PHATE Research Group

Shamberger Lab

Team

Research Opportunities:  Graduate & Undergraduate Researchers

The group currently has openings for qualified and enthusiastic graduate students (starting fall 2019) and for motivated undergraduate students.  Feel free to contact the PI to express interest in joining the research group.

Graduate Students

 Yijia Zhang

Yijia Zhang

Graduate Student (PhD)
Size effects on thermoelastic martensitic transformations
(2015 – present)

  • Electrochemical deposition of Heusler alloy films
  • Microstructure Analysis
  • Structure and theory of thermoelastic martensitic transformations
 Alison Hoe

Alison Hoe

Graduate Student (PhD)
Heat transfer and storage in composite heat sinks
(2017 – present)

  • Dynamics of phase change materials melting problems with unsteady boundary conditions
  • Experimental characterization of phase change materials (PCMs)
  • Numerical and materials design of thermal energy storage composites
 

Michael Deckard

Graduate Student (PhD)
Conductive Heat Transfer in Composite Heatsinks
(2017 – present)

  • Modeling of conductive heat transfer in heterogeneous phase change media
  • Development of modeling tools for conductive heat transfer in composite PCMs
  • Characterization of PCM behavior under unsteady boundary conditions
 Adelaide Bradicich

Adelaide Bradicich

Graduate Student (PhD)
Adaptive Metal-Insulator Transition Devices
(2018 – present)

  • Device characterization of resistive switching elements
  • Thermal transport measurements of thin films
 Aliya Yano

Aliya Yano

Graduate Student (PhD)
Effects of chemical dopants on hysteresis and domain nucleation and growth in VO2
(2018 – present)

  • Optical observations of transformation behavior in hydrothermal doped VO2 particles
  • Effects of composition on microstructure and hysteresis in (Mn,Fe)2(P,Si) alloys
 Dennis Arce

Dennis Arce

Graduate Student (PhD)
Synthesis and Characterization of Phase Change Materials
(2019 – present)

  • Thermal transport, calorimetry, and thermal cycling of novel PCMs
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Rebeca M. Gurrola

Graduate Student (PhD)
Neuromorphic Devices and Systems Based on Metal-Insulator Transitions
(2019 – present)

  • Thin film growth and characterization
  • XRD techniques
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Sourav Chakravarty

Graduate Student (PhD)
Heat Transfer in Thermal Energy Storage Materials and Systems
(2019 – present)

  • Nucleation and undercooling in novel PCMs
  • Design of active nucleation catalysts

Undergraduate Students

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Julia Billman

Clare Booth Luce scholar
Undergraduate, Senior(MEEN)
MFM Imaging of Magnetic Domains in Magnetocaloric Alloys
(2017 – present)

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Nathan Turner

Undergraduate, Senior(CHEN)
Synthesis and Characterization of Ternary Salt Hydrate Eutectics
(2018 – present)
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Haley Jones

Undergraduate, Junior (CHEN)
Metal Insulator transitions in doped VO2 films/ systems
(2018 – present)
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Andrew Balog

Undergraduate, Junior (MSEN)
Metal Insulator transitions in doped VO2 films/ systems
(2018 – present)

Group: 2017

Post-Doc Alumni

Amy Bolon: PD Researcher. Transitioning Salt Hydrate Phase Change Materials (2017) {Currently with Enterprise Products}

Eunju Jung: PD Researcher. Effectiveness of Active Learning Pedagogies in an Introductory Materials Science Class (2015-2016) {Currently PD at Univ Indiana – Bloomington}

Graduate Student Alumni

Tim Brown: PhD. Engineering Hysteresis and Non-Diffusive Phase Transformations in Magnetocaloric (Mn,Fe)2(P,Si) Alloys for Magnetic Refrigeration Applications
(2014 – 2019) {Currently Postdoc at TAMU w/ Stan Williams}

Heidi Clarke: PhD. Local Characterization of Resistance Switching Phenomena in Transition Metal Oxides
(2014 – 2019) {Currently with Samsung}

Emily Emmons: MS. Corrosion of Common Heat Exchanger Materials by Lithium Nitrate Trihydrate
(2015 – 2017) {Currently with Samsung}

