VINSE NanoGuides

VINSE is excited to welcome Lauren Bayer, Sariah D’Empaire-Salomon, Thaissa Peixoto, and Kirsten Stinson as the newest members of the NanoGuides program. NanoGuides are graduate student ambassadors who lead tours, assist with outreach activities, and share nanoscale science with students and visitors across campus. With these additions, VINSE… Read More

  How can tiny structures in your favorite berry turn sunlight into electricity? On Monday, May 4th, VINSE welcomed students from White County High School to the Blackberry Solar Cell Lab for an interactive dive into solar energy and nanoscience. Students crafted working solar cells using blackberry juice and… Read More

VINSE was excited to participate in TWISTER (Tennessee Women in Science, Tech, Engineering, and Research) at the Adventure Science Center on Saturday, February 7th. The Vanderbilt Institute of Nanoscale Science and Engineering (VINSE) hosted three hands-on activities to showcase nanoscience and give over 100 high school girls a glimpse… Read More

How can differences in designs alter the behavior of the fluid? On Thursday, February 12, 2026, VINSE welcomed 16 students from Lebanon High School to our Cleanroom Microfluidics Lab. They went inside the VINSE cleanroom, home of the cleanest air in Middle Tennessee, and found out with hands-on activities! The students… Read More

How do design choices impact the way fluids move? On Friday, February 6th, VINSE hosted 7 students from Summit High School in the Cleanroom Microfluidics Lab. During their visit, students entered the VINSE cleanroom, containing the cleanest air in Middle Tennessee, and participated in immersive, hands-on learning! They created microscopic… Read More

To share the excitement of making science on a tiny scale, the Vanderbilt Institute for Nanoscale Science and Engineering (VINSE) participated in the Tennessee Maker Fest on October 4, hosted by the Wond’ry at Vanderbilt University. Guided by VINSE NanoGuides, festival attendees explored nanoscale… Read More

On Friday, November 8th, VINSE welcomed 9 students from Clarkrange High School to our Forensics Lab. It seems like there was nothing eye-catching at the “crime scene,” but what were the hidden clues? During the forensics lab program, the students solved a whodunnit-themed activity using several types of spectroscopies including… Read More

On Friday, October 25th, VINSE welcomed 14 students from Central Magnet School to our Forensics Lab. Their task was to gather evidence of the “murderer” using the different tools in the lab before the day’s end! Using several types of spectroscopies including Raman, FTIR, absorption and photoluminescence, clues were revealed. Read More

To share our love of making tiny things for science, VINSE participated in this year’s TN Maker Fest.  VINSE NanoGuides showcase nanoscale using familiar items in three engaging interactive demonstrations. Pencils to Prizes – attendees made their own single-atom-thick materials like a Nobel Prize winner with tape and pencil… Read More

Last fall, VINSE invited our community to participate in the NanoGuides Logo Design Competition, challenging you to craft a logo that captures the essence of our student volunteers. We are thrilled to congratulate Vikash Khokhar for his winning design!  In addition to having his design featured on NanoGuides… Read More