PhD candidate in Materials Science & Nuclear Engineering at the University of Tennessee, working out of the Tennessee Ion Beam Materials Lab (TIBML) jointly with Oak Ridge National Laboratory. My research focuses on materials for advanced nuclear applications — specifically how tungsten alloys and SiC systems degrade under coupled irradiation, corrosion, mechanical, and thermal loading. Primary techniques: TEM, SEM, FIB, nanoindentation.
BA in Physics — The University of Chicago, 2022. Minor in Computational Neuroscience, Specialization in Data Science.
Computational tool · UTK/TIBML
A custom SRIM-based irradiation damage and ion implantation calculator built for rapid experimental planning. Replaces slow, manual SRIM workflows with integrated plotting and a cleaner interface. Open-source.
GitHub →In development
An in-progress alternative to SRIM — the industry-standard Monte Carlo ion transport simulator. Built from the ground up to be faster, more transparent, and more scriptable than existing tools.
In development →Graduate Research · Aug 2023 – Present
Investigating corrosion and irradiation damage in coupled extreme environments on W-Re-Os, W-Cu, and SiC systems for advanced nuclear applications. Primary characterization via TEM, with additional work in SEM, FIB, and nanoindentation. Also mentoring 5–10 undergraduate researchers in ion beam techniques.
Advisors: Dr. Khalid Hattar, Dr. Dustin Gilmer
URSI Researcher · Jan 2023 – Aug 2023
Studied accident-tolerant fuel cladding candidates under high-temperature, high-pressure conditions. Synthesized carbon nanotubes via CVD and characterized their effects on oil thermal conductivity. Conducted tribological characterization of graphite composites at 800°C using AMTI.
Research Assistant · Nov 2019 – Nov 2021
Used DeepLabCut and OpenCV to build 3D trajectory reconstruction and decoding models of neuronal firing rates in mice. Analyzed 2-photon imaging data from layer 2/3 neurons in mouse S1 cortex. Supported by Jeff Metcalf Neuroscience Fellowship and Developmental Neuro-Biology Fellowship grants.