MAE Seminar Series

Dr. Alice White

Nanoscale 3D Printing to Enable Fundamental Biology Studies

November 8 | 3:30 p.m. | 101 Davis Hall

Professor (ME, MSE, BME), Chair, Mechanical Engineering Department, Boston University 

Abstract

The ability to rapidly prototype arbitrarily complex 3D nano- to micro­scale structures and topographies using a type of 3D printing called Direct Laser Writing (DLW) has enabled us to address a variety of research chal­lenges. For example, understanding the role of peripheral nerves in fighting disease has been limited due to the challenges in reliably access­ing and measuring the signals in these microscopic nerves. With our tool, we have developed a customizable nerve cuff to enable this type of study. In another study, we have extended 2D cell-migration studies to a 3D envi­ronment. Recently, we have developed a practical method for dynamically manipulating soft 3D microstructures through integration with existing mi­cro-electromechanical (MEMS) technology. 

Bio

Alice White joined the College of Engineering of Boston University in 2013 from Bell Labs, where she held various leadership positions in­cluding Director of Materials Physics Research, Director of Integrated Photonics Research, VP of the Physical Technologies Research Cen­ter, President of the NJ Nanotechnology Consortium, location leader for Bell Labs North America, and finally Chief Scientist. She has a Ph.D. in physics from Harvard University and a broad technical back­ground in experimental solid-state physics and fabrication of optical components. In 1991, she received the Maria Goeppert-Mayer Award of the American Physical Society for her work on compound for­mation using ion implantation. She was named a Bell Labs Fellow in 2001 for her work in "developing and applying novel integrated pho­tonic device technologies in advanced optical networks". With over 125 publications and 7 patents issued/pending, she is a Fellow of the American Physical Society, the IEEE Photonics Society, and the Opti­cal Society of America. At BU, she leads a department with 50 facul­ty members. In 2014, she established the Multiscale Laser Lithogra­phy Lab and is developing mechanical meta materials for biological studies using a laser direct write technology. This research is one thrust of a recently established BU-led NSF Engineering Research Center (ERC), CELL-MET. In addition to her role in Mechanical Engi­neering, she is a Professor of Materials Science and Engineering, a Professor of Biomedical Engineering, and a Professor of Physics, as well as an affiliate of the BU Photonics Center and BU Nano. 

Event Date: November 8, 2018 at 3:30 PM This content is archived.