at detecting earlier hints of disease at the cellular level. (3/26/21)

Lai featured in "She's a Scientist" series

Rebecca Lai, associate professor of chemistry and Harry Potter aficionado, is the second researcher to be featured in the "She's a Scientist" video series produced by University Communications to celebrate Women's History Month. Lai is well known for her unique teaching approach of combining Harry Potter with chemistry, associating elements of the fictional world with real-life applications. (3/12/21)

Eun, Kim team aims for safer storage of nuclear waste

Jongwan Eun and Seunghee Kim are leading a team of researchers working to develop a barrier material that will make the geological storage of spent nuclear fuels a safer proposition. The team is looking at adding an inorganic microfiber, such as glass, to bentonite to create a less-permeable and more-durable and heat-resistant material to store the spent fuel. The team has received a three-year, $800,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Energy. (3/10/21)

Bao published in Nature Photonics

Wei Bao and colleagues recently published an article in Nature Photonics titled A non-unitary metasurface enables continuous control of quantum photon–photon interactions from bosonic to fermionic. (2/17/21)

Faculty acknowledged for work on Grand Challenges framework

Following Chancellor Ronnie Green’s 2020 State of Our University address, ORED was charged with designing and leading an open, participatory process for the campus community to identify a portfolio of Nebraska “Grand Challenges.” The challenge themes will help guide activities and talent and be used to direct institutional investment and resource allocation. The following NCMN faculty contributed to the process of identifying the Grand Challenge themes. Those with an asterisk (*) listed after their names also participated in writing the theme descriptions:

• Shireen Adenwalla, Physics
• Shannon Bartelt-Hunt, Civil and Environmental Engineering
• Herman Batelaan, Physics and Astronomy
• Christian Binek*, Physics and Astronomy
• Martin Centurion, Physics
• Lucia Fernandez-Ballester, College of Engineering
• Timothy Gay, Physics and Astronomy
• Seunghee Kim, Civil and Environmental Engineering
• Abdelghani Laraoui*, Mechanical and Materials Engineering
• Angie Pannier, Biological Systems Engineering
• Jody Redepenning*, Chemistry
• Eva Schubert, Electrical and Computer Engineering
• David Sellmyer*, Nebraska Center for Materials and Nanoscience, Physics
• Jeff Shield*, Mechanical and Materials Engineering
• Xiaoshan Xu, Physics and Astronomy

Zeng's 'Nice Ice' featured in "Deep Freeze" article

A Nebraska Today article highlighting "downright cold feats at Nebraska" in light of recent subzero temps, featured Xiao Cheng Zeng and his 'Nice Ice.' Cheng and colleagues discovered that ice grows upward from water-repellent surfaces, making it far easier to remove than ice that grows flat on more absorbent surfaces. (2/15/21)

Yang team develops system to measure resilience, breakage of cellular bridge

Ruiguo Yang and his colleagues have managed to record the biomechanical behavior of mature, individual cell-to-cell junctions for the first time, as reported in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. (2/3/21)

Accolades, January 2021

Alexei Gruverman received the Humboldt Research Award from the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation. The honor goes to up to 100 people per year, recognizing researchers whose fundamental discoveries, theories or insights have had — and will continue to have — a significant impact in their field. Recipients are invited to carry out research projects in cooperation with specialist colleagues in Germany.

Jian Wang was named a fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers. The ASME Committee of Past Presidents confers fellowship status to worthy candidates to recognize their outstanding engineering achievements. Nominated by ASME members and fellows, an ASME member must have 10 or more years of active practice and at least 10 years of active corporate membership in ASME.

(1/29/21)

Yang team applying electric charges to cell surfaces

Ruiguo Yang and colleague Jae Sung Park have received a three-year, $387,356 grant from the National Science Foundation to apply electric charges to cells and study how those charges change the flows around pores in a cell’s surface. The idea is to improve drug delivery systems that could help fight cancer, heart disease, and neurodegenerative diseases. (1/26/21)

Research Highlight: Robert Streubel

Robert Streubel has been recognized as an Emerging Leader by the Journal of Physics: Condensed Matter. His special issue contribution "The effect of Cu additions in FePt-BN-SiO2 heat-assisted magnetic recording media" focuses on the impact of structural and chemical order in L10 FePt.

Streubel's work was also recently published in Advanced Materials. "Chiral Spin Textures in Amorphous Iron–Germanium Thick Films" reports experimental evidence of 3D chiral spin textures, i.e., helical spins and skyrmions with different chirality and topological charge, stabilized in amorphous Fe–Ge thick films. (1/22/21)

NCMN faculty featured in NUtech annual report

The following NCMN faculty members were featured in NUtech Venture's 2019-2020 Nebraska Research Report:

• Alexander Sinitskii was featured for his research on using DNA nanotechnology to shape graphene nanoribbons into functional electronic structures for device applications. Sinitskii received a three-year, $4.5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Defense’s Office of Naval Research for this work.
• Vitaly Alexandrov was highlighted for earning a Faculty Early Career Development Program award from the National Science Foundation for his work in expanding the understanding of how nanomaterials dissolve in water.
• Shudipto Dishari received accolades for earning the Early Career Research Program award from the Department of Energy’s Office of Science. "With the funding, Dishari will design new polymer materials that improve energy efficiency and storage, possibly in devices such as fuel cells and redox-flow batteries."

Achievements, January 15

Florin Bobaru, and colleagues Siavash Jafarzadeh and Ziguang Chen, have been awarded the 2020 Corrosion Best Paper Award from NACE International for “Peridynamic Modeling of Repassivation in Pitting Corrosion of Stainless Steel,” published in Corrosion. (1/15/21)

Hage, Dishari highlighted by NUtech Ventures

David Hage and Shudipto Dishari were featured in an article from NUtech Ventures highlighting key stories from 2020 that shaped the transfer of research and creative activity to the marketplace. Hage helped design a COVID-19 antibody test and Dishari is developing polymers to reduce the cost and improve the energy efficiency of hydrogen-based fuel cells, which are used to fuel electric cars. (1/12/21)

US-Issued Patents, Oct-Dec 2020

The following list includes all U.S.-issued patents granted by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to University of Nebraska-Lincoln researchers from Oct. 1, 2020, to Dec. 31, 2020, as reported by NUtech Ventures.

• Leidenfrost Droplet Microfluidics; Sidy Ndao, Dennis Alexander, George Gogos, Troy Anderson, Craig Zuhlke; 10,792,660
• Hydrogel Microphone; Li Tan, Yang Gao, Qin Zhou, Yongmei Chen; 10,801,906
• Effective Hair Styling Compositions and Processes; Yiqi Yang, Helan Xu, Kaili Song; 10,828,246

(1/8/21)

Top Sponsored Awards, November 2020

These are awards from public entities, including all arts and humanities grants of $10,000 or more and all other grants of $200,000 or more between October 16 and November 15, 2020, as reported through NUgrant:

• Ozan Ciftci (and colleagues D. Ciftci and R. Hutkins); FDST; $481,960; Department of Agriculture-National Institute of Food and Agriculture; An Innovative Green Platform Technology to Manufacture Novel Multifunctional Hollow Solid Lipid Micro- and Nanoparticles
• Evgeny Tsymbal; PHYS; $375,005; University of Wisconsin; Engineered Quantum Heterostructures with Epitaxial Antiperovskites

(1/8/21)

Ciftci receives LIST International Award in Bioinnovation

Ozan Ciftci has received the LIST International Award in Bioinnovation from the Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology. The award honors the most outstanding research in the areas of bioavailability of nutrients, nutrient transport or nutrient effectiveness on a cellular level. Ciftci was honored for his discovery of a novel, green-based approach to improve the bioaccessibility of curcumin, a chemical compound found in turmeric that has the potential to help prevent heart disease, Alzheimer’s, cancer and other diseases. (12/7/20)

Takacs named AAAS fellow

James Takacs is one of four Nebraska faculty to be named fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the world's largest general scientific society. Takacs was elected for distinguished contributions to synthetic organic chemistry, commitment to mentoring and excellence in postsecondary chemical education, and the advancement of science through academic administration. (11/24/20)

Iverson team earns grant to improve nitric oxide sensors

A team led by Nicole Iverson has earned a $1.77 million grant from the Department of Health and Human Services to make nitric oxide sensors easy to use and to utilize them to study both healthy and diseased cells. (11/11/20)

Dishari named NUtech Emerging Innovator of the Year

NUtech Ventures hosted its Innovator Celebration on Nov. 2, held as part of Nebraska Research Days. The Emerging Innovator of the Year award went to Shudipto Dishari, assistant professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering. The award recognizes an individual, often a junior faculty member, for recent innovation contributions.