UG Alumni

Jessica Paredez:
UG Researcher (ECEN). Synthesis and Properties of Salt Hydrates (2018-2019)

Jenny Gosney:
Summer 2019 REU. Isothermal Transformation Kinetics in Salt Hydrate PCMs (2019)

John Moynihan:
UG Researcher (CHEN). Measuring Reversibility and Solidification Rates in Salt Hydrates (2017-2018)

Daniel Galvan:
UG Researcher (CHEN). Assessing the Performance of Fe2P Alloys Under Various Magnetic Refrigeration Cycle (2015-2019)

Laura Deremo:
UG Researcher (ECEN). Failure in Electrical Resistance Switches (2017-2018)

Gabriela Lammoglia:
Summer 2018 NextGen Intern. Materials Design of Magnetocaloric Alloys (2018)

Nandha Ramasamy:
UG Researcher (MEEN). Magnetic Force Microscopy of MCE materials (2018)

Thomas Jordan:
UG Researcher (MEEN). Dissipative Neuromorphic Materials(2017-2018)

Jonathan van Buskirk:
UG Researcher (CHEM). Hysteresis in MCE Materials (2018)

Sara Wonner:
Summer 2018 REU, Nucleation in Salt Hydrate PCMs (2018)

Joseph Anderson:
UG Researcher (PHYS). 3D Tomography of Conductive Filaments (2018) UG Honors thesis {Currently PhD at Purdue Univ., IN}

Aaron Garcia:
UG Researcher (MEEN). Thermophysical Properties of Salt Hydrates (2018)

Molly Jones: REU Summer Intern. Phase transformations in Heusler alloy thick films (summer 2017).

Sunita Kumari: IITK Summer Intern. Structure of insulating composites (summer 2017).

Elizabeth Yee:
UG Researcher (CHEN). Decomposition of Ammonia Salts (2017)

Sarah Hammock: UG Researcher (CHEN). 3D cAFM Imaging of Conductive Filaments in HfO2 Resistive Switching Devices(2015-2017) UG Honors thesis

Bill Caraway: UG Researcher (MEEN). Imaging Phase Transitions in VO2 particles (2016-2017)

Nick Gripp: UG Researcher (CHEM). Decomposition of Ammonia Salts (2016-2017)

Ben Musil: UG Researcher (CHEM). Decomposition of Ammonia Salts (2016)

Siddharth Srivastava: IITK Summer Intern. FEM Simulation of Resistance Switching Phenomena (2016)

Tyler Buffington: UG Researcher (MEEN). Thermodynamic Efficacy of Irreversible Magnetocaloric Effect Cycles (2015-2016) UG Honors thesis

Adam McClellan: UG Researcher (ISEN). Materials Stability of Thermal Energy Storage Materials (2015-2016)

Xander Majek: UG Researcher (PHYS). Electrical Resistance Switching in Sputtering Grown HfO2 Devices (2015-2016)

Erika Salzman: HS Researcher. Undercooling in Mg(NO3)2 hydrates (2015-2016)  {Currently UG at Caltech}

Yasushi Mizuno: UG Researcher (MEEN). Entropy of Fusion in Low Melting Point Alloys (2014-2015)

Taylor Messinger: UG Researcher (MMET). Thermal Properties of Salt Hydrate (2015)

Joshua Murley: UG Researcher (CHEN). Indirect Entropy Measurement in Magnetocaloric Effect Materials (2014-2015)
Best presentation award at UG Gulf Coast Research Symposium

Shelby Turner: UG Researcher (ECEN). Electrical Resistance Switching in HfO2 Dielectrics (Spring 2015)

Temi Balogun: UG Researcher (MEEN). Electrical Resistance Switching in HfO2 Dielectrics (Fall 2014)

Trey Torno: UG Researcher (CHEN). Magnetic Domain Structures in Magnetocaloric Heusler Alloys Near the FOPT. (Summer 2014-Fall 2014)
TAMU USRG Fellowship

Anna Rubin: UG Researcher (MEEN). Salt Hydrate Thermal Energy Storage Gels. (Summer 2014)

Pawan Bhandari: UG Researcher (MEEN). Thermophysical Properties of Low Melting point Alloys (2014)