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‘VINSE Faculty News’

Weiss wins Chancellor’s Award for Research

Aug. 23, 2019—Sharon Weiss was one of seven Vanderbilt professors who won a Chancellor’s Award for Research at the Fall Faculty Assembly Aug. 22. This award recognizes excellence in works published or presented in the last three calendar years. Honorees each receive $2,000 and an engraved julep cup. Weiss, Cornelius Vanderbilt Professor of Electrical Engineering, received the award for...

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Weiss to lead VINSE starting July 1

Jun. 26, 2019—Sharon Weiss, Cornelius Vanderbilt Professor of Engineering, professor of electrical engineering and physics and deputy director of the Vanderbilt Institute of Nanoscale Science and Engineering (VINSE), will become the new director of VINSE, Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs Susan R. Wente announced today. Weiss’ appointment will begin on July 1, following the completion...

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iPhone plus nanoscale porous silicon equals cheap, simple home diagnostics

Jun. 11, 2019—The simplest home medical tests might look like a deck of various silicon chips coated in special film, one that could detect drugs in the blood, another for proteins in the urine indicating infection, another for bacteria in water and the like. Add the bodily fluid you want to test, take a picture with your...

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Hatzell awarded NSF CAREER grant to expand research on lithium-ion batteries

Apr. 10, 2019—Kelsey Hatzell, assistant professor of mechanical engineering, has received a National Science Foundation Faculty Early Career Development grant. . The five-year, $515,600 grant— Understanding Interfaces in Solid State Energy Storage Systems and Cross-Disciplinary Education—begins June 1, 2019. Advanced lithium-ion batteries for vehicles and for renewable electricity grid storage could improve domestic energy security but performance...

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Rosenthal to step down as VINSE director; planning for institute’s future begins

Apr. 5, 2019—Sandra Rosenthal, Jack and Pamela Egan Professor of Chemistry, will step down as director of the Vanderbilt Institute for Nanoscale Science and Engineering (VINSE) on June 30 following 12 years of service. “I am so grateful to Sandy for her many years of devoted service at VINSE,” said Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs Susan R. Wente....

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VINSE Deputy Director Sharon Weiss featured on News Channel 5

Sep. 7, 2018—NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Running computers on tiny beams of light? It may sound very Sci-Fi, but that’s exactly what researchers at Vanderbilt University are trying to do. <- Read more and Watch Video ->    

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Weiss featured in Opli and Research News @ Vanderbilt

Sep. 6, 2018—Bowtie-funnel combo best for conducting light; team found answer in undergrad physics equation Running computers on virtually invisible beams of light rather than microelectronics would make them faster, lighter and more energy efficient. A version of that technology already exists in fiber optic cables, but they’re much too large to be practical inside a computer....

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Rebuilding concrete – Sanchez to help lead $6.7 million Hong Kong research project

Aug. 15, 2018—The Hong Kong Research Grants Council, which is equivalent to the U.S. National Science Foundation, has awarded a $6.7 million, five-year grant to a multi-university team of experts in materials science, chemistry, civil engineering, material deterioration, complex modeling, and other specialties. Florence Sanchez, associate professor of civil and environmental engineering at Vanderbilt School of Engineering,...

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Safe solid-state lithium batteries herald ‘paradigm shift’ in energy storage

Jul. 19, 2018—The race to produce safe, powerful and affordable solid-state lithium batteries is accelerating and recent announcements about game-changing research using a solid non-flammable ceramic electrolyte known as garnet has some in the race calling it revolutionary. “This is a paradigm shift in energy storage,” said Kelsey Hatzell, assistant professor of mechanical engineering. A paper –...

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The ‘shine’ in gold particles has a new use – finding defects

Jul. 10, 2018—That glint of gold has always captured our eyes, but now the precious metal has a new use – finding defects in 3D printing. Vanderbilt researchers have developed a technique for gold to actually ‘shine’ inside 3D printed parts to highlight any problems. “This is one of the first applications using gold for defect detection....

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