The 2024 Beckman Institute Graduate Fellows presented their research at an open house and poster session on November 13, 2024. Credit: Lauren Otolski, Beckman Communications Office.

Addressing the world’s big questions requires collaboration across disciplines, and the 2024 Beckman Institute Graduate Fellows are prepared to do just that.

The Beckman Institute Graduate Fellows Program funds students conducting interdisciplinary research. This year's class of fellows includes Shagun Ajmera, neuroscience; Janice Baek, materials science and engineering; Suri Bandyopadhyay, chemistry; Walker Gauthier, neuroscience; Tyler Price, materials science and engineering; YiRang Shin, electrical and computer engineering; and Simran Singh, neuroscience. Their project goals include improving medical imaging, understanding how our brains process sensory stimuli and developing new materials and manufacturing processes.

“It’s always exciting to see the diversity of research and how the graduate fellows have the opportunity to learn from each other,” said Cristina Álvarez Mingote, Beckman’s associate director for research. “They can see what other disciplines are working on, what challenges other areas of research face and how they can help each other by bringing different perspectives to address these challenges.”

Read on to learn more about this year's fellows:

Shagun Ajmera

Shagun Ajmera is pursuing her Ph.D. in neuroscience. She earned her M.S. in computer science at Chennai Mathematical Institute and her B.Tech. in computer science at SASTRA University.

Shagun Ajmera, a Ph.D. student in neuroscience

People with tinnitus hear sounds that aren’t present, such as ringing or buzzing. Understanding how tinnitus alters brain waves, which can be measured with an electroencephalogram, can help scientists and clinicians identify and treat patients. However, current EEG analysis techniques cannot identify consistent differences in brain wave patterns. With her background in computational neuroscience, Ajmera will use deep learning methods to discover the hidden relationships in these recordings.

Ajmera is collaborating with adviser Fatima Husain, a professor of speech and hearing science; Mark Anastasio, a professor and head of bioengineering; Kara Federmeier, a professor of psychology; and Naiman Khan, an associate professor of health and kinesiology.

Janice Baek

Janice Baek is pursuing her Ph.D. in materials science and engineering. She earned her B.S. in chemistry from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.

Janice Baek, a Ph.D. student in materials science and engineeringBaek studies oligomers: relatively short polymers with potential applications in organic electronics. In contrast to traditional electronics, organic electronics are carbon-based and are comparatively lightweight, cost-effective and adjustable for various applications.

Baek will use electron microscopy and spectroscopy to examine oligomers on multiple scales, investigating how interaction among individual polymer chains results in structural variation and assessing desirable electronic properties (e.g., conductivity and stability) over time.

Baek is collaborating with Ying Diao, a professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering, and Jeffrey Moore, the Stanley O. Ikenberry Research Professor in chemistry.

Suri Bandyopadhyay

Suri Bandyopadhyay is pursuing his Ph.D. in chemistry. He earned his M.S. in chemistry at the National Institute of Science Education and Research.

Suri Bandyopadhyay, a Ph.D. student in chemistry

Photodynamic therapy and sonodynamic therapy are cancer treatment strategies that kill cancer cells by introducing inert agents to the tumor area and activating them with light or ultrasound. To monitor how well these treatments work, Bandyopadhyay will develop a new molecule which, when activated, emits a signal detectable by ultrasound. To do this, he'll incorporate a photodynamic therapy agent, NOxPorfin, previously developed by his lab.

Bandyopadhyay is collaborating with adviser Jefferson Chan, an associate professor of chemistry; and electrical and computer engineering professor Michael Oelze.

Walker Gauthier

Walker Gauthier is pursuing his Ph.D. in neuroscience. He earned his B.S. in neuroscience from Johns Hopkins University.

Gauthier studies how the brain processes sensory input with predictive coding: inferring information from prior experiences, especially when a situation is complicated or ambiguous.

Walker Gauthier, a Ph.D. student in neuroscience

Alterations in predictive coding may contribute to the sensory overload often associated with autism spectrum disorders. Gauthier and his collaborators developed a sound detection task with preliminary results suggesting that a rat model of Fragile X Syndrome (a model for ASD) has impaired predictive coding. His research will build on these results to identify specific areas in the brain correlated with processing sensory stimuli versus implementing top-down predictions. In addition, he will apply a method called dynamical systems analysis to understand how these areas share information with each other.

Gauthier is collaborating with Benjamin Auerbach, an assistant professor of molecular and integrative physiology; Yurii Vlasov, a professor of electrical and computer engineering; Dr. Daniel Llano, a professor of molecular and integrative physiology; and Howard Gritton, an assistant professor of comparative biosciences.

Tyler Price

Tyler Price is pursuing his Ph.D. in materials science and engineering. He earned his B.S. in engineering physics from the University of Tulsa.

Tyler Price, a Ph.D. student in materials science and engineering

Polymer composites, which consist of a matrix made of a material such as resin or plastic and a reinforcement like carbon fiber, are durable, lightweight materials with potential applications in transportation, electronics and wind energy. However, manufacturing them is time- and energy-intensive and requires hours of curing in an oven. Price’s research focuses on an alternative production method called frontal curing. This process is more sustainable and efficient, but composites made this way underperform their counterparts because the fiber and matrix components do not bond to each other well. Price will study how this interface forms during frontal curing and find ways to improve its strength.

He is collaborating with Nancy Sottos, Maybelle Leland Swanlund Endowed Chair and head of materials science and engineering; Jeffery Baur, a professor of aerospace engineering; Charles Schroeder, a professor of materials science and engineering; Sameh Tawfick, a professor of mechanical science and engineering; Philippe Geubelle, a professor of aerospace engineering; Jeffrey Moore, the Stanley O. Ikenberry Research Professor in chemistry.

YiRang Shin

YiRang Shin is pursuing her Ph.D. in electrical and computer engineering. She earned her M.S. in information and communication engineering from the Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science & Technology.

YiRang Shin, a Ph.D. student in electrical and computer engineering

A complex system of blood vessels keeps the brain healthy, and changes to this network may indicate conditions like Alzheimer’s disease and dementia. Current clinical methods cannot easily visualize microvessels deep within the brain. Shin’s research involves improving a method called ultrasound localization microscopy, which can image deep tissues at high resolution. However, technical restrictions prevent its widespread clinical use.

Shin will advance ULM, which is mostly restricted to 2D imaging, by developing a procedure for high-quality 3D imaging. She will also harness machine learning to improve and accelerate ULM data acquisition and performance.

She is collaborating with Pengfei Song, an associate professor of electrical and computer engineering; Dr. Daniel Llano, a professor of molecular and integrative physiology; and Mark Anastasio, a professor and head of bioengineering.

Simran Singh

Simran Singh is pursuing her Ph.D. in neuroscience. She earned her B.H.Sc from the University of Western Ontario.

Simran Singh, a Ph.D. student in neuroscience

To better identify and treat hearing loss, a condition affecting approximately 1.5 billion people globally, Singh studies the structural organization of the auditory cortical subdivisions. The auditory cortex is an area of the brain that processes auditory information and is divided into different regions that can change with hearing loss. Singh will use multiple methods to make structural maps (of cells and membranes) and functional maps (of neuron activity when exposed to sounds) of the AC in mice. By comparing these images, Singh aims to determine whether different densities of myelin, a membrane which can be imaged with MRI, may indicate AC subdivisions.

Singh is collaborating with adviser Dr. Daniel Llano, a professor of molecular and integrative physiology; and Howard Gritton, an assistant professor of comparative biosciences.