Skip to main content

‘Sharon Weiss’

ECE PhD Student Simon Ward Wins Anchor Award for Mentorship

May. 2, 2024—PhD student Simon Ward is a 2024 recipient of Vanderbilt University’s Graduate Anchor Award for Mentorship, announced by the Vanderbilt Graduate Student Council recently. This award identifies and honors his hard work on a school-wide level. Simon’s leadership has been evident throughout his PhD, through both his research and teaching. He has led a total...

Read more


Dissertation Defense: Simon Ward, Electrical and Computer Engineering

Feb. 12, 2024—DISSERTATION DEFENSE Simon J. Ward, Electrical and Computer Engineering *under the direction of Sharon Weiss “Improving Biosensor Performance using Machine Learning and Signal Processing” 02.15.24  |  1:00PM CST  |  308 Featheringill Hall | Zoom ID: 935 9293 1256 The field of biosensing, encompassing the detection of harmful biological molecules in medical diagnostic, food safety, and environmental monitoring contexts,...

Read more


VINSE Director’s Coffee Hour

Jan. 24, 2024—Join VINSE Director, Sharon Weiss to discuss new initiatives, pilot funding, tech crew, and other ways VINSE can help support your research. Wednesday, February 7, 2023 9:30-10:30 AM  |  226 ESB VINSE Conference Room

Read more


IMS graduate student KP Arnold awarded NASA Space Technology Graduate Research Opportunity Fellowship

Oct. 26, 2023—Kellen P. Arnold, a 4th year Ph.D. candidate in the Interdisciplinary Materials Science program, was awarded a fellowship by the NASA Space Technology Graduate Research Opportunity (NSTGRO) in June 2023. Kellen is a member of the Sharon Weiss Group and received the award for his work studying nanoscale design in advanced integrated photonics and identifying...

Read more


From blackberry juice solar cells to forensic labs: VINSE outreach is shaping the next generation of scientists

Oct. 18, 2023—There’s a good chance many Middle Tennessee high school kids know more about nanotechnology than you do thanks to the Vanderbilt Institute of Nanoscale Science and Engineering, which has been making strides in its educational outreach for more than a decade. VINSE’s mission is to drive innovation in science, nanotechnology and education that benefits society....

Read more


VINSE Director’s Coffee Hour

Oct. 13, 2023—Join VINSE Director, Sharon Weiss to discuss new initiatives, pilot funding, tech crew, and other ways VINSE can help support your research. Friday, December 1, 2023 9:30-10:30AM  |  226 ESB VINSE Conference Room

Read more


Researcher Highlight: Soren Smail

Oct. 4, 2023—Soren Smail, 2nd year Interdisciplinary Materials Science graduate student in the Weiss and Laibinis labs In the past few years, the need for rapid and sensitive point-of-care diagnostics has become readily apparent, especially for monitoring and controlling viral transmissions. Optical biosensing is a promising alternative to widely used diagnostic techniques because it can be highly...

Read more


VINSE launches new video series to feature the faculty. Episode 1: Sharon Weiss

Jun. 6, 2023—VINSE is excited to kick-off a new video series that will introduce VINSE professors and show the broad range of the VINSE research areas spanning drug delivery, cellular communication, metamaterials, sensors, batteries, and photodetectors. To kick off this series, learn more about VINSE Director, Sharon Weiss. The Weiss Group engages in research involving photonics, optoelectronics, nanoscience,...

Read more


Dissertation Defense: Rabeb Layouni, Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering

Apr. 24, 2023—DISSERTATION DEFENSE Rabeb Layouni, Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering *under the direction of Sharon Weiss & Paul Laibinis “Investigation of Design and Surface Treatment of Porous Silicon for Robust, Selective, and Sensitive Optical Biosensing” 05.02.23  |  1:00PM CST  |  306 Featheringill Hall Porous silicon (PSi) has attracted interest as a nanomaterial with potential for optical biosensing, due to...

Read more


VINSE Director’s Coffee Hour

Dec. 14, 2022—Join VINSE Director, Sharon Weiss to discuss new initiatives, pilot funding, tech crew, and other ways VINSE can help support your research. Friday, February 3, 2023 2PM  |  226 ESB VINSE Conference Room

Read more