{"id":103,"date":"2023-01-26T10:47:50","date_gmt":"2023-01-26T15:47:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mse.ncsu.edu\/reu\/?page_id=103"},"modified":"2025-07-29T13:14:54","modified_gmt":"2025-07-29T17:14:54","slug":"past","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/mse.ncsu.edu\/reu\/past\/","title":{"rendered":"Past Projects"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n\n\n

2025<\/h1>\n\n\n\n
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L-R, 1st row: Sanju Addanki, Calvin Zhang, Michael Hopfinger, 2nd row: Jack Rivituso, Kyle Hollar, Avery Smith, 3rd row: Arjun Kancharla, Colton King, Stephen Stewart<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n
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2025 Projects<\/h2>\n <\/summary>\n

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A Machine Vision Pipeline for Perovskite Thin Film Analysis<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Faculty:<\/strong>\u00a0Aram Amassian, MSE Professor
Research Group Website:<\/strong> <\/a>mse.ncsu.edu\/amassian\/<\/a>
REU Participant:<\/strong>\u00a0Michael Hopfinger<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Advancing Mechanistic Insights of Porous Electrodes Through P2D Modeling: From Voltammetry to Impedance Analysis<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Faculty:<\/strong> Veronica Augustyn, MSE Associate Professor
Research Group Website:<\/strong> mse.ncsu.edu\/augustyn\/<\/a>
REU Participant:<\/strong> Colton King<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Characterizing Fatigue of Ferroelectric Ceramics Through PFM<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Faculty:<\/strong> Nina Balke, MSE Associate Professor
Research Group Website:<\/strong> mse.ncsu.edu\/balke\/<\/a>
REU Participant:<\/strong> Jack Rivituso<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Predicting Processing-Properties Relationships in Friction-Stir MMCs<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Faculty:<\/strong> Bharat Gwalani, MSE Assistant Professor
Research Group Website:<\/strong> mse.ncsu.edu\/gwalani\/<\/a>
REU Participants:<\/strong> Calvin Zhang<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Enabling Data-Driven Science by Reducing Barriers to Adoption of Electronic Lab Notebooks<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Faculty:<\/strong> Martin Seifrid, MSE Assistant Professor
Research Group Website:<\/strong> mse.ncsu.edu\/seifrid\/<\/a>
REU Participant:<\/strong> Kyle Hollars<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Optimizing Conjugated Polymer Synthesis through Automation<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Faculty:<\/strong> Martin Seifrid, MSE Assistant Professor
Research Group Website:<\/strong> <\/a>mse.ncsu.edu\/seifrid\/<\/a>
REU Participant:<\/strong> Avery Smith<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jubilee: a Frugal, Open-Source Automation Platform for Materials Science<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Faculty:<\/strong> Martin Seifrid, MSE Assistant Professor
Research Group Website:<\/strong> <\/a>mse.ncsu.edu\/seifrid\/<\/a>
REU Participant<\/strong>: Stephen Stewart<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Molecular Simulations and ML for Nucleic Acid Interactions<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Faculty:<\/strong> Yaroslava Yingling, MSE, Biomedical Engineering & Physics Professor
Research Group Website:<\/strong> <\/a>mse.ncsu.edu\/yingling\/<\/a>
REU Participant:<\/strong> Sanju Addanki<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ML-assisted Mapping of Phosphorus Mitigation Hot Spots in NC<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Faculty:<\/strong> Yaroslava Yingling, MSE, Biomedical Engineering & Physics Professor
Research Group Website:<\/strong> mse.ncsu.edu\/yingling\/<\/a>
REU Participant:<\/strong> Arjun Kancharla<\/p>\n\n\n <\/p>\n <\/details>\n\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n\n\n

2024<\/h1>\n\n\n\n
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L-R, 1st row: Victoria Lee, Keely Billiar, Leala Carbonneau, Anne Chabaneix, Stephanie Euceda Trujillo, 2nd row: Lena Lopes, Peter Wilson, Thomas Theiner, Michael Hann, 3rd row: Aidan Cummings, Connor Hurst, Nathan Perry, Ryan Zmarzlak<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n
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2024 Projects<\/h2>\n <\/summary>\n

