Janell Lees

VINSE has recently added a JA Woollam M-2000DI spectroscopic ellipsometer to the Cleanroom core facility, providing an additional option for users to quickly characterize thin films when developing recipes for deposition, etching, and spin coating processes.  This instrument complements the existing JA Woollam M-2000V ellipsometer in the VINSE Analytical Lab. … Read More

Congratulations to Dr. Marjan Rafat, assistant professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering, biomedical engineering, and radiation oncology, on receiving a Seeding Success internal grant. This award will support her project, “Developing Novel Extracellular Matrix Hydrogels to Study the Impact of Obesity on Breast Cancer Recurrence,” research at the intersection of… Read More

Congratulations to all of the students who presented at the 2025 VINSE Undergraduate Research Symposium! Our undergraduate researchers were able to share everything they accomplished during their individual research projects at Vanderbilt University over the past ten weeks. The symposium, which was held in collaboration with the Chemical Biology/Chemistry NSF-REU,… Read More

The program introduces students to core concepts in nanoengineering, including nanoparticle behavior, materials science, and nanoscale problem-solving. Students will participate in lectures, hands-on labs, and research activities alongside Vanderbilt faculty, graduate students, and postdoctoral researchers. The course is led by instructors Greg Walker and Sarah Ross, with teaching support from… Read More

Three VINSE faculty members were honored for outstanding excellence and achievement within the School of Engineering. These faculty members were recognized for contributions to research and teaching. VINSE extends its congratulations to the awardees for their dedication, innovation, and leadership within the engineering and nanoscale science communities. Award for Excellence… Read More

DISSERTATION DEFENSE Kellen Arnold, Interdisciplinary Materials Science    *Under the supervision of Sharon Weiss “Integrated Photonics for Intense Light-matter Interaction and Applications in Aerospace” 05.20.25 | 12:30PM | ESB 044 | Zoom: 965 0203 9030 Passcode: 069821 Over the last several decades, the technological revolution into a digital… Read More

We are proud to recognize VINSE faculty Justus Ndukaife being named to the 2025 cohort of Chancellor Faculty Fellows. This honor recognizes scholarly excellence and supports the development of future academic leaders at Vanderbilt University. Justus Ndukaife is an internationally known expert in nanophotonics and optical nanotweezers. Since joining… Read More

The Vanderbilt Institute of Nanoscale Science and Engineering (VINSE) National Science Foundation (NSF) Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) will onboard our 13th cohort of undergraduate researches on Monday, 26, 2025. Since the VINSE NSF-REU program started in the summer of 2011, VINSE has hosted 145 students. Of these students 95%… Read More

We are proud to recognize two VINSE faculty members for their contributions to engineering research and student mentorship: Deyu Li, professor of mechanical engineering, received the Joe B. Wyatt Distinguished University Professor Award for his groundbreaking work in thermal sciences and innovations in nanoscale energy and materials technologies. Li’s… Read More

Two former VINSE REU students have been awarded the prestigious NSF Graduate Research Fellowships. NSF Fellows receive a three-year annual stipend of $37,000, along with a $16,000 allowance for tuition and fees, to support research-based advanced degrees in NSF-supported STEM disciplines. The… Read More