Education
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Ph.D. in Chemical Physics from University of Arizona
In Progress B.S. in Physics Cum Laude from San Diego State University August 2012 - May 2017 University of Arizona Graduate ACCESS Fellow May 2017 - Current SDSU NSF LSAMP Scholar August 2016 - May 2017 SDSU MARC/NIH Scholar June 2015 - May 2017 Member of Weber Honors College August 2012 - May 2017 Research Assistant, San Diego State University April 2016 - May 2017 Advisor: Dr. William Tong Research Area: Nonlinear Laser Spectroscopy Description: Our project was a collaboration with the Department of Homeland Security, and utilized degenerate four-wave mixing spectroscopy to detect nanogram amounts of explosives commonly used in IEDs. A specific explosive, triacetone triperoxide (TATP), was the focus of our efforts. TATP differs from other explosives because it does not have nitrogen groups, which makes it difficult to detect using most analytical methods. Our lab worked on finding an ideal reagent to combine with TATP to make it easily detectable at the surface level. This work helped augment current explosive detection equipment in airports, train stations, border checkpoints, and more Research Assistant, Vanderbilt University May 2016 - August 2016 Advisor: Dr. Richard Haglund Jr. Research Area: Ultrafast Spectroscopy and Correlated Materials Description: This project studied the metallic monoclinic (mM) state of VO2 through the change in second harmonic generation (SHG) of the material. By analyzing the semiconductor to metallic transition that occurs while the material retains a monoclinic structure, we gained insight to the electron-electron correlations of VO2 and hope to offer the definitive measurement of the mM and R nucleation time. This will drive applications in ultrafast switching, telecommunications, and nanophotonics. Research Assistant, San Diego State University June 2015 - March 2016 Advisor: Dr. Lyuba Kuznetsova Research Area: Optical Bio-sensing and Metamaterials Description: My research in this lab focused on the 3 dimensional computational and mathematical modeling of a potential hyperbolic metamaterial, Al/SiO2, and required heavy use of the COMSOL Multiphysics suit of programs. We were seeking to understand how placing a dipole on top and within a AL/SiO2 cylindrical cavity would affect the propagation of whispering gallery TM modes. Research Assistant, Texas A&M University May 2015 - August 2015 Advisor: Dr. Pavel Tsvetkov Research Area: Nuclear Engineering - Medical/Health Physics Description: Computationally studied localized alpha emitters in different biological media for possible treatment of various cancers. This work was completed through the use of the SRIM and TRIM Monte Carlo style simulation programs. The studies we carried out found that the program could provide an excellent model for how localized use of alpha emitting nuclides would disperse within the biological media, and indicated that tissue composition greatly impacted the spread of the radiation. |
Memberships/Affiliations
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Society of Physics Students SDSU - Former President, Alumni Engagement Officer, and Head Tutor
Weber Honors College - Former Treasurer American Physical Society - Member American Chemical Society - Member SPIE - Member Volunteer Physics and Chemistry Teaching Assistant at the Monarch April 2014 - August 2016 School for Children Impacted by Homelessness This school is a nonprofit that serves to provide a better education to children impacted by homelessness or severe poverty. During my time there, I had the opportunity to teach students various topics in physics and chemistry. In Spring 2016, I taught the students how circuits work, and provided them the tools to build their own working AM/FM radio. One of these students just graduated and intends to go to community college for electrical engineering because of the work he contributed to building the radio and skills he learned from my teaching. Proficient in use of optical equipment and techniques such as polarizers, acousto-optic light modulators, electro-optic light modulators, holography, fiber optics/Erbium-doped fiber cables, ultrafast lasers and spectroscopy, degenerate four-wave mixing spectroscopy, and spatial filtering/optical pattern recognition Familiar with coding in Fortran 77/90 and Matlab, as well as programs such as COMSOL Multiphysics, Lumerical FDTD and Devices, SRIM, LATEX, and XMGrace. |