Course Content2025 Participants
Chinanu Agunane
BS Student, Pharmacological Chemistry
UC San Diego
ORCID: 0009-0007-9895-7503
Chinanu is an undergraduate student at UC San Diego majoring in Pharmacological Chemistry (Class of 2027). She is currently an undergraduate researcher at the Skaggs School of Pharmacy in Anthony O’Donoghue’s Lab. She is on the Track and Field team at UCSD and enjoys sweet treats and watching action shows.
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email: chagunanne_at_ucsd_dot_edu
Tyler Bui
BS Student, Biochemistry
UC San Diego
ORCID: 0009-0004-9548-2790
Tyler is a UC San Diego undergraduate Biochemistry major (class of 2026), who transferred to UCSD in 2024. He previously participated in the 2024 Spring Break RIMSE program while he was a student attending San Diego Miramar College. In his free time, he likes to read and play musical instruments.
Safety Tour: 24 Mar 2025
Etch Test: 25 Mar 2025
email: ttb003_at_ucsd_dot_edu
Benjamin Case
High School Student
San Diego High School
ORCID: 0009-0008-8031-7580
Ben is a Junior at San Diego High School (class of 2026) with a passion for science. He regularly volunteers at the Fleet Science Center and leads the physics club at his school. He also plays the trumpet with the San Diego Youth Symphony and enjoys acting and producing with the SDHS Theatrical Knights.
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email: N/A
Farah Chen
High School Student
St. Cecilia Academy
ORCID: 0009-0006-4549-1925
Farah Chen is a freshman at St. Cecilia Academy (Class of 2028). Her interests include robotics, forestry, lacrosse, and she has passion for drawing and painting.
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email: N/A
Ian de la Houssaye
High School Student
Point Loma High School
ORCID: 0009-0006-7712-7167
Ian de la Houssaye is a senior at Point Loma High School (class of 2026). He is highly interested in STEM and is especially passionate about engineering, chemistry, and math. He is heavily involved in robotics and likes to swim and play the violin in his free time.
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Pusan Dhar
PhD Student
North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University
ORCID: 0009-0009-5840-8977
Pusan is a PhD student at NCAT. He has a keen interest in the synthesis and characterization of nanomaterials.
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email: pdhar_at_aggies_dot_ncat_dot_edu
Andrea Celeste Di Pede
PhD Student
University of Rome Tor Vergata
ORCID: 0009-0000-6710-9543
Andrea Celeste is currently a PhD student in the laboratory of Alessandro Porchetta, in the Department of Chemical Sciences and Technologies at the University of Rome Tor Vergata, where she also completed both her Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Chemical Sciences and Technologies. Her research mainly focuses on studying and manipulating CRISPR-Cas systems for their optimal use in diagnostics. Specifically, she works on integrating DNA nanostructures with CRISPR/Cas systems, which leads to the development of new detection methods and expands the applications of both DNA nanotechnology and CRISPR/Cas.
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email: andreaceleste_dot_dipede_at_alumni_dot_uniroma2_dot_eu
Yixing Guan
PhD Student, Chemistry
UC San Diego
ORCID: 0009-0009-2126-7293
Yixing is a first-year PhD student in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at UC San Diego. He completed a bachelor’s degree (Honors) in materials science and engineering at both Monash University and Wuhan University of Technology. His previous research involved flow chemistry, monodisperse polymer particle synthesis, and biological application of polymer particles in tissue engineering. He is interested in porous silicon and drug delivery systems. Outside his academic work, he enjoys playing piano and is a good singer.
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email: yig062_at_ucsd_dot_edu
Junyi (Vanessa) Ji
MS Student, Bioengineering
UC San Diego
ORCID: 0009-0000-5127-398X
Vanessa is pursuing a Master’s of Science degree in Bioengineering at UC San Diego. She is passionate about combining nanotechnology and bioengineering to solve biomedical problems.
Safety Tour: 27 Nov 2024
Etch Test: 27 Jan 2025
email: j6ji_at_ucsd_dot_edu
Hanna Lavén
PhD Student, Pharmacy Department
Uppsala University
ORCID: 0009-0006-2174-4158
Hanna is an industrial PhD student at the Pharmacy department of Uppsala University, in collaboration with AstraZeneca. She graduated from the University of Gothenburg in 2022 with a master’s degree in pharmacy. Following her studies, she joined AstraZeneca’s graduate program, where she gained experience across different company departments for two years. Her current PhD project focuses on developing sustainable personalized treatments for patients with inflammatory bowel disease, specifically by designing drug-loaded nanoparticles to target inflamed areas in the GI tract and exploring these delivery systems in vitro and in vivo.
