BS: Chemical Engineering, Colorado School of Mines (1994) MS: Chemical Engineering, Colorado School of Mines (1995) MS: Applied Physics, California Institute of Technology (1998) PhD: Chemical Engineering, California Institute of Technology (2003)

Synthesis and characterization of nanoscale materials as well as the development of scanning probe microscopy (SPM) methods for optical, electrical, and mechanical interrogation of nanoscale systems found in different venues such as material science, microelectronics, catalysis, and biology. Our overall goal is to exploit the unique physicochemical properties of nanoscale systems by probing and understanding materials over a variety of length scales from nano to macro. Our research is "hands-on" experimental science involving a combination of scanning probe microscopy techniques (STM, AFM, SNOM), laser spectroscopy, nanofabrication, and traditional surface science. We build our own instruments and synthesize various nanostructured materials using plasmas, CVD, lithography, and traditional solution-based methods. Design/construction of scanning probe microscopy tools for chemical imaging of surfaces Using sub-wavelength optical interactions with matter to study physical, chemical, and biological processes Developing novel ways to identify/manipulate single molecules, nano-objects, and micro-scale systems using hybrid AFM techniques Synthesis and characterization of plasmonic and catalytic materials Spectroscopy of organic semiconductors for OLED and PV applications