Where Are They Now?

One of the stated goals of the NSF-PIRE program is to contribute to the development of a generation of globally competent scientists and engineers. Furthermore, our PIRE grant seeks to encourage young undergraduate and graduate students to pursue further study and research careers in the field of nanotechnology. We believe there is no better testament to the achievement of these goals than the further academic and professional pursuits of our NanoJapan alumni and and we would like to recognize the following PIRE students.

NSF PIRE GRADUATE STUDENTS
	Jonah Shaver US Fulbright Post-Doctoral Fellowship
	Jonah Shaver, who earned his Ph.D. from Rice in applied physics in May 2008, has been awarded a J. William Fulbright Scholarship to conduct postdoctoral research in the Brahim Lounis and Laurent Cognet research group at the Centre de Physique Moleculaire Optique et Hertzienne of Bordeaux University in France. >> Read More
NSF PIRE UNDERGRADUATE NANOJAPAN ALUMNI
	Aydin Akyurtlu - NanoJapan 2006 PhD Student, School of Engineering & Applied Sciences Harvard University Aydin graduated from Virgina Tech in May of 2008 and is currently pursuing a PhD at Harvard University. >> Read More About Aydin's NanoJapan Experience
	Tyler Barth - NanoJapan 2006, Rice University Graduate Student, Hong Kong University of Science & Tech. PhD Student, King Abdullah University of Science & Tech. Tyler is currently a graduate student in the Department of Computer Science, Hong Kong University of Science & Technology, Hong Kong starting in the Fall of 2008. He has also been selected as a KAUST Discovery Scholarship recipient and in the fall of 2009 will begin his PhD studies with full funding at the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) in Saudi Arabia. >> Read More About Tyler's NanoJapan Experience
	Andrew Bradshaw - NanoJapan 2007 PhD Student, Physics University of California, Davis Andrew graduated from Texas A&M University in May of 2009 and will begin his PhD studies in the Fall of 2009. >> Read More About Andrew's NanoJapan Experience
	Nathan Brooks - NanoJapan 2007 2009 NSF Graduate Research Fellowship PhD Student, Robotics Carnegie Mellon University Nathan graduated from the University of Tulsa in May of 2009 and will begin his PhD studies in the Fall of 2009. He was selected as a recipient of the 2009 National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship in suport of his graduate studies. >> Read More About Nathan's NanoJapan Experience
	Kriti Charan - NanoJapan 2007 PhD Student, Electrical & Computer Engineering Cornell University Kriti graduated from Rice University in May of 2009 and will begin her PhD studies in the Fall of 2009.
	Christopher Corbet - NanoJapan 2006 PhD Student, Electrical & Computer Engineering University of Texas, Austin Chris graduated from Rice University in May of 2008 and began his PhD studies in the Fall of 2008. >> Read More About Chris' NanoJapan Experience
	Kristina Gill - NanoJapan 2008 AAST Nanotechnology, North Seattle Community College Consultant, EnerG2 Kristina is currently working as a consultant with EnerG2, a company that engineers advanced nano-structured materials for energy storage breakthroughs. She is completing her Associate of Applied Science in Nanotechnology degree at North Seattle Community College and is in the process of applying for admission to the University of Washington, Seattle to pursue a B.S. degree in Chemical Engineering. >> Read More About Kristina's NanoJapan Experience
	Jennifer Gillenwater - NanoJapan 2006 PhD Student, Computer & Information Science University of Pennsylvania Jennifer graduated from Rice University in May of 2008 and began her PhD studies in the Fall of 2008. >> Read More About Jennifer's NanoJapan Experience
	Amneet Gulati - NanoJapan 2006 PhD Student, Biological Engineering Massachusetts Institute of Technology Amneet graduated from Rice University in May of 2008 and began her PhD studies in the Fall of 2008. >> Read More About Amneet's NanoJapan Experience
	Austin Head - NanoJapan 2007 PhD Student, Biomedical Engineering University of California, Los Angeles Austin graduated from the University of Houston in May of 2009 and will begin his PhD studies in the Fall of 2009. >> Read More About Austin's NanoJapan Experience
	Dvir Kafri - NanoJapan 2006 PhD Student, Physics University of Maryland Dvir graduated from Rice University in May of 2009 and he will begin his PhD studies in the Fall of 2009. He received a received a Joint Quantum Institute Research Assistantship and his graduate research will focus on condensed matter theory. >> Read More About Dvir's NanoJapan Experience
	Jaret Lee - NanoJapan 2006 Graduate Student, Electrical & Computer Engineering University of California, Santa Barbara PhD Student, Institute of Resources, Energy, and Environment, King Abdullah University of Science & Technology Jaret is currently a graduate student in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of California, Santa Barbara. He has also been selected as a KAUST Discovery Scholarship recipient and in the fall of 2009 will begin his PhD studies with full funding at the Institute of Resources, Energy, and Environment, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) in Saudi Arabia. >> Read More About Jaret's NanoJapan Experience