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email: hanna_dot_laven_at_uu_dot_se
Alberto G. Lavenant
BS Student, Biology
San Diego Community College
ORCID: 0009-0003-9605-8345
Alberto is an undergraduate student at San Diego Community College District pursuing an associates in Biology and is planning on transferring to a four-year University for the upcoming Fall semester. He is interested in pursuing medicine as a career and has found interest in several topics along the way that feeds his curiosity, particularly anything that quantitatively explains natural phenomena or observations made on a day to day basis.
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email: alavenant001_at_student_dot_sdcc_dot_edu
Caitlin M. McGee
PhD Student, Chemistry
UC San Diego
ORCID: 0000-0001-9692-9540
Caitlin is an incoming PhD student in the Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry at UCSD. She completed her BS in Chemistry and Biochemistry & Molecular Biology and BA in Math at University of Miami in 2023 and her MS in Chemistry at Villanova University in 2025. She is interested in using nanomaterials for drug delivery and other biomedical applications.
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email: c1mcgee_at_ucsd_dot_edu
Joshua Neal
BS Student, Physics
North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University
ORCID: 0009-0001-4955-7497
Joshua Neal is a freshman at North Carolina A&T University pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Physics with a strong passion for continuing his higher education in physics. Currently, he is undecided on what concentration of physics to pursue, but he has high hopes his time at USCD will point him in the right direction. One of his biggest goals as a physicist is to write books on the history of physics so everyone can understand how humanity has gotten to its current technological point.
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email: jlneal3_at_aggies_dot_ncat_dot_edu
Deneve Nguyen
High School Student
Sage Creek High School
ORCID: 0009-0003-1092-8515
Deneve is an upcoming senior at Sage Creek High School (class of 2026). She hopes to pursue a career in immunology. If she’s not busy with schoolwork, she can be found doodling, eating good food, swimming, or fiddling around on her piano.
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email: N/A
Charita Sree Potluri
High School Student
Scripps Ranch High School
ORCID: 0009-0009-6035-4816
Charita is a Junior at Scripps Ranch High School (Class of 2026). She is looking into majoring in materials science and/or engineering in college. Her passions include crochet and technical theater.
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email: N/A
Javier A Rios Galindo
BS Student, Biochemistry
California State University, Long Beach
ORCID: 0009-0000-7060-0886
Javier is an undergraduate student at California State University, Long Beach (CSULB), majoring in Biochemistry (Class of 2025). He has conducted research in the field of nanoparticles under the mentorship of Prof. Fangyuan Tian. Javier’s academic journey is marked by his commitment to both his studies and to his extracurricular activities. He is a proud recipient of the Metric Scholarship and serves as the Secretary of the Pre-Dental Club at CSULB, where he actively contributes to the club’s initiatives and promotes interest in dentistry among his peers. With a passion for research and a strong interest in dentistry, Javier seeks to bridge the gap between scientific innovation and healthcare. Outside of his academic pursuits, he enjoys playing guitar, rock climbing, soccer, and practicing calisthenics, which reflect his dedication to both mental and physical well-being.
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email: javier_dot_rios01_at_student_dot_csulb_dot_edu
Mateo Rosero-Realpe
PhD Student, Electrical and Electronic Engineering
Polytechnic Institute of Turin
ORCID: 0009-0000-9226-0480
Mateo is a PhD Student in the department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering at the Polytechnic Institute of Turin. He completed a B.S. degree in Electronic Engineering and a M.S. degree in Nanotechnologies for ICTs. His research focuses on the characterization of photonic materials for Neuromorphic Computing. He has been working with the nonlinear dynamics of WS2 and azo-polymers that can be used for computation and has acquired modeling, fabrication and characterization skills at INRIM Institute at Turin.
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email: mateo_dot_rosero_at_polito_dot_it
Jessica Stanfield
ORCID:
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Maria Taylor
BS Student, Engineering Physics
North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University
ORCID: 0009-0008-5905-2979
Maria is a sophomore at NCAT as well as a Sergeant in the United States Army. She hopes to research materials at UCSD that can advance measures taken towards a cleaner environment.
