One of the most prestigious national awards for undergraduate researchers studying the sciences has been awarded to three College of Engineering students.
Craig Buckley, a junior in chemical engineering; Ehsan Sadeghipour, a sophomore in mechanical engineering; and Christine Zgrabik, a junior in engineering physics have received the highly competitive Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship.
Craig Buckley is studying with Jessica Winter, assistant professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering. His research involves finding a more robust and flexible method of preparing biocompatible polymers for tissue engineering through the use of elemental gold nanoparticles. One possible application of this work is in special coatings for implanted probes that can provide deep brain stimulation, which is ideal for patients who have Parkinson’s disease, he said.
Drug treatment is currently a popular approach for these patients, but its effectiveness is limited as the disease progresses.
“To compensate for this, deep brain stimulation through probes implanted directly into the brain is becoming more common as a treatment for advanced Parkinson’s disease,” he said.
However, the usefulness of this treatment diminishes over time as the immune response to the probe can cause neuronal death in the surrounding tissue, resulting in increased electrical resistance and a decrease in performance.
This is a common problem among neural implants, and Buckley expects the coatings to prevent the body’s natural cells from having negative reactions to the probes. Although Buckley, of Fairfield, Ohio, is currently focusing on deep brain stimulation probes, the technology is very flexible and other medical equipment in need of a biocompatible coating could benefit from the research.
Buckley’s career goal is to earn a doctoral degree in chemical engineering. He plans to perform research in expanding and finding new uses for nanotechnology for biochemistry and biomedical applications, as well as teaching at the university level.
Ehsan Sadeghipour’s research could be used to build a more efficient transmission in a biped robot. He is designing a new type of MR (magneto-rheological) damper, which is a piston and cylinder with fluid inside that makes it more difficult for the piston to move, thus “damping” the motion of the piston.
Research has shown that putting a spring with the robotic transmission at the knee joint can increase the energy efficiency of a bipedal robot.
“Softer springs are better for slow walking speeds, whereas stiffer springs are better for faster walking speeds,” he said. “Therefore, for the robot to change its speed while walking and still keep its energy efficiency, it is beneficial to be able to change the stiffness of the spring in real time.”
Placing an MR damper parallel with a spring and controlling the damper will give the robot variable stiffness.
Sadeghipour, of Pittsburgh, conducts his research with Jim Schmiedeler, an assistant professor of mechanical engineering, and hopes to begin implementing his work in Ohio State’s Locomotion and Biomechanics Lab with ERNIE, the lab’s planar biped robot. ERNIE can move up and down as well as forward and backward.
“Safe and autonomous bipedal robots may be used to increase the quality of life for our society and especially the elderly without changing the makeup of our [human-centered environment],” Sadeghipour said.
Upon graduation, he plans to attain a doctoral degree in mechanical engineering to teach at a university and conduct research in controls at the nano level.
Christine Zgrabik’s main research project was to find new semiconductor materials that are cheaper, easier to produce and more widely available in electronics. She worked with Leonard Brillson, who is a professor of electrical and computer engineering and of physics, in his Electronic Materials and Nanostructures Lab.
“Semiconductors are important in many different realms of electronics as they are used in common items such as computers, cell phones and MP3 players,” Zgrabik said.
Her research involved studying the electrical properties of single crystal zinc oxide as a semiconductor and trying to understand why it behaves as it does electrically.
“If we understand how it works, we are able to modify and control its electrical characteristics, and it could become an important next generation semiconductor,” the Brecksville, Ohio, native explained.
This research led to several conclusions regarding correlations between the behavior of zinc oxide and the formation of defects at its surface. For example, the stability of semiconductors used for electronics is strongly dependent on defects at or near the surface of the material. “Understanding and being able to control these defects can greatly increase semiconductor device applicability,” she noted.
After her undergraduate studies, Zgrabik plans to pursue a doctoral degree in applied physics and conduct research in medical imaging at a large laboratory.
The Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship was awarded to 321 students nationwide this year, 52 of whom are engineering students. Students can receive $7,500 for up to two years for the award.
An Ohio State physics and math major also won the award this year. This is the first time since the award’s inception in 1986 that all four Ohio State nominees won the scholarship.
Tom Knox is a student communications assistant at the College of Engineering.