Dishari’s research focuses on designing ion-conducting and light-harvesting polymers, exploring the nanoscale phenomena within polymeric thin films and membranes. Her work could help reduce the cost and improve the energy efficiency of hydrogen-based fuel cells. Other potential applications include energy conversion and storage device systems, such as lithium batteries, semi-conductors, and biochemical systems. (11/4/20)

Yang publishes new book

Jiashi Yang recently published his new book Mechanics of Piezoelectric, 2nd Edition. This book covers one- and two-dimensional theories of piezoelectric structures including rods, beams, plates and shells. In addition to the so-called low-frequency motions of extension and bending, high-frequency motions of thickness shear and thickness stretch are also considered for certain applications unique in resonant piezoelectric devices. Both single-layer and multi-layer structures are treated. Nonlinear effects due to large deflection or large shear deformation are also discussed. The emphasis is on the development of structural theories with various levels of sophistication for different applications in piezoelectric devices. (10/31/20)

Accolades, October 2020

Angela Pannier was named to the 2020 Class of Fellows in the Biomedical Engineering Society. Fellows have demonstrated exceptional achievements and have made significant contributions within the biomedical engineering field. They also have extensive leadership within the field and have served within the society. (10/30/20)

Gay solves conundrum of football physics

Tim Gay and colleagues have discovered the answer to a football physics question that stumped him for years - when a quarterback throws a deep, well-thrown pass, why does the football point up when thrown and then down when about to be caught? The answer lay in the concept of gyroscopic stabilization. The team knew that a well-thrown football, like the high-RPM gyroscope, possesses plenty of angular momentum. But with the aid of math and computer simulations, they came to a vital conclusion: The football can adopt a precession, too. (10/5/20)

Top Awards from Public Sponsors, August 2020

These are awards from public entities, including all arts and humanities grants of $10,000 or more and all other grants of $200,000 or more between May 16 and June 15, 2020, as reported through NUgrant. NCMN recipients:

• Joe Turner (and colleagues L. Rilett and H. Sharif-Kashani); MME; $535,500; Kansas State University; Rural Rail Safety Center
• Alexey Kovalev; PHYS; $344,971; Department of Energy; Spin Currents in Magnetic Systems and Heterostructures

(10/5/20)

2020 Service Awards for NCMN faculty and staff

The following NCMN faculty and staff were honored during this year's (virtual) Celebration of Service, which celebrates faculty and staff employed with the University in five-year increments.

• 5 Years: Nicole Iverson-BSE, Vitaly Alexandrov-CBE, Jiong Hu-CEE Omaha, Eli Sutter-MME, Peter Sutter-ECE, Jian Wang-MME, Michael Sealy-MME
• 10 Years: Srivatsan Kidambi-CBE, Lucia Fernandez Ballester-MME, Jiong Hua-NCMN
• 15 Years: Yong Rak Kim-CEE, Mathias Schubert-ECE, Li Tan-MME
• 20 Years: Xingzhong Li-NCMN
• 30 Years: Jody Redepenning-CHEM, Shelli Krupricka-NCMN
• 45 Years: Dennis Alexander-ECE

(9/29/20)

Centurion named APS fellow

Martin Centurion has been elected a 2020 Fellow of the American Physical Society. Fellowships recognize members who may have made advances in physics through original research and publication; significant, innovative contributions in the application of physics to science and technology; significant contributions to the teaching of physics; or service and participation in the activities of the Society. (9/28/20)

Bartelt-Hunt searching sewage for COVID-19

Shannon Bartelt-Hunt is expanding her research on identifying SARS-CoV-2 in sewage to the University of Nebraska-Lincoln's City Campus. This testing is part of a larger research project Bartelt-Hunt is working on with UNMC to determine the feasibility of using wastewater for SARS-CoV-2 community surveillance. (9/25/20)

Turner selected for Research Leaders Program

Joe Turner is one of 15 UNL faculty members selected to participate in the inaugural cohort of the Office of Research and Economic Development’s Research Leaders Program. Among the first of its kind in the nation, this initiative to identify and develop Nebraska’s next generation of research leaders is in partnership with the Center for Professional and Executive Development in the College of Business. (9/4/20)

NCMN honors and publications for Sept. 4

David Hage has earned the ACS Award in Chromatography from the American Chemical Society. Recipients are recognized for outstanding contributions to the field of chromatography, with particular consideration given to developments of new methods. He will be honored at the ACS 2021 Spring National Meeting in San Antonio.



Shudipto Dishari and a team of researchers co-authored an article titled Ionomers From Kraft Lignin for Renewable Energy Applications that is featured in Frontiers in Chemistry’s “Women In Science”. (9/4/20)

Bartelt-Hunt on team finding antibiotics in Nebraska watersheds

Shannon Bartelt-Hunt is among a team of researchers from UNL and UNMC that have discovered antibiotics used in human treatment in two Nebraska watersheds near Fremont and Lincoln. The discovery has researchers concerned about the impact this will have on the increasing resistance to antibiotics in humans. (9/3/20)

Top Awards from Public Sponsors, July 2020

These are awards from public entities, including all arts and humanities grants of $10,000 or more and all other grants of $200,000 or more between May 16 and June 15, 2020, as reported through NUgrant. NCMN recipients:

• Joe Turner; MME; $301,395; National Science Foundation, Integrated Analysis of the Cell Biological, Biomechanical, and Physiological Dynamics of Stomatal Guard Cells in Plants

UNL announces NNF five-year renewal

The University of Nebraska has announced the five-year renewal of the Nebraska Nanoscale Facility through the NSF’s National Nanotechnology Coordinated Infrastructure program.
“We can proudly say here in Nebraska that this is quite an elite club we are in,” said Christian Binek, director of the nanoscale facility. The national infrastructure aims to ensure “the entire country is equipped with the tools and expertise to perform nanoscience and nanotechnology. With this infrastructure we have, we are in a very good position to play an important role and compete nationwide and even internationally in this field,” Binek said. (8/28/20)

Bartelt-Hunt receives COVID-related grant from ORED

Shannon Bartelt-Hunt is heading one of 20 research teams at Nebraska that have received a grant from the Office of Research and Economic Development’s COVID-19 Rapid Response Grant Program. Bartelt-Hunt’s project: “Using Wastewater to Track COVID in Nebraska’s Communities.” (8/7/20)

Top Awards from Public Sponsors, June 2020

These are awards from public entities, including all arts and humanities grants of $10,000 or more and all other grants of $200,000 or more between May 16 and June 15, 2020, as reported through NUgrant. NCMN recipients:

• David Berkowitz; CHEM; $476,140; National Science Foundation; NSF IPA Assignment
• Yuris Dzenis; MME; $599,374; Department of Defense-Air Force Office of Scientific Research; Ultratough Lightweight High-Temperature Nanofibers for Aerospace Composites
• Florin Bobaru (and colleague A. Larios); MME; $748,375; National Science Foundation; Corrosion-Induced Fracture and Failure: Transforming Computations from Micrometers and Minutes to Meters and Years
• Peter Dowben; PHYS; $486,234; National Science Foundation; Heteromolecular Interface Design for Better Multiferroic Molecular Spintronics
• Jongwan Eun and Seunghee Kim (and colleagues J. Steelman, M. Asadollahipajouh, C. Song, and C. Stolle); CEE; $248,261; Alaska Dept of Transportation & Public Facilities; Evaluation of Light Pole Foundation Embedment

Husker team fine-tuning skyrmions to improve data storage, processing

A team led by David Sellmyer, Balamurugan Balasubramanian, and Ralph Skomski continue to make progress on their work improving skyrmions, by making them smaller and more stable, so they can be useful in practical applications. The team was recently able to increase the magnetic ordering temperature of a skyrmion supporting material beyond room temperature while also shrinking the size of the skyrmions to ~17 nanometers. This discovery counters the conventional wisdom that only larger skyrmions can be realized at room temperature; for future applications, skyrmions would ideally be ~10 nanometers. (7/21/20)

Binek contributes to 2020 Magnetism Roadmap

Christian Binek was one of several scientists chosen to contribute to the 2020 Magnetism Roadmap, which offers an expose of newly relevant and highly active areas in magnetism research. Binek’s contribution is titled “Multiferroic heterostructures and magnetoelectrics.” (7/20/20)

Bartelt-Hunt on team testing wastewater for virus detection

Shannon Bartelt-Hunt and a team of researchers from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and the University of Nebraska Medical Center have partnered with the Lincoln Wastewater System to start projects that use wastewater samples for early detection of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus. In a study conducted at Yale University, researchers were able to predict the number of coronavirus cases seven days ahead using the amounts of coronavirus found in wastewater samples. Bartelt-Hunt has been collecting weekly wastewater samples from Lincoln, Grand Island, and Omaha and working with researchers at UNMC on testing methods and the possibilities of sequencing and culturing the virus to learn more about its origins as well as precautions needed for utilities workers. (7/10/20)

NCMN in the national news, June 2020

Xiao Cheng Zeng was elected to the Chemistry Division of the European Academy of Sciences, an independent organization of the most distinguished scholars and engineers who are at the forefront of research and development of advanced technologies. (7/6/20)

Top Awards from Public Sponsors, May 2020

These are awards from public entities, including all arts and humanities grants of $10,000 or more and all other grants of $200,000 or more between March 16 and April 15, 2020, as reported through NUgrant. NCMN recipients:

• David Berkowitz (and colleagues M. Wilson, W. Nui); CHEM; $603,881; National Science Foundation; Engineering Enzymes for New Stereoselective and Stereodynamic Processes: An Integrated Chemistry-Bioengineering-X-Ray Crystallography-Molecular Dynamics Approach
• Dennis Alexander, Christos Argyropoulos (and colleagues C. Zuhlke, G. Gogos, N. Ianno, J.Shield); ECE; $385,240; Department of Defense-Office of Naval Research-Defense University Research Instrumentation Program; Femtosecond Streak Camera for Studying the Role of Laser Induced Plasmas in Ultrafast Light-Matter Interactions
• Ozan Ciftci (and colleagues Y. Menese Gonzalez, R. Moreau, D. Rose); FDST; $468,000; USDA-NIFA; An Innovative Approach to Increasing Bioavailability of Curcumin using Nanoporous Starch Bioaerogels