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email: mgtaylor1_at_aggies_dot_ncat_dot_edu
Yun-Han Teng
MS Student, Materials Science
UC San Diego
ORCID: 0009-0008-7381-8248
Yun-Han was born and raised in Taipei and is currently a first-year master’s student in the Materials Science program at the University of California, San Diego. With a background in Chemistry from Fu Jen Catholic University and research experience in nanoparticles, Yun-Han is committed to advancing research in porous silicon nanoparticles and drug delivery. Outside of her academic pursuits, she enjoys playing golf and the piano.
Safety Tour: 11 Nov 2024
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email: y2teng_at_ucsd_dot_edu
Romeo Velarde-Alvarez
BS Student, Chemistry
Harvey Mudd College
ORCID: 0009-0003-4826-8241
Romeo is a first-year student at Harvey Mudd College, intending to major in Chemistry or Engineering (Class of 2028). He is a part of Dr. Maduka Ogba’s Computational Chemistry lab where he is exploring the use of silyl amines in calcium catalyzed sulfur fluoride exchange reactions. He hopes to learn more about nanomaterials and nanotechnology, specifically their applications in semiconductors and other electronics, biology/biotechnology, and energy/sustainability.
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email: rnvelardealvarez_at_gmail_dot_edu
Elijah Wesley
BS Student, Bioengineering
North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University
ORCID: 0009-0005-3642-6980
Elijah is a rising senior at NCAT, with a major in Bioengineering and a minor in Physics. He has great interest in applications of quantum mechanics in bioengineering, and hopes to one day be a pioneer in this emerging field. Outside of academia, his interests include sports, fine dining, and cars.
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email: eswesley1_at_aggies_dot_ncat_dot_edu
Elvin Zhang
High School Student
Del Norte High School
ORCID: 0009-0003-4363-402X
Elvin is a student at Del Norte High School (Class of 2026). He enjoys studying the interdisciplinary fields of physics, chemistry, and bioengineering. He looks forward to learning about silicon nanomaterials and nanocrystals and exploring nanotechnology for sensors and biomedical applications.
Safety Tour: 21 May 2025
Etch Test: N/A
email: N/A
2025 Mentors
Rachel Allen
High School Student
ORCID: 0000-0001-9810-8869
Rachel is a rising senior (class of 2026). She was a participant in the 2024 Summer School for Silicon Nanotechnology (SSSiN), and in 2025 she will serve as a mentor. She is passionate about STEM and her interests particularly lie in physics. Outside of the laboratory, she enjoys making music, playing bassoon and flute.
email: n/a
Jiuk Byun
PhD Student, Materials Science & Engineering
ORCID: 0000-0001-9810-8869
Jiuk is a PhD student in Materials Science and Engineering at UC San Diego who joined the lab in 2023. She received her B.A. in Chemistry with a minor in Mathematics from Mount Holyoke College. She conducted her undergraduate research with Professor Wei Chen and helped develop a new procedure for spin coating polydopamine thin films. She also worked with Professor Dirk Englund’s group at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, on nitrogen-vacancy centers in diamond. Before joining UCSD, she researched coatings and carbonization of nature-inspired polymer materials in Professor Haeshin Lee’s lab at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology. She participated in the Summer School for Silicon Nanotechnology remotely in 2021 and in-person in 2023, and served as a mentor in 2024. Her research interests include surface modification of porous silicon nanoparticles and materials for sensing and catalysis applications.
email: jibyun_at_ucsd.edu
Oscar Calzada
PhD Student, Chemical & Nanoengineering
ORCID: 0000-0001-8922-4438
Oscar Calzada Martinez is a PhD student in the UCSD Department of Chemical and Nanoengineering who joined the lab in 2022. He has been a participant (2021) and a Senior Mentor (2022-24) in the Summer School for Silicon Nanotechnology (SSSiN), one of the UC San Diego MRSEC RIMSE research immersion programs. Oscar has projects on porous nanoparticles used as small molecule delivery systems for bacterial infections, and as targeted therapeutics for treatment of brain injuries.
email: ocalzada_at_ucsd_dot_edu
Shreena Dayal
High School Student, Del Norte High School
ORCID: 0009-0004-0674-629X
Shreena is a graduating senior at Del Norte High School (class of 2025) who participated in the 2024 Summer School for Silicon Nanotechnology (SSSiN), and is now participating in the 2025 SSSiN as a Mentor. She is passionate about using scientific inquiry to develop solutions that impact society. Shreena is exploring the applications of silicon nanotechnology, particularly within biomedical technology.