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Self-Driving Robo-Fluidic Lab for Accelerated Discovery of Clean Energy Materials<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Faculty:<\/strong> Milad Abolhasani, Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering Associate Professor
Research Group Website:<\/strong> abolhasanilab.com\/<\/a>
REU Participant:<\/strong> Victoria Lee<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Data-Driven Characterization of Energy Material Deformation During Ion-Coupled Electron Transfer<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Faculty:<\/strong> Veronica Augustyn; MSE Associate Professor
Research Group Website:<\/strong> mse.ncsu.edu\/augustyn\/<\/a>
REU Participant:<\/strong> Lena Lopes<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Machine Learning Potentials for Modeling Defects in Complex Materials<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Faculty:<\/strong> Donald Brenner, MSE Professor and Department Head
Research Group Website:<\/strong> mse.ncsu.edu\/brenner\/<\/a>
REU Participant:<\/strong> Thomas Theiner<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lightweight, high strength, and corrosion-resistant alloys at the low material cost<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Faculty:<\/strong> Rajeev Gupta, MSE Associate Professor
Research Group Website:<\/strong> mse.ncsu.edu\/rkgupta2\/<\/a>
REU Participants:<\/strong> Aidan Cummings<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dynamic Interplay between Phase Transformation and Material Degradation in Extreme Environments<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Faculty:<\/strong> Bharat Gwalani, MSE Assistant Professor
Research Group Website:<\/strong> mse.ncsu.edu\/gwalani\/<\/a>
REU Participant:<\/strong> Michael Hann<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Investigation of self-assembled anisotropically conductive composites<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Faculty:<\/strong> Thomas LaBean, MSE Professor
Research Group Website:<\/strong> mse.ncsu.edu\/labean\/<\/a>
REU Participant:<\/strong> Keely Billiar<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Develop analysis package for analyzing TEM spectroscopy data and for simulation of optical response of multilayer stack<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Faculty:<\/strong> Yin Liu, MSE Assistant Professor
Research Group Website:<\/strong> mse.ncsu.edu\/liu\/<\/a>
REU Participant<\/strong>: Peter Wilson<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Data-Driven Accurate Representations of Polymers and Materials<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Faculty:<\/strong> Martin Seifrid, MSE Assistant Professor
Research Group Website:<\/strong> https:\/\/ddomlab.org\/<\/a>
REU Participant<\/strong>: Connor Hurst<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Data Driven Quantum Tunneling Molecular Devices<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Faculty:<\/strong> Martin Thuo, MSE Professor
Research Group Website:<\/strong> mse.ncsu.edu\/thuo\/<\/a>
REU Participant:<\/strong> Ryan Zmarzlak<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Data Driven Design of NP-based Materials<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Faculty:<\/strong> Yaroslava Yingling, MSE, Biomedical Engineering & Physics Professor
Research Group Website:<\/strong> mse.ncsu.edu\/yingling\/<\/a>
REU Participants:<\/strong> Leala Carbonneau, Anne Chabaneix, Stephanie Euceda Trujillo, Nathan Perry<\/p>\n\n\n <\/p>\n <\/details>\n\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n\n\n

2023<\/h1>\n\n\n\n
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L-R: Hillary Stone, Prof. Yara Yingling, Alexey Gulyuk, Alice Pandaleon, Jaen Pryor, Amory Gaylord, Jackob Fick, Emma Schatz, Hiba Laghzizal, Siri Mudunuri, Caroline Cunningham, Teagan Della Cerra, Adam Logan, Jack Austin<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n
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2023 Projects<\/h2>\n <\/summary>\n

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Self-Driving Robo-Fluidic Lab for Accelerated Discovery of Clean Energy Materials<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Faculty:<\/strong> Milad Abolhasani, Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering Associate Professor
Research Group Website:<\/strong> abolhasanilab.com\/<\/a>
REU Participant:<\/strong> Teagan Della Cerra<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Robot-in-the-loop, data-driven experimental research in thin film photovoltaics to pinpoint the origins of degradation<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Faculty:<\/strong> Aram Amassian; MSE Professor
Research Group Website:<\/strong> mse.ncsu.edu\/amassian\/<\/a>
REU Participant:<\/strong> Hiba Laghzizal<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Data-Driven Characterization of Energy Material Deformation During Ion Insertion<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Faculty:<\/strong> Veronica Augustyn; MSE Associate Professor
Research Group Website:<\/strong> mse.ncsu.edu\/augustyn\/<\/a>
REU Participant:<\/strong> Emma Schatz<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Machine Learning Methods for Calculating Vacancy Formation Energies in High Entropy Ceramics<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Faculty:<\/strong> Don Brenner, MSE Professor and Department Head
Research Group Website:<\/strong> mse.ncsu.edu\/brenner\/<\/a>
REU Participant:<\/strong> Jalen Pryor<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Using data to design LEDs emitting in the ultraviolet for disinfection applications<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Faculty:<\/strong> Ramon Collazo, MSE Associate Professor
REU Participant:<\/strong> Jakob Fick<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lightweight, high strength, and corrosion-resistant alloys at the low material cost<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Faculty:<\/strong> Rajeev Gupta, MSE Associate Professor
Research Group Website:<\/strong> mse.ncsu.edu\/rkgupta2\/<\/a>
REU Participants:<\/strong> Adam Logan and Kevin Huang<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dynamic Interplay between Phase transformation and Material Degradation in Extreme Environments<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Faculty:<\/strong> Bharat Gwalani, MSE Assistant Professor
Research Group Website:<\/strong> mse.ncsu.edu\/gwalani\/<\/a>
REU Participant:<\/strong> Alice Pandaleon<\/p>\n\n\n\n