U.S.-Issued Patents, April-June 2020

The following U.S.-issued patents were granted by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to University of Nebraska-Lincoln researchers from April 1, 2020, to June 30, 2020, as reported by NUtech Ventures:

• Christopher Exstrom (and colleagues J. Huang, B. Mao); Patent 10,680,125; Synthesis of Air Stable Pyrite Nanocrystals for Photovoltaic Application

NCMN in the national news, June 2020

David Berkowtiz was featured in Chemistry World’s “Chemists Amid Coronavirus” series on June 16. He recently began his appointment as director of the National Science Foundation’s Division of Chemistry. He also continues to conduct research at Nebraska. (7/2/20)

Hage team helping develop COVID-19 antibody test

David Hage and his graduate students are part of a nationwide team, led by ni2o Inc., that is repurposing patented technologies to develop and manufacture a fast-acting COVID-19 antibody test. Hage’s team is using his own previously patented research (a support material that helps compounds rapidly bind together, along with a method for using the material in clinical testing) to develop a faster antibody test that is easy to use in a clinical setting. Right now they are just focusing on identifying any COVID-19 antibodies, but hope to progress to where the test can identify different types of antibodies. Hage’s progress was featured on KETV Omaha. (6/22/20)

NCMN in the national news, May 2020

A study by Yuris Dzenis and colleagues yielding breakthroughs in understanding the failure of high-performance fibers was featured on Phys.org and Technology.org. (6/1/20)

The legacy of Sellmyer’s career and leadership

In the second story of a five part series from ORED highlighting research leadership, the spotlight shined on David Sellmyer’s leadership successes during his long career. The article features much commentary from current and former colleagues praising his leadership, mentorship, management, and his knack for seeing the big picture. (5/29/20)

Berkowitz joins NSF

On May 24, David Berkowitz assumed the position of division director of NSF’s chemistry division under the Intergovernmental Personnel Act; he is working “on loan” from Nebraska, but will continue his research program at Nebraska through NSF’s Independent Research/Development Program. (5/29/20)

Top Awards from Public Sponsors, April 2020

These are awards from public entities, including all arts and humanities grants of $10,000 or more and all other grants of $200,000 or more between March 16 and April 15, 2020, as reported through NUgrant. NCMN recipients:

• Peter and Eli Sutter; ECE/MME; $496,037, Department of Defense-Office of Naval Research; Riemann Surfaces in Layered Van der Waals Nanowires: Precision Twist Moires, Nanoscale Solenoids and Screw Dislocation Spin-Orbit Coupling
• Ruiguo Yang (and colleague J. Park); MME; $387,356; NSF; Nonlinear Electrokinetics at Polarizable Soft Interfaces: Implications for Cell Membrane Characterization and Nanopore Transport

Dzenis team makes breakthroughs studying high-performance fibers

Yuris Dzenis and colleagues have made some new discoveries while studying the failure of high-performance fibers found in body armor and aerospace engineering. The team devised a way to analyze the failures of the polymer fibers that avoided the perturbations that invalidated measurements captured by other techniques. The study was recently featured on the cover of ACS Applied Materials and Interfaces. (5/20/20)

NCMN faculty receive promotions, tenure

Four NCMN faculty members received promotions/tenure this year. Bai Cui (MME) and Prahalada Rao (MME) were both promoted to associate professor and granted tenure. Yusong Li (CEE) and Alexander Sinitskii (CHEM) were both promoted to full professor. Congratulations! (5/15/20)

Hage, Hu receive College Distinguished Teaching Award

David Hage and Jiong Hu have been chosen to receive the College Distinguished Teaching Award, a $1,000 stipend in recognition of excellent teaching. Each year, 15 faculty across campus are chosen, based on recommendations from their college. (5/4/20)

NCMN faculty in national news, April 2020

Two of our faculty members made national news in April. Yiqi Yang was quoted in a Wall Street Journal article discussing the efficacy of DIY face masks. The research of Xia Hong and colleagues was featured in Phys.org and Technology.org. The researchers recently discovered unusual light-filtering effects in a nanoscopic structure that could spur the development of smaller, smarter optical filters. (5/4/20)

‘Strange effect’ raises possibility of smaller, smarter optical filters

Xia Hong and colleagues have discovered a ‘strange trick’ while studying how the optical behavior of single-layer molybdenum disulfide responded when it was placed atop a ferroelectric material called lead zirconate titanate, or PZT. Instead of observing second-harmonic generation uniformly across the surface, the team noticed that certain segments were boosting the phenomenon even as others dampened it. This discovery could spur the development of smaller, more versatile optical filters that are especially adept at playing with a trick of the light. Among the co-authors were two other NCMN faculty: Yongfeng Lu and Evgeny Tsymbal. (4/29/20)

Nejati team experimenting with organic LEGOs

A team led by Siamak Nejati, including researchers from the Colorado School of Mines, Harbin Institute of Technology, and the University of Pennsylvania, have discovered a way to synthesize a special type of organic solids, known as porphyrin-based covalent organic frameworks (POR-COFs). COFs are porous, lightweight and durable; the researchers compare them to LEGO bricks for their ability to be assembled in defined ways and relatively quickly to form a variety of larger structures. (4/14/20)

Alexandrov receives CAREER Award

Vitaly Alexandrov has received a $520,244 CAREER Award to advance basic understanding of how nanocrystals dissolve in aqueous environments. (3/2/20)

Yang on team developing smart bandages

Ruiguo Yang has been working with Ali Tamayol (former Husker, now at University of Connecticut) to develop smart bandages, which feature an array of tiny needles that can help heal chronic wounds by delivering therapeutic drugs directly to damaged tissue. “By plunging past the dead surface-level tissue that can persist for months in people with Type 2 diabetes, those needles could administer drugs to help close wounds, reduce infection, stimulate cell growth and potentially restore blood flow. Limiting the duration of such wounds, the researchers said, could also help dethrone them as the leading non-traumatic cause of amputations.” (2/27/20)

“Droplet like it’s watt”

Xiao Cheng Zeng and colleagues at the City University of Hong Kong have developed a prototype that can yield a record amount of electricity from falling raindrops. (2/10/20)

Lai receives ORCA Award

Rebecca Lai was recently honored by the College of Arts and Sciences with it’s College Outstanding Research and Creative Activity (ORCA) award. This award recognizes significant research and creative accomplishments of university faculty in the last five years. (2/4/20)

Lai gives SciPop Talk

On February 19, Rebecca Lai gave a SciPop talk on “Elements in the Harry Potter World.” The presentation discussed elements in our world that are also featured in the Harry Potter world, like gold, silver, and mercury. (1/30/20)

Binek gives CAS Inquire Lecture

Christian Binek presented his CAS Inquire lecture The Rise of Nanotechnology: Small Machines with Big Impact, on January 28. A video of the lecture can be viewed here. (1/29/20)

The Sutters team adds twist to van der Waals heterostructures

Peter and Eli Sutter, along with colleagues from Aalto University and the University of Wyoming, have discovered that by adding sulfur they could directly synthesize twisted stacks of van der Waals heterostructures. (1/15/20)

Binek to give CAS Inquire Lecture

On January 28, Christian Binek will be delivering the first CAS Inquire lecture of the new year. Binek’s topic is “The Rise of Nanotechnology: Small Machines with Big Impact.”

The CAS Inquire program builds around a college-wide series of public lectures centering on a new theme each year. The lecture series serves as a touchstone for the college—giving students, staff, and faculty a focal point and shared topic for conversations and further inquiry. All lectures will be at 5:30 p.m. in the Nebraska Union Auditorium. (1/15/20)

Watching Nebraska Ice Grow

Xiao Cheng Zeng's team continues to learn more about the 2D form of ice dubbed ‘Nebraska Ice.’ The team has been able to document the shifting configuration of the ice as it grows, by freezing the ice itself. (1/2/20)

Negahban team working to redirect sound waves

Mehrdad Negahban, working with colleagues from Peking University, has developed a wave-altering prototype that can dynamically redirect the sound waves passing through its surface. The prototype could lead to applications ranging from magnifying signals to disorienting adversaries. (11/13/19)

NCMN Faculty in national news, October 2019

Several of our faculty members made national news last month. Herman Batelaan was quoted in a Popular Mechanics article. Yongfeng Lu’s project, supported by the U.S. Navy’s Office of Naval Research, was highlighted in a Tech Xplore article. Rebecca Lai was featured in Chemical and Engineering News piece for combining chemistry with Harry Potter for classes and outreach. Michael Sealy’s work with 3D printing processes was the topic of a Modern Machine Shop article. Finally, Alexander Sinitskii made local and national news when he was awarded a $4.5M grant from the DoD Office of Naval Research for a multi-institutional project he’s leading to explore the use of DNA nanotechnology to build graphene circuits (1, 2). (11/5/19)

Pannier selected for Big Ten leadership programs

Angela Pannier was selected by the Executive Vice Chancellor’s Office as one of 11 faculty and executive-level staff to attend two Big Ten Academic Alliance leadership programs this year. (10/30/19)

Binek named Interim Director

Christian Binek has been named interim director of the Nebraska Center for Materials and Nanoscience and director of the Nebraska Nanoscale Facility, succeeding David Sellmyer, George Holmes University Distinguished Professor of physics.

