Hanh N. D. Le, a 2018 PhD alumnus of the Photonics and Optoelectronics group led by ECE Jacob Sutter Jammer Professor Jin Kang, was awarded a competitive National Research Council (NRC) Research Associateship, with an appointment at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) in the Quantum Electronics and Photonics Division.
“I am very honored to be selected for this national award,” Le said. “It’s a prestigious opportunity and working at NIST allows me to grow my optical and engineering skills not only to develop new techniques and methods, but also to understand how to connect commercialization and academia within a high-precision and standardized protocol.”
Le’s award-winning proposal focused on developing an integrated photothermal sensor for accurate photon fluence measurements in turbid media. According to her, as significantly more commercial and public health systems utilize lasers, having a way to measure exactly how much power is absorbed by an object or tissue is extremely important, especially for applications such as laser eye dosimetry. Current sensors used for these measurements are bulky and must cope with surface reflections, which perturb measurements substantially. Le’s work will focus on utilizing advanced techniques in carbon nanotechnology and precision optics to develop the sensor.
Le has published over 20 papers and conference presentations and filed a US patent application during her PhD on multiple optical techniques to improve human and robotic vision.
Learn more about Le’s work here, and click here for more information about applying for the award.