	Christine Moran - NanoJapan 2006 PhD Student, Biomedical Engineering Washington University in St. Louis Christine graduated from Rice University in May of 2009 and is currently pursing a doctoral degree in Biomedical Engineering at Washington University in St. Louis. She is a member of Prof. Younan Xia's research group which pursues cutting-edge research at three major frontiers: nanotechnology, materials chemistry, tissue/neural engineering, and biomedical research by harnessing the power of nanomaterials to develop a novel toolset for studying complex biological systems. >> Read More About Christine's NanoJapan Experience
	Tolulope Ogunbekun - NanoJapan 2008 Bachelor of Science Student University of Massachusetts, Amherst Tolu graduated with a BA in Physics from Mt. Holyoke College in May 2009 with honors for her senior thesis research on Dynamics of Defects in Thin Film PolyStyrene - Poly MethylMethacrylate (PS-PMMA) Diblock Copolymers at High Temperature. She was also elected to the Mt. Holyoke chapter of Sigma Xi, The Scientific Research Society. During the summer of 2009 she will be conducting research with Prof. Arun Majumdar's nanoengineering laboratory at the University of California, Berkeley investigating hot-spot adaptive thermal spreaders. In the fall of 2009 she will begin studies at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst to complete her five year dual-degree program to receive a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering. >> Read More About Tolu's NanoJapan Experience
	Jeffrey Russom - NanoJapan 2007 PhD Student, Physics Massachusetts Institute of Technology Jeff graduated from Rice University in May of 2009 and will begin his PhD studies in the Fall of 2009. He was accepted into MIT's iQuiSE program in quantum information and will be joining Prof. Issac Chuang's Quanta Group. >> Read More About Jeff's NanoJapan Experience
	Scott Steger - NanoJapan 2006 2009 NSF Graduate Research Fellowship PhD Student, Electrical & Computer Engineering California Institute of Technology Scott graduated from Rice University in May of 2008 and began his PhD studies in the Fall of 2008. He was selected as a recipient of the 2009 National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship in suport of his graduate research with Prof. Amnon Yariv's optoelectronics and quantum optics group. >> Read More About Scott's NanoJapan Experience
	" I have the NanoJapan program to thank for introducing me to the international research community and strengthening my application for graduate school and the NSF Fellowship" ~ Scott Steger
	Kanes Sutuntivorakoon - NanoJapan 2007 Graduate Student, Master of Electrical Engineering Rice University Kanes graduated from Rice University in May of 2009 with a B.S. in Electrical & Computer Engineering and is currently pursuing a Master's of Electrical Engineering through the Professional Master's Program. This program is a bridge to industry, designed to provide advanced learning and training in the applied aspects of ECE technology beyond the typical undergraduate electrical and computer engineering degree program. >> Read More About Kanes' NanoJapan Experience
	Paul Thompson - NanoJapan 2007 B.S.N Student, University of Pittsburgh Paul graduated from Rice University in May of 2009 with a B.S. in Biochemistry & Cell Biology. He will begin an accelerated second degree program in pursuit of his B.S. Nursing degree in January 2010 at the University of Pittsburgh with an anticipated graduation date in early 2011. >> Read More About Paul's NanoJapan Experience
	Ryan VanGundy - NanoJapan 2006 Engineer, Bloomy Controls Ryan graduated from North Carolina State University in May of 2007 and accepted a professional position as an Engineer with Bloomy Controls in Windsor, CT. >> Read More About Ryan's NanoJapan Experience
	Yiming Wang - NanoJapan 2007 Graduate Student, Master of Electrical Engineering Rice University Yiming graduated from Rice University in May of 2009 with a B.S. in Electrical & Computer Engineering and is currently pursuing a Master's of Electrical Engineering through the Professional Master's Program. This program is a bridge to industry, designed to provide advanced learning and training in the applied aspects of ECE technology beyond the typical undergraduate electrical and computer engineering degree program.
	Tianhe Yang - NanoJapan 2006 PhD Student, Electrical & Computer Engineering University of Michigan Tian graduated from Rice University in May of 2008 and will began his PhD studies in the Fall of 2008. He is current conducting research in Prof. Ted. Norris' Optics and Photonics Lab. >> Read More About Tian's NanoJapan Experience
	Tiffany Yeh - NanoJapan 2006 Medical Student, Albert Einstein College of Medicine Yeshiva University Tiffany graduated from Rice University in May of 2009 and is currently a medical student at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York City. >> Read More About Tiffany's NanoJapan Experience