“As a veteran leader of interdisciplinary research within NCMN, as well as in the university’s NSF-funded MRSEC, Christian is ideally positioned to advance the center’s mission,” said Bob Wilhelm, vice chancellor for research and economic development. “This leadership experience, combined with Christian’s nationally regarded research expertise in magnetoelectric materials and spintronics, will help him elevate the center as Nebraska’s premier site for materials research.”

Binek’s appointment became effective October 4. (10/11/19)

Centurion earns $2M grant

Martin Centurion has been awarded a $2 million grant from the Department of Energy for a project that aims to capture moving images of single molecules in chemical transformations triggered by light. Centurion will work in collaboration with researchers from Kansas State University, Louisiana State University, and Brown University; the researchers will focus on molecules with possibilities for industrial chemistry and for solar energy conversion and storage. (10/21/19)

Lu team develops “shipyard on a ship”

Yongfeng Lu and his team have developed a laser system that prevents and repairs corrosion on aluminum-sided ships. Supported by the U.S. Office of Naval Research, the team is now ready to test the laser on a fully operational Navy ship, and will do so this fall. (10/2/19)

NNF Outreach featured in RAIN Newsletter

The Remotely Accessible Instruments for Nanotechnology (RAIN) quarterly newsletter highlighted the Nebraska Nanoscale Facility’s (NNF) summer outreach partnership with the Extension Office and 4-H. Fourteen schools and programs in the Omaha area participated in the Engineering with Nano Power experience. During these programs, participants were able to examine a variety of materials using the remote capabilities of NNF’s XRF. (10/2/29)

Kidambi named Faculty Fellow for Student Success

Srivatsan Kidambi, Dept. of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering, is one of seven UNL faculty members to be named Faculty Fellows for Student Success. The fellows will meet bimonthly with directors of academic support and engagement units, focusing on gaining expertise and leading change at the university. (9/30/19)

Ciftci team develop nanoparticles that could help lower cholesterol

Ozan Ciftci and colleagues have developed phytosterol nanoparticles that are designed to help facilitate bodily absorption of phytosterols, which are plant-derived compounds that are known to lower LDL cholesterol that contributes to plaque buildup in arteries. (8/30/19)

PECASE Award: Pannier Profile

Angela Pannier discusses the journey that led to her career at UNL, the importance of making mistakes and learning from them, the nuances of training future engineers, and her outlook on the field of gene therapy. (7/26/19)

Bartelt-Hunt named chair of civil engineering

Shannon Bartelt-Hunt, an associate dean in the Office of Graduate Studies and professor in the College of Engineering, has been appointed as the new Donald R. Voelte and Nancy A. Keegan Chair in civil engineering. (7/17/19)

NCMN Faculty are Active in Patenting

The ORED office and NUtech Ventures recently issued a report on US-issued patents granted by the U.S. Patent Office to UNL inventors for the fiscal year 2019. The following NCMN faculty are listed on one or more: Ndao, DiMagno, Woollam, M. Schubert, Kovalev, Belashchenko, Sinitskii, Gruverman, Dowben, Dussault, Redepenning, Huang, Lu, and Alexander. This represents 13 of a total of 34 UNL patents or 38%! Congratulations to our active NCMN faculty! (7/17/19)

Pannier earns Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists & Engineers

Angela Pannier was one of two UNL faculty members to be awarded the most prestigious governmental award for early career researchers. Pannier was nominated by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services for her work on over ten projects relating to biomaterials and gene delivery systems. Congratulations, Prof. Pannier! (7/5/19)

A look at Yang’s greener dyeing technique

Yiqi Yang and colleagues have been working to find a more environmentally friendly way to dye plant-based fabrics. The team has found that by dissolving dyes in cottonseed oil (instead of water) they can use less dye, reuse more dye, they don’t need to use salts, can get the same colors as with other techniques, and the waste produced contains mostly biodegradable products. (6/20/19)

Sellmyer book among top 25% most downloaded eBooks

Nanoscale Magnetic Materials and Applications, Springer 2009, edited by J.P. Liu, E. Fullerton, O. Gutfleisch, and D.J. Sellmyer. Since its online publication, there have been a total of 64598 chapter downloads for this eBook on SpringerLink. The book is among the top 25% most downloaded eBooks in 2018. (6/17/19)

Study points to non-Newtonian force affecting particles’ flight

Herman Batelaan and colleagues recently decided to explore two theories explaining the nature of the Aharonov-Bohm effect. In their results, the team showed mathematically that the two theories are two special cases of one overarching theorem. (5/30/19)

Pannier featured on Faculty 101 podcast

In the last Faculty 101 podcast of the season, Chancellor Ronnie Green takes over as host and interviews professor of biological systems engineering, Angela Pannier. (5/6/19)

Researchers pinpoint potential cause of low testosterone

Studies suggest that men taking opioid drugs or those with Type 2 diabetes are likely to see a drop in their testosterone levels. Virginia researchers partnered with David Hage and his team to investigate how testosterone and other drugs bind to serum albumin - a common protein in blood and known transporter of hormones, drugs, etc., through the bloodstream. Hage’s specialty is analyzing how biological components interact with drugs and hormones under physiological conditions - and his team is studying various conditions under which testosterone binds to serum albumin, in the hope of informing the prescription of medications and the development of new ones. (4/29/19)

NCMN Faculty Receive Promotions

Congratulations to the following NCMN members who were awarded promotion and/or tenure in 2019: Promoted to Full Professor - Linxia Gu (Mechanical & Materials Engineering); Promoted to Associate Professor and granted tenure - Ozan Ciftci (Food Science & Technology), Alexey Kovalev (Physics & Astronomy), Stephen Morin (Chemistry), and Xiaoshan Xu (Physics & Astronomy). (4/24/19)

Nebraska Engineering team find defect that gives advantages to nanowires

While attempting to grow an optimal nanowire using crystals, Peter Sutter, Eli Sutter, and Shawn Wimer have found that a defect - a screw dislocation - occuring in the growth process causes the layers of crystals to rotate along an axis as they form. This defect creates twists that give these nanowires advantages, particularly in electronics and light emission. (4/22/19)

NCMN/NNF Outreach student presents research to state senators

Juliana Rodriguez, who has worked for NCMN/NNF as a undergraduate student outreach facilitator, had the opportunity to present her research to state senators as a part of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s 2019 Spring Research Fair. (4/17/19)

Tsymbal earns top NU honor

Evgeny Tsymbal, professor of physics, was awarded one of NU’s most prestigious awards - the Outstanding Research and Creativity Award, which recognizes faculty who have demonstrated meritorious and sustained records of excellence and creativity in teaching. (4/10/19)

Sealy wins $500K NSF Early Career Development Award

The award will help Michael Sealy continue his research on additive manufacturing techniques. He hopes to create lighter and stronger materials to be used to create dissolvable medical implants - which would speed patient recovery times and prevent the need for surgical removal. (4/9/19)

Zeng named 2019 Materials Research Society Fellow

Xiao Cheng Zeng was named a 2019 Materials Research Society Fellow, honoring him for his work on low-dimensional ice and clathrate gas hydrates, structures of ligand-covered gold clusters, catalysis with surface-supported gold and metal clusters, and computational design of low-dimensional materials. (4/1/19)

Yang team receives NSF grant to study cell communication

Ruiguo Yang and Jung Yul Lim’s research team has received a three-year, $439,584 grant from the National Science Foundation to investigate how linked individual cells communicate with each other and respond to physical changes in their shared environment, which could have implications to everyday medicine and other medical applications. (2/4/19)

Regents' Tour Research Facilities

NU Regents and other university officials toured some of the research facilities in the Voelte-Keegan Nanoscience Research Center on January 24. (1/25/19)

Argyropoulos receives $750,000 early career grant

Christos Argyropoulos received the three-year grant from the Office of Naval Research’s Young Investigator Program for his work exploring the use of ultrafast, short-pulse lasers to modify metal surfaces, which has the potential to be used in national defense applications. (1/25/19)

NU Team leads $11M study to develop radiation exposure drugs

The DoD has awarded a team of Nebraska researchers a second increment - up to $11M over five years - in an ongoing project to jumpstart the development of drug therapies that can protect and counteract the effects of radiation exposure, specifically for military service members. (1/14/19)

Gay receives Outstanding Postdoctoral Mentor Award

Dr. Timothy Gay from the department of Physics and Astronomy won the 2018 Outstanding Postdoctoral Mentor Award during the Postdoctoral & Mentor Awards Luncheon on November 6. Dr. Gay was honored for sustained commitment to and exceptional ability in mentoring postdoctoral scholars' professional and career development. (11/14/18)

Researchers ID promising key to performance of next-gen electronics

Evgeny Tsymbal and Lingling Tao have identified a material whose crystalline structure might better sustain an electron’s spin: a property that, similar to charge, can represent bits of information in digital devices. This stability could result in cheaper, faster, and more energy-efficient devices. (11/13/18)

John Woollam named Prem S. Paul Innovator of the Year

The Prem S. Paul Innovator of the Year award went to John Woollam, an internationally known expert in ellipsometry and a Nebraska faculty member since 1979. The award recognizes an individual who exemplifies innovation and entrepreneurship by advancing novel research into significant commercial use. (11/9/18)

Nebraska-Tuskegee collaboration to expand minority opportunities in materials science