email:
Caasi Lampkin
BS Student, Biology
North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University
ORCID: 0009-0007-0908-1213
Caasi is an undergraduate Biology student at North Carolina Agricultural & Technical State University (class of 2025) who participated in the 2024 Summer School for Silicon Nanotechnology (SSSiN), and is now participating in the 2025 SSSiN as a Mentor. She has a passion for microbiology and genetics. Caasi has a background in the simulation of the structure and function of carbon nanotubes at the National High Magnetic Field Laboratory in Tallahassee, Florida. Beyond academia, Caasi enjoys reading, attending concerts, and trying numerous creative outlets.
email: Cslampkin_at_aggies_dot_ncat_dot_edu
Ilya Mazalov
BS Student, NanoEngineering
UC San Diego
ORCID: 0009-0008-5999-0981
Ilya is a second-year undergraduate student in the NanoEngineering department at UCSD. He started working in Atlas Group, led by Professor Tod Pascal, last year and participated in the 2024 Summer School for Predictive Assembly (SSPA) organized by UC San Diego MRSEC RIMSE research program. In 2025 he is participating in the SSSiN as a Mentor. His research interests are focused on potential applications and mechanics of nanoparticles, which are found using methods of Molecular Dynamics (MD) simulations. This includes studying the binding mechanics of noble-metal nanoparticles with organic ligands and their behavior in different environments. He is passionate about energy-related research and catalysis.
email: imazalov_at_ucsd_dot_edu
Edward T. Nguyen
Post-Doc, Chemistry & Biochemistry
ORCID: 0000-0002-4787-8270
Eddie is a post-doctoral researcher in the UC San Diego Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry who was previously Adjunct Professor of Chemistry in the San Diego Community College and Grossmont College districts. He received both his B.S. and M.S. from CSU Long Beach (Advisor: Xianhui Bu) and obtained his Ph.D. from Florida State University (Advisor: Geoffrey F. Strouse, Focus: transition metal carbide nanocrystals). He participated in the SSSiN program as an RET (Research Experiences for Teachers) trainee in 2024, and is serving as a Senior Mentor in the 2025 SSSiN.
email: edn005_at_ucsd_dot_edu
Gabriella Stark
PhD Student, Chemistry & Biochemistry
ORCID: 0000-0003-1304-9404
Gabriella is a PhD Student in the UC San Diego Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry. She was a participant in the 2021 Summer School for Silicon Nanotechnology (SSSiN), one of the UC San Diego MRSEC RIMSE research immersion programs, and acted as a Senior Mentor in the 2022 through 2024 SSSiN. Her research focus is on surface chemistry of porous silicon nanoparticles to load and deliver biologic therapeutics, preserving function, extending release, and maximizing circulation time.
email: gastark_at_ucsd.edu
Ashley Tamura
MRSEC Associate Education Director
ORCID: 0000-0002-2540-6125
Ashley Tamura is the Associate Education Director of the UC San Diego MRSEC. She received both her B.S. and M.S. from UC San Diego while working on the phase-tunable colloidal synthesis of tungsten disulfide nanocrystals with Dr. Alina M. Schimpf. With her research background and her experience as an Adjunct Professor in the San Diego Community College and Southwestern College districts, Ashley forms a bridge between the research and the education elements of the MRSEC and the RIMSE program. She participated as an RET in the 2023 Summer School for Silicon Nanotechnology, and as a Senior Mentor in 2024. Her research focus is on the physical, chemical, and optical properties of porous silicon.
email: aktamura_at_ucsd.edu
Siran Rao
BS Student, Physics and Engineering
Scripps College
ORCID: 0000-0003-2769-1780
Siran is a student (class of 2028) at Scripps College. She began her work in the Sailor labs as a participant in the 2022-2024 Summer School for Silicon Nanotechnology (SSSiN), and in 2025 she is serving as a Senior Mentor. She is interested in physics and chemistry of mesoporous silicon.
email:
Qinglin Yang
PhD Student, Materials Science and Engineering, 2017-
ORCID: 0000-0001-7845-4027
Qinglin is a PhD student in Materials Science and Engineering (MSE) at UCSD. She began her work in the Sailor labs as a participant in the 2017 Summer School for Silicon Nanotechnology (SSSiN), one of the UC San Diego MRSEC RIMSE research immersion programs, and she has served as a Senior Mentor in the 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2023 SSSiN. Her research interests lie in the use of porous silicon nanoparticles for delivery of therapeutics to treat bacterial infections. This includes chemistries to capture and retain hydrophobic small molecule antibiotics and also to use peptides for selective targeting of the diseased tissues.
email: qiy087_at_ucsd.edu