AI-Driven Control of Printed Organohydrogels through Ultrafast Imaging<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Faculty:<\/strong> Lilian Hsiao, CBE Assistant Professor
Research Group Website:<\/strong> http:\/\/www.hsiaolab.com<\/a>
REU Participant:<\/strong> Amory Gaylord<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Data Driven Quantum Tunneling Molecular Devices<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Faculty:<\/strong> Martin Thuo, MSE Professor
Research Group Website:<\/strong> mse.ncsu.edu\/thuo\/<\/a>
REU Participant:<\/strong> Jack Austin<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Data Driven Design of NP-based Materials<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Faculty:<\/strong> Yara Yingling, MSE, Biomedical Engineering & Physics Professor
Research Group Website:<\/strong> mse.ncsu.edu\/yingling\/<\/a>
REU Participants:<\/strong> Caroline Cunningham and Siri Mudunuri<\/p>\n\n\n <\/p>\n <\/details>\n\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n\n\n

 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

2022<\/h1>\n\n\n\n
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L-R, 1st row: Zhane McCleod, Ian Lyons, Ishan Ghosh, 2nd row: Mariel Gomez, Skylar Kauffman, Gabe Graves. 3rd row: Bryan Wright, Carter Wunch, Drew Hollett, Jonathan Paul <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n
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2022 Projects<\/h2>\n <\/summary>\n

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Robot-in-the-loop, data-driven experimental research in thin film photovoltaics to pinpoint the origins of degradation<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Faculty:<\/strong> Aram Amassian; MSE Professor
Research Group Website:<\/strong> mse.ncsu.edu\/amassian\/<\/a>
REU Participant:<\/strong> Gabe Graves<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Data-Driven Synthesis of Metastable Hydrated Transition Metal Oxides<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Faculty:<\/strong> Veronica Augustyn; MSE Associate Professor
Research Group Website:<\/strong> mse.ncsu.edu\/augustyn\/<\/a>
REU Participant:<\/strong> Carter Wunch<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Machine learning optimization of strain sensors based on piezoelectric properties of 2D layered materials<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Faculty:<\/strong> Nina Balke, MSE Associate Professor
Research Group Website:<\/strong> mse.ncsu.edu\/balke\/<\/a>
REU Participant:<\/strong> Ian Lyons<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Machine Learning Methods for Calculating Vacancy Formation Energies in High Entropy Ceramics<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Faculty:<\/strong> Don Brenner, MSE Professor and Department Head
Research Group Website:<\/strong> mse.ncsu.edu\/brenner\/<\/a>
REU Participant:<\/strong>Skyler Kauffman<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Using data to design LEDs emitting in the ultraviolet for disinfection applications<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Faculty:<\/strong> Ramon Collazo, MSE Associate Professor
REU Participant:<\/strong> Bryan Wright<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Materials Research Data Analysis for Coastal Science<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Faculty:<\/strong> Wenpei Gao
Research Group Website:<\/strong> mse.ncsu.edu\/gao\/<\/a>
REU Participant:<\/strong>Ishan Ghosh<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Improving properties of lightweight, high strength, and corrosion resistant alloys with data science<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Faculty:<\/strong> Rajeev Gupta, MSE Associate Professor
Research Group Website:<\/strong> mse.ncsu.edu\/rkgupta2\/<\/a>
REU Participants:<\/strong>Andrew Hollett<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Design of energy sustainable materials through point defect informatics<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Faculty:<\/strong> Doug Irving, MSE Professor
Research Group Website:<\/strong> mse.ncsu.edu\/irving\/<\/a>
REU Participant:<\/strong> Jonathan Paul<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Machine Learning for Discovery of P-recovery Materials<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Faculty:<\/strong> Jacob Jones, MSE Professor
Research Group Website:<\/strong> mse.ncsu.edu\/jones\/<\/a>
REU Participant:<\/strong> Zhane McCleod<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Accelerated Design of Green Cellulose Membranes for CO2 Capture<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Faculty:<\/strong> Melissa Pasquinelli
Research Group Website:<\/strong> faculty.cnr.ncsu.edu\/melissapasquinelli\/<\/a>
REU Participants:<\/strong> Mariel Gomez<\/p>\n\n\n <\/p>\n <\/details>\n\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n\n\n