With the support of a six-year grant from the National Science Foundation, Nebraska’s Materials Research Science and Engineering Center will collaborate with Tuskegee University to offer the latter’s undergraduate and graduate students more opportunities for conducting upper-echelon research. The equipment housed at NCMN will help facilitate this partnership. (11/1/18)

Wang receives DoE Nuclear Energy University Program Grant

Jian Wang recently received a three-year, $799,270 grant from the Department of Energy to develop testing and modeling procedures that can better predict the ductility of certain alloys that can be used in next-generation nuclear power facilities. (10/24/18)

Sealy 3-D printing dissolvable medical implants

Michael Sealy is using UNL’s new 3-D printers to develop medical implants (e.g., screws, pins, plates) that are dissolvable, which could eliminate the potential long terms effects of these implants on the body or the need for additional surgery for removal. (10/5/18)

Morin team develops new technique for circuitry deposit

Stephen Morin and his team have developed a new technique for depositing circuitry, allowing them to paint circuits onto curved, textured, and stretchable surfaces. The technique is fairly simple, which should make it less expensive than existing methods. (9/24/18)

Wang to receive Rising Star Award

Jian Wang was selected to receive the Materials Today 2018 Rising Star Award in the Materials Genome division. The awards will be presented September 27 and 28 at Rice University in Houston, TX. (9/10/2018)

Xu wins Early Career award

Xiaoshan Xu earned a $750,000 award from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Early Career Research Program to develop a novel approach that could advance the field of spintronics. He hopes that spin-based devices transform the industry by eventually replacing charge-based electronics. (9/10/18)

Cui and Rao to create ceramic/metal 3-D printer

Bai Cui and Prahalada Rao will be working with Tethon 3D to create a 3-D printer designed specifically for ceramic and metal additive manufacturing after receiving a grant from the Nebraska Department of Economic Development. (8/24/18)

Alexander team works to mimic natural surfaces on metal

Dennis Alexander's research team is using lasers on metal surfaces to mimic evolutionary biological properties (like shark skin, rose petals, beetles, and moth eyes) that can be used for defense and industrial purposes. (7/29/18)

Nebraska researchers working to 3-D print replacement tissues

Prahalada Rao is part of a team of researchers that are working from different angles to develop replacement tissues for bodily injuries by 3-D printing them. Rao is working to perfect the 3-D printing process, so that flawless parts can be produced every time, essential when creating a variety of parts - from replacement knees to airplane turbines. (7/25/28)

Formation of smallest ever skyrmions could improve digital memory

Research led by David Sellmyer and Balamurugan Balasubramanian has resulted in the formation of skyrmions that are seemingly the smallest possible size at only 13 nanometers wide. This new finding could improve digital memory, including better energy efficiency, faster data processing speeds, and longer lifespans for hard drives. (7/12/18)

New benefit of MXenes discovered

Alexander Sinitskii and colleagues have previously discovered a way to boost the electrical conductivity of MXene material titanium carbide, and now they have shown that it is also the stiffest 2-D nanomaterial produced by solution processing. (7/10/18)

Researchers record “molecular movie” of photochemical reaction

Martin Centurion and colleagues, including researchers from Stanford University and Europe, have been able to precisely capture how the atomic nuclei and chemical bonds of a five-atom molecule responded when struck by a laser. The study marks the culmination of a years-long effort to advance the quality of “molecular movies” from that of a rudimentary stop-motion animation to a high-definition motion picture. (7/9/18)

Yang earns grant for converting feathers to fiber

Yiqi Yang and his team were awarded a $211,885 two-year pilot-scale production grant to continue their work on developing a product made from certain fibers found in feathers and wool. Textiles made with these fibers have increased performance properties, including moisture transmission, thermal insulation, soft hand and luster. (6/25/18)

Xu receives Early Career Award from DoE

Xiaoshan Xu was awarded a 2018 Early Career Award from the Department of Energy for his work exploring how combinations of thin materials may be used to control electrons’ spins. The award will provide him with $150,000 in annual funding for the next five years. (6/22/18)

Argyropoulos elevated to Senior Member of OSA

Christos Argyropoulos was recently elevated to the status of Senior Member of the Optical Society of America (OSA). This distinction recognizes individuals for their experience and accomplishments. Argyropoulos has published more than 120 technical papers, including five book chapters. (6/21/18)

Alexandrov & colleagues detail technique that could promote recycling of CO₂

Vitaly Alexandrov and colleagues have detailed a catalyst-based technique that can double the amount of carbon dioxide that can be converted to ethylene, which is an essential component of the world’s most common plastic, polyethylene. This process could promote the recycling of CO₂ as an alternative to fossil fuels when making plastic - helping to offset the CO₂ emissions that contribute to global climate change. (6/5/18)

Zeng team develops equation for designing clean-energy catalysts

Xiao Cheng Zeng and colleagues have identified previously overlooked factors critical to the performance of single-atom catalysts and used them to create a simple equation that should allow researchers to easily predict how the choice of atom and its surrounding material will affect catalytic performance. (5/30/18)

UNL home to new hybrid 3-D printers

UNL’s Scott Engineering Center is now home to three unique hybrid 3-D printers that can add and subtract materials to create complex designs. The Nebraska Engineering Additive Technology (NEAT) Labs will provide researchers and students with endless possibilities for projects affecting a plethora of fields and industries. Click here to learn more about the NEAT Labs and the new instruments. (5/24/18)

Sellmyer Honored at MRS Meeting

The Spring MRS Meeting in Phoenix hosted a five-day Symposium “Nanoscale Magnetic Structures and Materials,” which was organized by friends and colleagues of David Sellmyer to celebrate his many achievements and contributions to the field. Some 30 outstanding invited talks were presented by speakers including Stuart Parkin (Halle), Claudia Felser (Dresden), Ivan Schuller (UCSD), Michael Coey (Dublin), Sara Majetich (CMU), Shouheng Sun (Brown), J.P. Wang (MN), B. Koopmans (Eindhoven), Y. Hou (Beijing), Arun Gupta (Alabama), Axel Hoffmann (ANL), and others. Current and former Nebraska colleagues and speakers included: Ralph Skomski, Jeff Shield, George Hadjipanayis, Toshi Matsui, Damien LeRoy, Yunlong Jin, and co-organizers J. Ping Liu and Hao Zeng. A banquet on April 3 featured excellent food and several roasts with good-natured ridicule. (5/18/18)

Rajurkar awarded 2018 M. Eugene Merchant Manufacturing Medal

The 2018 M. Eugene Merchant Manufacturing Medal of ASME/SME is being awarded to K.P. Rajurkar “for pioneering contributions to enhance the productivity of nontraditional machining processes used in automobile, aerospace and medical device manufacturing, including electrical discharge machining and electrochemical machining at macro, micro and nanoscales, through extensive research in process modeling and in sensing and control techniques.” (5/4/18)

Sellmyer book one of most downloaded in 2017

The book “Nanoscale Magnetic Materials and Applications,” co-edited by David Sellmyer, is among the top 25 percent of Springer downloaded books in 2017 with 10,628 chapter downloads last year. There have been a total of 56,676 chapter downloads since the books publication in 2009. (5/1/18)

Four NCMN Faculty granted promotions and/or tenure in 2018

Congrats to the four NCMN faculty members who were honored on April 24: Jian Wang (Mechanical & Materials Engineering), promoted to full professor and granted tenure; Angela Pannier (Biological Systems Engineering), promoted to full professor; and Sidy Ndao and Sangjin Ryu (both in Mechanical & Materials Engineering), promoted to associate professor and granted tenure. (4/24/18)

Dishari earns CAREER award for work on hydrogen-based fuel cells

Shudipto Dishari earned a five-year, nearly $600,000 CAREER award from the NSF to continue her work on reducing the cost and improving the energy efficiency of hydrogen-based fuel cells and related energy conversion and storage devices (e.g., lithium batteries, semiconductors, natural biochemical systems). (4/15/18)

Rao earns NSF CAREER award to revolutionize smart additive manufacturing

Prahalada Rao was awarded a five-year $500,000 CAREER award from the National Science Foundation to continue his work on improving the process of smart additive manufacturing (commonly referred to as 3-D printing) so that it might consistently produce flawless metal parts, which could make it feasible to mass-produce inexpensive metal parts where safety is paramount. (4/17/18)

Iverson receives Holling Family Award for Teaching Excellence

On March 2, Nicole Iverson received the Junior Faculty Teaching Excellence Award, as part of the Holling Family Awards for Teaching Excellence that honor outstanding teaching in the Institute of Agriculture and National Resources at UNL. Iverson is an assistant professor in the Department of Biological Systems Engineering. (3/22/18)

Tsymbal and colleagues observe nano phenomenon after nearly 15-year quest

Two UNL researchers were part of an international team that ended a 15-year quest to observe a phenomenon that could help power a future generation of (smaller) electronics. In 2004, researchers observed a gas of electrons coursing two-dimensionally through a nano-sandwich made from oxides. This suggested that electric currents could be confined to smaller spaces, allowing electronic components to shrink in size. However the negatively charged electron also leaves behind a positively charged “hole” when ejecting from its orbit around an atom. The goal of researchers was to create and observe a 2-D hole gas that likewise acts as a source of electric current. (3/7/18)

7 NCMN Faculty Receive Parents’ Recognition Awards

Parents’ Recognition Awards are earned via nomination of faculty from the parents of their students. They provide positive feedback to faculty, encourage good student/faculty relationships, and provide recognition to outstanding educators. This years NCMN recipients are: Barry Cheung, Jian Zhang, Shireen Adenwalla, Eveline Baesu, Michael Sealy, Joseph Turner, and Angela Pannier. (2/8/18)

