Interdisciplinary Materials Science

The Interdisciplinary Materials Science (IMS) graduate program is pleased to announce the arrival of 10 new PhD students who will join the program this upcoming academic year. This cohort reflects the program’s commitment to bringing together scholars from diverse academic disciplines and institutions to advance… Read More

Janet Macdonald, professor of chemistry and associate director of Vanderbilt University’s Interdisciplinary Materials Science (IMS) program, has been named director of the program effective July 1. She succeeds Josh Caldwell, who has served as director since 2021. Macdonald has served as associate director of IMS since 2021 and has been… Read More

Emmanuel Dabuo Graduate Student, Interdisciplinary Materials Science Caldwell Research Group Before coming to Vanderbilt, Emmanuel was convinced his research would center on 2D materials, particularly graphene, for solar energy applications. That changed during a rotation in Prof. Caldwell’s lab, where he was introduced to defect characterization in… Read More

Ryan Anthony Kowalski, from Taunton, Massachusetts, is this year’s Founder’s Medalist for the Graduate School. He is graduating with a doctor of philosophy in interdisciplinary materials science. Kowalski is the first student from the interdisciplinary materials science (IMS) program to receive this honor. Kowalski’s research… Read More

Huijin (Ginny) An, a graduate student in interdisciplinary materials science at Vanderbilt University, has been awarded the Parkhutik Prize for the most outstanding poster at the recent Porous Semiconductors Science and Technology (PSST) conference in Naples, Italy. The Parkhutik Prize recognizes outstanding contributions in the field of porous silicon… Read More

We are excited to announce that Interdisciplinary Materials Science at Vanderbilt University graduate students Sariah D’Empaire-Salomon and Andrew Steiner have been selected for the 2026 National Science Foundation (NSF) Graduate Research Fellowship Program (NSF-GRFP). This highly competitive fellowship selected approximately 2,500 recipients from nearly 14,000 applicants nationwide and is… Read More

Sajal Islam has been named a recipient of the highly competitive 2026 IEEE Nuclear and Plasma Sciences Society (NPSS) Graduate Scholarship Award. He recently completed his Ph.D. at Vanderbilt University’s Interdisciplinary Materials Science (IMS) and will graduate in May 2026. The award includes a $2,500 prize and certificate and recognizes… Read More

DISSERTATION DEFENSE Brayden Terry, Interdisciplinary Materials Science *under the supervision of Al Strauss “Friction Stir Welding of Thin Sheet Nitinol: Dissimilar Materials and Heat Treatment” 3.25.26 | 9:00 am | 132 Olin Hall| Zoom Friction stir welding (FSW) is a solid-state joining method that sees use in the… Read More

Matthew Vasuta has been selected to receive the 2026 Provost’s Pathbreaking Discovery Award, a premier university honor recognizing doctoral students who demonstrate truly exceptional research and scholarship. Vasuta is a fourth-year PhD student in the Interdisciplinary Materials Science Program and a member of Professor G. Kane… Read More

DISSERTATION DEFENSE Kieran Nehil-Puleo, Interdisciplinary Materials Science *under the supervision of Peter Cummings “Towards virtual autonomous material design” 3.4.26 | 3:00 pm | 134 Olin Hall | Zoom Virtual autonomous material design is a computational paradigm in which artificial intelligence, high-throughput simulations, and adaptive optimization algorithms work together… Read More