What Participants Are Saying…<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Ishan Ghosh majors in Materials Science and Engineering at Clemson University.<\/strong> Learning about the MAT-DAT REU through a friend also looking at REU programs, Ishan calls the experience \u201cenlightening.\u201d The program expanded his horizons, giving him an overall unique experience. Ishan\u2019s \u201caha moment\u201d was getting his Python code to compile without any errors. Sharing kudos to MSE student coordinator Hillary Stone, his favorite part of the program was making connections with others from different backgrounds who share similar interests. To break up his time researching, Ishan recommends a visit to the State Farmer\u2019s Market near NC State\u2019s campus. His parting quote: \u201cGo in with an open mind ready for whatever may come your way.\u201d<\/em><\/td>Drew Hollett majors in Civil Engineering at Tufts University.<\/strong> Drew was recommended to the MAT-DAT REU by a professor at school. He says the experience was very rewarding and gave him the opportunity to do theoretical and experimental work. He picked up skills applicable to other fields and got to picture life as a graduate student. Giving praise to MSE Professor Yingling, student coordinator Hillary Stone, and Professor Gupta\u2019s research group, his favorite part of the program was choosing how to solve a research problem due to the open-ended curriculum. Drew loved the openness of the NC State campus and surrounding areas like Lake Raleigh. Drew strongly recommends the REU. His parting quote: \u201cSometimes you just need to take a break to get the answer to a hard question.\u201d<\/em><\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n
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\u201cIt\u2019s a great program for students interested in learning about how computer science and machine learning can be applied to engineering.\u201d
\u2013 Drew Hollett<\/p>\n <\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Ian Lyons majors in Chemistry at the University of Washington.<\/strong> Ian learned about the MAT-DAT REU through the NSF website. He was excited to work directly with his PI, Professor Balke, and he enjoyed learning how to code and apply machine learning to real-world problems. His favorite part of the program was working with actual real-world data. \u201cThe satisfaction of seeing your hard work pay off felt very nice,\u201d says Ian. He recommends the REU to anyone interested in doing research in the future. He thinks it is a good way to quickly find out if research is for you and what your strengths and weakness are. It also helps to build many skills that are necessary to succeed in the academic world with much less pressure. For recreation, Ian was drawn to the NC State rock climbing wall in the Carmichael Gym, as well as the rock climbing community. His parting thoughts: \u201cTake this opportunity to try new things and spend time with your roommates! We went skydiving and I am glad to have had the group experiences we had. There are not a lot of people on Centennial Campus during the summer, so get to know the people that are here. Introduce yourself and exchange socials at all of the welcome REU events because there are not many chances afterward to do so because people are most open to making friends when they first arrive somewhere new.\u201d<\/em><\/td>Zhane McCleod majors in Aerospace Engineering at the University of Florida.<\/strong> Zhane learned about the MAT-DAT REU through her job. She feels grateful for the exposure to Python, machine learning, as well as graduate school. Zhane loved how free this program was: \u201cHousing and travel are paid for. You are paid generously, even if you don\u2019t have a summer internship or summer classes, an experience like this allows one to travel. I was able to work on my project in my own space and on my own time.\u201d Zhane\u2019s \u201caha\u201d moment was discovering the machine learning methods linear regression, decision trees, and random forests will not train datasets with missing values unless rows with missing values are deleted. She had nothing but amazing notes for her mentor, Josh Harris, and her PI, Jacob Jones, and his research group. \u201cI\u2019ve grown more as a bold and confident woman with the help of our regular group meetings,\u201d says Zhane. \u201cI was surprised to learn that NC State has three campuses and that Centennial Campus is as big as it is. I was also surprised how NC State has a campus devoted to engineering and textiles.\u201d Zhane shares her parting thought \u201cThe REU program is a mixture of fun, learning, and summer.\u201d<\/em><\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Questions about the MAT-DAT REU?<\/strong> Email mse-reu-matdat@ncsu.edu<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"NSF
This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. DMR-2150360. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

2025 2024 2023   2022 What Participants Are Saying… Ishan Ghosh majors in Materials Science and Engineering at Clemson University. Learning about the MAT-DAT REU through a friend also looking at REU programs, Ishan calls the experience \u201cenlightening.\u201d The program expanded his horizons, giving him an overall unique experience. Ishan\u2019s \u201caha moment\u201d was getting his Python…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":517,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"source":"","ncst_custom_author":"","ncst_show_custom_author":false,"ncst_dynamicHeaderBlockName":"ncst\/default-header","ncst_dynamicHeaderData":"{}","ncst_content_audit_freq":"","ncst_content_audit_date":"","ncst_content_audit_display":false,"ncst_backToTopFlag":"","footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-103","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mse.ncsu.edu\/reu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/103","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mse.ncsu.edu\/reu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mse.ncsu.edu\/reu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mse.ncsu.edu\/reu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/517"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mse.ncsu.edu\/reu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=103"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/mse.ncsu.edu\/reu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/103\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":357,"href":"https:\/\/mse.ncsu.edu\/reu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/103\/revisions\/357"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mse.ncsu.edu\/reu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=103"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}