Researchers develop material gradient models that could strengthen polymer-based components

Mehrdad Negahban, Li Tan, and Wenlong Li - along with researchers from France and China - have developed a model that can map an optimal gradient onto a structure and calculate the resulting performance improvement. (2/6/18)

Zeng's research makes local news

Xiao Cheng Zeng's research on ice formation on certain surfaces was featured in the Lincoln Journal Star this week. (1/26/18)

Researchers make advancements in the field of soft robotics

Stephen Morin and his colleagues have developed a technique that helps rubber and plastic stick together, simplifying the processes that drive movement in soft robotics and enable chemical analyses on microscopic scales. (1/9/18)

Gu and colleagues seek to improve energy absorbing tubing to boost vehicle safety

Linxia Gu and colleagues are working to combine the best qualities of different designs of energy absorbing tubing that could improve the design of certain automobile components, helping to reduce injury risk in the event of a crash. (12/6/17)

NCMN High School Research Intern has work published

Cole Shank, a senior from Lincoln High who worked with a small team of researchers last summer during his internship with NCMN, had an article abstract of his results published as part of the 62nd Annual Conference on Magnetism and Magnetic Materials, recently held in Pittsburg. Shank said his work involved “making magnetic materials that are suitable for spintronics applications, which is possibly the next frontier of electronics.” Read the full story on Lincoln Public School's website. (12/4/17)

Berkowitz & Inter-University team receive DoD contract to research radiation exposure drug

David Berkowitz is part of an inter-university team, partnering with major pharmaceutical companies across the country, that has received a contract from the Department of Defense to help with finding drug solutions to treat the effects of radiation exposure. The group will receive $812K in the first year of funding and, depending on the initial results (which could open up new areas for research), could potentially expand into additional levels of funding, up to $8M. (11/30/17)

Yunlong Jin wins Best Poster Award at International Conference

Yunlong Jin, a Ph.D. student from Prof. David J. Sellmyer’s research group, won the Best Poster Award in 62nd International Conference on Magnetism and Magnetic Materials in Pittsburgh Nov. 6-10, 2017. Yunlong presented an unexpected large perpendicular magnetic anisotropy (PMA) in the epitaxial thin films of half-metallic full-Heusler Co2TiSi films. The experimental results show the potential of this material for spin valves or magnetic tunnel junctions as high-performance magnetic memory elements such as spin-transfer torque magnetoresistive RAM (ST-MRAM or STT-MRAM) as an alternative or a replacement to NOR flash. STT-MRAM uses the magnetism of electron spin to provide non-volatile properties in chips. Besides, it combines the speed of SRAM, the non-volatility of flash and virtually unlimited endurance. The half-metallic Co2TiSi with theoretical 100% spin polarization is ideal to generate the spin-polarized current to force a change of magnetization. PMA will increase the areal density of chips compared to in-plane magnetic anisotropy. This research is supported by NSF-DMREF: SusChEM (1436385), NSF-NNCI (1542182), and NCMN. Information can be found also in the MMM conference website. (11/17/17)

Berkowitz team develops new amino acid that can inactivate certain enzymes

David Berkowitz and colleagues have synthesized a new class of amino acid that can inactivate vitamin B6-fueled enzymes, or PLP enzymes, which are associated with a range of health issues, including Parkinson’s disease and epilepsy. (11/7/17)

New nano-ribbons made of graphene give gas sensors unprecedented sensitivity

Alexander Sinitskii and colleagues have developed a new form of nano-ribbon made from graphene that, when integrated into the circuitry of a gas sensor, responded about 100 times more sensitively to molecules than sensors with even the best-performing carbon-based materials. (10/20/17)

Zeng study suggests water-repellant coating/surfaces make ice removal easy

Xiao Cheng Zeng and colleagues have found that ice forms differently on absorbent vs. water-repellent surfaces. Ice that forms on the latter will freeze upward, with only a small portion of the base sticking to the surface, making it easier to remove. (10/18/17)

Sangjin Ryu to give SciPop talk on Miyazaki’s flying machines

Sangjin Ryu will discuss the aerodynamics of the many flying machines featured in Hayao Miyazaki’s popular anime movies. The talk will take place on October 18 at 7 p.m. in the Adele Hall Learning Commons. (10/10/17)

Pannier earns NIH award to enhance gene therapy

Angela Pannier has received an NIH New Innovator Award to develop novel methods that improve the use of adult stem cells in gene therapy. Pannier is investigating nonviral delivery methods to introduce therapeutic genes into stem cells and how to improve the gene uptake of these methods. (10/5/17)

Nebraska-led website offers brief highlights of condensed-matter physics

Shireen Adenwalla and Jocelyn Bosley recently received another round of funding from the National Science Foundation for their website Funsize Physics, which offers brief, easy-to-understand highlights of condensed-matter physics research from NSF-funded scientists from across the country. (9/7/17)

Yang & colleagues find way to improve bio-plastic properties

Yiqi Yang and colleagues have found that increasing the temperature of bio-plastic fibers to several hundred degrees Fahrenheit, then allowing them to slowly cool, greatly improved bio-plastic’s resistance to heat and moisture. This method can also make commercial manufacturing of bio-plastic’s possible. (8/31/17)

NanoArt on display in Nebraska East Union

For the month of August, NanoArt created by UNL STEM students will be on display on the third floor of the Nebraska East Union. Read more at the Daily Nebraskan. (8/21/17)

Yiqi Yang co-edits book

Yiqi Yang and colleague Helan Xu served as co-editors for the book Porous Lightweight Composites Reinforced with Fibrous Structures. The publication offers a comprehensive overview of the raw materials, processing technologies, performance properties and applications of lightweight composites. (8/11/17)

Sorghum husks potential use as wool dye

A study by Yiqi Yang and Chinese colleagues recently found that the husks of sorghum plants could potentially be used as a fade-resistant, UV-shielding dye for wool fabrics. (8/7/17)

Metal-free nanoparticle could expand MRI use, tumor detection

A new metal-free nanoparticle developed by Andrzej Rajca and colleagues at MIT could help circumvent health- and age- related barriers to the metal-containing agents sometimes used to improve the color contrast and diagnostic value of MRIs. (8/3/17)

Dr. Sellmyer co-edits book

Dr. David Sellmyer acted as a co-editor for a recently published book titled, “Magnetic Nanomaterials: Fundamentals, Synthesis and Applications.” The book outlines how the latest developments in magnetic nanoparticles and nanomaterials are advancing the fields of biomedicine, energy storage, water treatment, and more. Learn more about the book here (7/28/17)

Controlling elasticity with magnetism

Christian Binek has found that, under certain conditions, the magnetic properties of a material can predict the relationship between its elasticity and temperature. You can read more about his findings here (7/19/17)

Milestone in effort to treat bone disorders

A recent study by Pannier and colleagues from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and University of Nebraska Medical Center has reported progress toward the bioengineering of cartilage that could help treat disorders known to disrupt the normal development of bones. (7/19/17)

Discovery Could Increase Functionality of Electronics

Xia Hong, Stephen Ducharme, and colleagues have demonstrated a method for altering the properties of a nanoscopic material, pointing the way toward merging several functions of modern electronics into a single component. (6/7/17)

Zeng Receives Royal Society of Chemistry Award

The Royal Society of Chemistry has awarded Xiao Cheng Zeng its Surfaces and Interfaces Award for 2017. The annual award honors outstanding and innovative research on the behavior of chemical systems at surfaces or interfaces. (5/9/17)

Zeng & Team Publish on Porous Materials

Xiao Cheng Zeng and colleagues published an article May 2 in Nature Communications. They learned that ions can be used to fabricate new two- and three-dimensional structures on a wide range of other host materials, which are suitable for organic electronics, catalysis and bioengineering. (5/2/17)

Argyropoulos Receives Fellowship and Award

Christos Argyropoulos has been chosen an Office of Naval Research Fellow and will spend 10 weeks this summer at the NRL in Washington, D.C. He has also recently received the Young Scientist Award from the International Union of Radio Science to attend their General Assembly in Montreal, Canada from August 19-26. (4/27/17)

NCMN Members Earn Promotion, Tenure

Three NCMN faculty members are earning promotions. Promoted to full professor: Shannon Bartelt-Hunt and Kirill Belashchenko. Promoted to associate professor and granted tenure: Jian Zhang. Congratulations! (4/24/17)

Huang & Team Publish Perovskite Research

Jinsong Huang and team authored a study in Nature Photonics April 17. The study demonstrates a technique for bonding single crystals of perovskite onto a range of foundational materials that include silicon. (4/21/17)

Thermal Diode Allows Heat as Energy Source

Sidy Ndao and grad student Mahmoud Elzouka have created a thermal diode that will allow computers to use heat as an energy source to allow their operation in ultra-high temperatures. Their findings were published in Scientific Reports. (4/17/17)

Perovskite Holds Potential for Solar Energy

Xiao Cheng Zeng and team published the cover article of the April 5 issue of Advanced Energy Materials. The illustration shows the molecular structure of an organic-inorganic hybrid perovskite material that holds potential for the generation of solar energy. The work grew out of collaboration with Jinsong Huang. (4/14/17)

