Students
Chelsea Catania, Ph.D. (Postdoctoral Scholar)
Chelsea is the postdoc in the group that criticizes all the graduate students for their slide titles and design. She picked up her discerning eye for slides during her time at the University of California, Santa Barbara, where she received her Ph.D. in Materials Science in 2016. Her graduate research examined the effects of conjugated oligoelectrolytes on bacterial membrane properties and charge transfer mechanisms in microbial fuel cells. Chelsea joined LEMI in the winter of 2017– which was a first for this native Floridian, who graduated from the University of Florida in 2011 with a B.S. degree in Materials Science & Engineering. Currently, she is interested in developing new engineered platforms to enable microbiology research with applications in microbiome health and synthetic biology. In addition to being a scientist, Chelsea is also an experienced yogi, amateur acrobat, fair-weather cyclist, extreme jigsaw puzzler, and okay rock climber.
Sijie Chen
Sijie received the degree of Bachelor of Science in Microelectronics Science and Engineering and the degree of Bachelor of Economics from Peking University in 2017. As an undergrad, he conducted several research projects on memristor based hardware neural networks and resistive switching devices based logic computing methods at Peking University and UCSB. He joined LEMI in the fall of 2017, and is developing an automated electroporation system for the genetic transformation of bacteria. Sijie is currently pursuing an MS degree in Mechanical Engineering with a subsequent goal of pursuing a Ph.D.
Kameron Conforti
Kameron received a Bachelor of Chemical Engineering degree from the University of Delaware in 2013. His undergraduate thesis involved the synthesis and testing of new transition metal orthosilicates to be used as cathodes in Li-ion batteries. In pursuit of his PhD at MIT, Kameron has focused on electrochemical processes occurring in porous media. His first project is on the fabrication, operation, and modelling of a hydrogen bromine membraneless flow battery. The battery utilizes heterogeneous porous media to increase fuel utilization and keep fluid streams separate without the use of an expensive, resistive, ion-selective membrane. His second project is the optimization of a shock electro dialysis (ED) unit capable of continuous purification and desalination of water. Shock ED takes advantage of the transport of ions along an oppositely charged surface that occurs when over-diffusion-limited-current is applied.
Laura Gilson
Laura joined LEMI in 2013, after receiving a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from MIT. As an undergraduate, she worked in the MIT Microfluidics and Nanofluidics Laboratory, where she wrote her undergraduate thesis about a device for nanoparticle fabrication for drug delivery. Laura is currently working towards an MS degree, with a subsequent goal of pursuing a PhD.
Chris Vaiana, Ph.D. (Postdoctoral Scholar)
Chris received his Ph.D. in chemistry from New York University in 2016, where he studied the genetic and epigenetic regulation of human cell surface glycosylation during biological processes such as cell cycle control and cancer progression. Prior to NYU, Chris was a Lieutenant in the US Air Force, where he was assigned to the Air Force Research Laboratory. While on active duty he received his M.S. in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at Wright State University, where he designed and tested growth factor-functionalized clay nanoparticles for wound healing applications. He received his BA in Biology from SUNY Binghamton. Despite being a native New Yorker, Chris can drive a car and enjoys riding motorcycles. He’s also a beginner triathlete, recreational tennis player, and live music enthusiast. He joined LEMI in the fall of 2016, and is interested in applying microfluidic-enabled genetic transformation of bacteria to efforts in synthetic biology.
Hyungseok Kim
Hyu joined LEMI as a M.S. candidate in 2017 after receiving his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Seoul National University (summa cum laude). While at Seoul National he studied interfacial melting of ice sliding combined with numerical analysis on heat transfer. At LEMI he is interested in developing a biocompatible platform for studying biophysical interactions between algae and bacteria. Hyu enjoys traveling, hiking, and loves running along the Charles River.
Qianru Wang
Qianru received her B.S. degree in Mechanical Engineering from Shanghai Jiao Tong Univerisity. As an undergraduate student, Qianru joined the Institute of Robotics, and focused on solving human-centered mechanical design problems. She designed a low-cost prosthetic myoelectric elbow joint for an artificial limp factory to help disabled users who lose their lower arms regain independence. Qianru joined LEMI in Fall 2012.