Three NCMN Faculty Earn Teaching Awards

Three NCMN faculty have earned College Distinguished Teaching Awards, which recognize consistent excellence in teaching. Recipients are Yusong Li, Alexander Sinitskii, and Joseph Turner. (4/11/17)

Particle Offers Promise for Vaccine Pill

Angela Pannier and colleagues have demonstrated that nesting a specialized nanoparticle inside a microparticle could protect engineered genes or virus-derived DNA against the rigors of the stomach and ensure safe passage to the intestine. (4/11/17)

Lu Earns ORCA Award

Yongfeng Lu received the Outstanding Research and Creative Activity award for his research in laser-based material processing, characterization and imaging. The ORCA recognizes faculty for outstanding research or creative activity of national or international significance. (4/5/17)

Pannier Earns Mentor Award

Angela Pannier was awarded UNL's Outstanding Undergraduate Research Mentor Award, which recognizes an individual who has demonstrated excellence in mentoring and supporting undergraduate researchers. (4/5/17)

Sabirianov, Zeng Publish in Nature

Renat Sabirianov, Hao Zeng, and colleagues have published an article in Nature entitled, "Deciphering chemical order/disorder and material properties at the single-atom level." Sabirianov is an NCMN member at UNO and Zeng obtained his Ph.D. under David Sellmyer. (4/4/17)

Zeng Study Supports New Forms of Water

As reported in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Xiao Cheng Zeng and colleagues have proposed that both low- and high-density forms of liquid water could emerge from housing it in a carbon nanotube. (4/3/17)

Gay Earns Named Professorship

Timothy Gay has been named a Willa Cather Professor. The professorships were established in 2001 to recognize faculty members with the rank of full professor who have established exceptional records of distinguished scholarship or creative activity. (3/30/17)

Lai Receives ACS Volunteer Award

Rebecca Lai received the Local Section Outreach Volunteer of the Year Award from the American Chemical Society’s Committee on Community Activities. The committee noted her "innovative outreach [which] allows students hands-on activities." (3/17/17)

2016 Outreach Newsletter Published

The 2016 issue of the nano outreach newsletter is now available online. The newsletter covers UNL nano outreach activities over the past year. (3/2/17)

Enders, Dowben Team Creates 2D Material

Axel Enders, Peter Dowben, and team have developed a new 2D material, Monolayer Hexagonal Boron-Carbon-Nitrogen (h-BCN), with potential for developments in ultrathin technologies. The results were published in ACS Nano and covered by Phys.org. (2/16/17)

NCMN Members Receive UNL Parents Award

Srivatsan Kidambi, Mehrdad Negahban, and Michael Sealy received the UNL Parents Recognition Award. The annual award is earned through nominations made from parents of UNL students. (2/10/17)

Sinitskii & Team Boost Performance of Nanomaterial

Alexander Sinitskii, 2015 NCMN graduate fellow Alexey Lipatov, and team have published their findings on MXenes in Advanced Energy Materials. MXenes are a family of nanomaterials which have shown promise for storing energy, purifying water and protecting against electromagnetic interference. (2/6/17)

Sinitskii Fabricates Nanoribbon Computer Chips

The January issue of Solid State Technology: Insights for Electronics Manufacturing covered recent advances in fabricating graphene nanoribbons for use as computer chips. Alexander Sinitskii is a leader in the research effort. (2/3/17)

Sellmyer Guest Curator at Sheldon

David Sellmyer was an invited guest curator for Sheldon's exhibit "15 Photographs, 15 Curators." The guest curators picked a single image that generated a personal response out of nearly 3,000 photographs. Sellmyer chose a photo by Robert Morris Cohen because of its similarity to nanostructured materials. (2/1/17)

Zeng Cover Article Trio

Research by Xiao Cheng Zeng and colleagues was featured as the cover article of Nanoscale Horizons, the cover article on Advanced Energy Materials, and the cover article on Journal of the American Chemical Society. (1/20/17)

Woollam Receives Bunshah Award

John Woollam has been chosen as the recipient of the 2017 R.F. Bunshah Award. He will present the Honorary Lecture at the 2017 International Conference on Metallurgical Coatings and Thin Films (ICMCTF). (1/20/17)

Cui & Wang Improve Metal Durability

Bai Cui and Jian Wang are developing a variety of “radiation-tolerant” materials that are self-healing, and that could improve metal durability. (1/19/17)

Morin Studies Stretchable Surfaces

Stephen Morin and colleagues have demonstrated how the chemistry of stretchable surfaces can affect their interactions with microscopic particles – and enhance or streamline processes usually conducted on rigid foundations. Findings were published in Small and Chemistry of Materials. (1/3/17)

Gu Earns ASME Fellowship

Linxia Gu has earned a fellowship of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers. A fellow has attained a membership grade of distinction, is a corporate member, is responsible for significant engineering achievements and has at least 10 years of active practice and corporate membership in ASME. (12/2/16)

Zeng Explores Hydrophobicity of Proteins

Xiao Cheng Zeng and colleagues recently published on the molecular hydrophobicity of amino acid chains in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. This could help engineers measure surface contact angles. Zeng also recently published an article in Nature Communications on gold clusters. (12/13/16)

Gay Elected APS Speaker of the Council

Timothy Gay has been elected Speaker of the Council for the American Physical Society. Gay will serve as Speaker-Elect in 2017 and as Speaker in 2018. The APS Speaker of the Council presides over the Council of Representatives and serves on the Board of Directors and Board Executive Committee. (11/28/16)

Huang Among Most Cited Researchers

Jinsong Huang was included in the "Highly Cited Researchers 2016" list, which recognizes researchers whose peer-reviewed papers have been cited frequently in academic literature. The list was compiled by Clarivate Analytics, formerly the Intellectual Property and Science division of Thomas Reuters. (11/28/16)

Dussault Named AAAS Fellow

Patrick Dussault has been named an AAAS fellow for distinguished contributions to the chemistry of organic peroxides, including peroxide natural product synthesis, mechanistic studies and innovative peroxide-mediated oxidation transformations. (11/23/16)

New NCMN Member

NCMN welcomes new faculty member Nicole Iverson, assistant professor in the Department of Biological Systems Engineering. (11/22/16)

New NCMN Member

NCMN welcomes new faculty member Shannon Bartelt-Hunt, associate professor and Robert B. Daugherty Water for Food Fellow in the Department of Civil Engineering. (11/21/16)

NanoArt at Nebraska Innovation Campus

NanoArt is on display at Nebraska Innovation Campus through November 30, and is open to the public 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday through Friday. The image at left, "Bee Family," is by H. F. Haghshenas & M. Khedmati and is the winner of NCMN's 2016 NanoArt competition. (11/7/16)

Powerful Underwater Microphone Uses Silver Nanoparticles

Li Tan, Qin Zhou, Steve Ducharme, and colleages have developed an underwater microphone with 6,000 times greater sensitivity to low-frequency sound waves by embedding a network of silver nanoparticles in hydrogel and placing that gel between two electrodes, as reported in Nature Communications. (11/7/16)

Huang Receives Breakthrough of the Year Award

Jinsong Huang and postdocs Haotong Wei and Wei Wei were awarded the NUtech Ventures Breakthrough of the Year Award for developing improved X-ray detectors based on a perovskite material that are expected to reduce the X-ray dose required for medical imaging, security, and quality control. (11/2/16)

Experiment Sent to ISS

An experiment led by Peter Dowben was carried to the International Space Station on October 17. Nebraska's contribution to the ISS cargo resupply mission a multi-element neutron detector system that can track solar neutron production in a specific range of energies. (10/28/16)

Monolith Materials to use NCMN Facilities

Monolith Materials will be using NCMN's facilities for their industrial efforts. NCMN director David Sellmyer attended the October 20 groundbreaking for their new plant, which was covered by the Lincoln Journal Star. (10/24/16)

Huang Protects Solar Cells from Moisture

A team led by Jinsong Huang has detailed an approach that can buffer perovskite against moisture without sapping its ability to convert sunlight into electricity, as reported in Nature Communications. (10/20/16)

2016 Newsletter Published

The fall 2016 issue of Interfaces, the newsletter of NCMN, is available online. Articles cover the NNI Strategic Plan, NCMN facilities, new faculty members, student degrees, outreach programs, and more. (10/14/16)

New NCMN Member

NCMN welcomes new faculty member Ashraf Hassan, research assistant professor in the Department of Civil Engineering. (10/13/16)

Kim and Turner Explore Alternative Concrete Materials

Yong-Rak Kim, Joseph Turner, and colleagues recently earned a two-year NSF grant that will enable them to explore the performance and durability of concrete made of alternative binding and recycled materials, with the aim of developing better versions. (10/3/16)

UNL Alum Awarded MacArthur "Genius" Award

Rebecca Richards-Kortum (BS Physics UNL, PhD Physics MIT), who started as an undergrad in David Sellmyer's lab, was announced a 2016 MacArthur Fellow. Noted was her commitment to "improving access to quality health care for all the world's people" and "training and inspiring the next generation of engineers and scientists" to address global challenges. (9/23/16)

Berkowitz Named to Organic Reactions Board of Editors

David Berkowitz has been named to the Board of Editors for Organic Reactions. The series, which started in 1942, serves as a key reference for organic chemistry literature. (9/23/16)

Layered Nanosphere Shows Biomedical Promise

Xiao Cheng Zeng and colleagues have illustrated that a concentration of short molecular chains will assemble into a layered sphere known as a liposome, which could more precisely release therapeutic drugs or genes as the body peels it away. (9/20/16)

UNL National Ads Feature Huang Solar Research

Jinsong Huang's solar cell research is one of the highlighted stories in new UNL national television commercials, which are aimed at promoting recruitment and reputation. (9/9/16)

New NCMN Member

NCMN welcomes new faculty member Shudipto Dishari, assistant professor in the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering. (9/7/16)

New NCMN Member

NCMN welcomes new faculty member Siamak Nejati, assistant professor in the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering. (9/7/16)

Takacs Directs New UNL Biomolecular Center

James Takacs is director of UNL's new Center for Integrated Biomolecular Communication, established by an $11.3-million grant from the National Institutes of Health for the purpose of investigating cellular-level miscommunications that contribute to complex diseases such as cancer, diabetes and chronic liver disease. (8/30/16)

Symposium Features NCMN Student Research

The Nebraska Summer Research Symposium will take place in the Nebraska Union on August 10. NCMN summer student researchers will join others in presenting their research in a poster session from 1-3 pm. (8/9/16)

New Materials Show Promise for Clean Energy

Jian Zhang and colleagues have synthesized new materials that show promise for energy applications aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The materials belong to an emerging family of materials called metal-organic frameworks, or MOFs, which feature metallic atom-containing clusters that are linked by carbon atoms. (7/14/16)

Lu Selected for Schawlow Award

Yongfeng Lu has been selected as the 2016 Arthur L. Schawlow Award recipient. The award will recognize Lu’s record of laser industry innovation and his significant contributions to basic and applied research in the fields of laser science and electrical engineering. (7/1/16)

Song Research on Back Cover

Jingfeng Song's latest paper will be featured on the back cover an upcoming issue of the Journal of Materials Chemistry C. It is entitled, "Ferroelectric polymer nanopillars on flexible substrates by reverse nanoimprint lithography." This work is the capstone of his Ph.D. dissertation work, completed in May under his advisor Stephen Ducharme. (6/24/16)

UNL Team Bolsters Digital Memory

Research by Xia Hong, Jeffrey Shield, Evgeny Y. Tsymbal, and colleagues, has bolstered an emerging form of digital memory, as published in Physical Review Letters. The material, lanthanum strontium manganite, features multiple properties that make it an appealing candidate for digital technologies. (6/24/16)

Sellmyer Book One of Top Springer eBooks

Nanoscale Magnetic Materials and Applications, co-edited by David Sellmyer, has had a total of 36,630 chapter downloads since 2009. This makes it one of the top 25% most downloaded eBooks in the relevant Springer eBook collection in 2015. (6/22/16)

Ndao STEM Camp Media Coverage

Sidy Ndao's STEM camp that he conducts in his native Senegal has received national attention. It was covered in an article in the May 30 print edition of The New York Times, and is published on their website. (6/3/15)

Hong Earns Early Career Award

Xia Hong is one of the US DOE's 49 recipients of the Early Career Award, totaling $750,262 over the next five years. This will allow her to upgrade scanning probe microscopy equipment and add junior researchers to her lab. Those investments will help Hong pursue nanoscale control of extremely thin films that feature ferroelectricity. (5/27/16)

Gruverman Elected JSAP Fellow

Alexei Gruverman has been elected an international fellow of the Japan Society of Applied Physics (JSAP). He will give a talk during the awards ceremony at the 2016 JSAP Autumn Meeting in Japan. Gruverman has been involved in nanoscience research in Japan since the early 1990s. (5/25/16)

Tsymbal Research on PRL Cover

The paper “Enhanced Tunneling Electroresistance in Ferroelectric Tunnel Junctions due to the Reversible Metallization of the Barrier,” by Xiaohui Liu, J. D. Burton, and Evgeny Y. Tsymbal, was published in Physical Review Letters and featured on its cover page. (5/13/16)

Discovery Enhances Polymer Materials

Yongfeng Lu, Yunshen Zhou, and colleagues have used thiol compounds to create a stronger polymer composite. The improvements translated to better electrical performance. (5/3/16)

NCMN Members Earn Promotion, Tenure

Six NCMN faculty members are earning promotions. Promoted to full professor: Shireen Adenwalla, Jinsong Huang, and Young-Rak Kim. Promoted to associate professor and granted tenure: Xia Hong, Srivatsan Kidambi, and Alexander Sinitskii. Congratulations! (4/25/16)

Negahban Awarded Honorary Doctorate

Mehrdad Negahban was awarded an honorary doctorate from the University of Rouen, with which he and the College of Engineering have had a long partnership. Several other NCMN faculty have taught at Rouen, including Joe Turner, Li Tan, Lucia Fernandez-Ballester and Jeff Shield. (4/22/16)

Zeng Study Details Acid Formation

Xiao Cheng Zeng and colleagues have detailed the formation of nitrous acid in the atmosphere. The study was published in April 11 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. (4/12/16)

Self-Assembly of Nanocrystals Captured

A research team led by Peter and Eli Sutter has become the first to directly image the self-assembly of nanocrystals in the liquid environments that foster it. The research was published in an April 4 article in Nature Communications. (4/4/16)

Huang Improves X-Ray Detection

In a March 21 study published in Nature Photonics, Jinsong Huang and colleagues reveal a crystalline material that is four times more sensitive to X-rays than leading commercial detectors. The material, methylammonium lead tribromide, can detect an X-ray dose about 11 times lower than that required for many medical applications. (3/21/16)

Bobaru Publishes Invited Study on Fracturing

Florin Bobaru and grad student Guanfeng Zhang were invited to publish a study in the 50th-anniversary issue of the International Journal of Fracture. The study helps resolve the long-standing question of how cracks branch and propagate through brittle materials such as glass. (3/18/16)

New NCMN Member

NCMN welcomes new faculty member Jiong Hu, assistant professor in the Geotechnical and Materials Engineering division of the Department of Civil Engineering. (3/16/16)

Sellmyer Team Finds Magnetism in Nanoscale Compound

A team led by David Sellmyer and Bhaskar Das has discovered that a compound called manganese silicide takes on unexpected properties when reduced down to the nanoscale. (3/15/16)

Zhang Career Award Develops Cleaner Fuels

Jian Zhang is working to develop an organic-based catalyst that uses the sun’s energy to facilitate chemical reactions with the help of a five-year, $527,154 Faculty Early Career Development Program Award from the National Science Foundation. (3/14/16)

Berkowitz Advances Stroke Treatment

David Berkowitz and colleagues have developed a molecule that can inhibit an enzyme linked with the onset of stroke. They modeled their inhibitor on a naturally occurring molecule produced by the CBS enzyme, tailoring the molecule’s structure to improve its performance. (3/9/16)

Morin CAREER Award Expands Hybrid Materials Research

Stephen Morin will expand his efforts to seamlessly combine hard and soft materials with the help of a five-year, $649,474 Faculty Early Career Development Program Award from the National Science Foundation. (3/7/16)

Two NCMN Members Receive CAREER Awards

Stephen Morin earned $649,474 for Morphological Control of Crystalline Materials Using Deformations of Elastomeric Substrates and Fluid Flow for the Bottom-up Fabrication of Hybrid Materials. Jian Zhang earned $527,154 for Tuning Photoredox Properties of Carbazolic Porous Organic Frameworks for Visible-Light-Mediated Catalysis. (2/23/16)

Binek Elected APS GMAG Officer

Christian Binek has been elected as an executive committee member-at-large of the American Physics Society's Topical Group on Magnetism and its Applications (GMAG). (2/19/16)

Metal-Detecting Biosensors under Development

A gold sensor is the latest in a series of metal-detecting biosensors under development by Rebecca Lai. Fabricated on paper strips about the size of a litmus strip, Lai’s sensors are designed to be inexpensive, portable, and reusable. (2/17/16)

New Form of Ice Predicted

Xiao Cheng Zeng and colleagues have predicted a new molecular form of ice about 25 percent less dense than the current record-low form. It would be the 18th known crystalline form of water. The research article appeared in Science Advances, with coverage in several news outlets, including the Daily Mail, Science Daily, and Science Alert. (2/12/16)

Zeng Study of Ammonium Bisulfate Highlighted

A new study by Xiao Cheng Zeng and Joseph Francisco, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, was highlighted in the “Concentrates” section of Chemical & Engineering News. The study reveals a reaction among water, ammonia and sulfur trioxide that may lead to the formation of ammonium bisulfate, which contributes to the formation of aerosols. (2/12/16)

NCMN Members Receive UNL Parents Award

David Berkowitz and Eveline Baesu received the UNL Parents Recognition Award. The annual award is earned through nominations made from parents of UNL students. (2/11/16)

New NCMN Member

NCMN welcomes new faculty member Sangjin Ryu, assistant professor in the Department of Mechanical & Materials Engineering. (2/9/16)

New Materials Become Reflective When Stretched

Christos Argyropoulos and Stephen Morin, with graduate student Jay Taylor, have developed a method for crafting elastic materials that feature a matte appearance when relaxed but become highly reflective when stretched. (2/2/16)

Sutter Named an MRS Meeting Chair

Eli Sutter has been selected as one of the chairs of the 2017 MRS spring meeting, as reported in the January 2016 issue of the MRS Bulletin and on UNL Today. (1/21/16)

Huang on Perovskite-based Solar Cells

Jinsong Huang published an article in the inaugural issue of Nature Energy about an innovation that could help make perovskite-based solar cells more competitive with those made from silicon. (1/13/16)