Prof. Daniel Gall joined RPI in 2002. He leads the Thin Films and Nanostructures group. For more details see his professional or personal homepages.

Office: MRC 204, Email: galld@rpi.edu

Anshuman joined our group in Fall 2021. He works on thin films with metastable phases.
Email: thakra@rpi.edu

Nishat joined our group in Fall 2021. He works on novel electronic materials.
Email: nishas@rpi.edu

Sanzida joined our group in Fall 2022. She works on thin film deposition of electronic materials.
Email: rahmas4@rpi.edu

Oishy joined our group in Fall 2023. She explores novel materials for their potential in future integrated circuits.
Email: royo@rpi.edu

Zahra joined our group in Fall 2023. She studies electron scattering at surfaces and interfaces.
Email: ahmadz2@rpi.edu

Ethan joined our group in Summer 2024. He studies thin film growth and transport properties at the nanoscale.
Email: hendre2@rpi.edu

Arif joined our group in Fall 2024. He explores thin film deposition and properties of new electronic materials.
Email: islama8@rpi.edu

Prince joined our group in Fall 2024. He studies electron transport in anisotropic materials.
Email: princm3@rpi.edu

Emma joined our group in Summer 2022 as undergraduate student and continued as a M.S. student in Fall 2024. She studies growth and properties of topological materials.
Email: sponge@rpi.edu

Ethan joined our group in Spring 2024. He works on thin film deposition equipment.
Email: hane2@rpi.edu

Jynene joined our group in Fall 2024. She designs and builds a heating stage for a thin film deposition system.
Email: alfayj@rpi.edu

Poyen joined our group in Fall 2020. He works on new materials for interconnects in microelectronics. After graduation, he joined Globalfoundries.

Elie joined our group in Fall 2020. He works on new nitrides and carbides. After graduation, he joined Globalfoundries.

Minghua joined our group in Fall 2019. He employed epitaxial thin film deposition to study new materials for electron transport at the nanoscale. After graduation, he joined imec.

Atharv joined our group in Fall 2018. He worked on the resistivity size effect in nanoscale metals. After graduation, he joined IBM.

Peijiao joined our group in Fall 2017. She worked on the epitaxial growth of WC, MoC, and TiC hard coating materials. After graduation, she joined Applied Materials.

Prachi joined our group in Fall 2017. She worked on in situ observation of electrochemical processes. After graduation, she joined Global Foundries, and then moved on to SUNY Binghamton.

Mary joined our group in Fall 2016. She worked on 2-dimensional nanoscale materials. After graduation, she was awarded an NSF Innovative Postdoctoral Entrepreneurial Research Fellowship and later joined IBM.

Baiwei joined our group in Fall 2016. He worked on deposition and characterization of new nitride semiconductors. After graduation, he joined Applied Materials Inc.

Erik joined our group in Fall 2015. He used epitaxial thin film deposition to create new electronic materials and studies their properties. After graduation, he joined Globalfoundries.

Tianji joined our group in Fall 2013. He studied electron transport using first principles simulations. After graduation, he joined IBM and later moved on to Bloomberg.

Karthik joined our group in Fall 2013. He studied fundamental properties of nitrides by first-principles simulations. After graduation, he joined Global Foundries and then moved on to Argonne National Lab.

Brian joined our group in Fall 2012. He worked novel transition metal nitrides. After graduation, he joined Intel.

Pengyuan joined our group in Fall 2012. He worked on electron transport for future electronics. After graduation, he joined Micron Technology.

Ruopeng joined our group in Fall 2009. His work is on AlN and ScN optoelectronic and piezoelectric materials for novel device applications. He has joined LAM research.

Jasmeet joined our group in Fall 2007. His work focused on electron transport in nanoscale structures. He has joined the Intel Component Research Division.

Xunyuan joined our group in Fall 2007. He studied the electronic structure of CrN by optical and electronic transport measurements. He joined Global Foundries and later moved on to Cisco Systems, Inc.

Srijit Mukherjee joined our group in Spring 2007. He developed scaling relationship models for nanorod growth under extreme shadowing and at elevated temperature. He has joined Intel to work on interconnect deposition.

Mike joined our group in Fall 2007. He has designed various new nanostructured electrodes for PEM fuel cells (patent pending). After his graduation, he has joined Bloom Energy to work on solid oxide Fuel Cells.

Chris Mulligan joined our group in 2003, and obtained his M.S. and Ph.D. degrees while simultaneously holding a research staff position at Benet Laboratories. His thesis research focused on CrN-Ag self-lubricating nanoporous hard-coatings. Chris continues to work at Benet Labs and also continues his collaboration with our group as a Visiting Scientist.

Jaya Purswani joined our group in Fall 2004. She developed a method to grow atomically smooth single-crystal Cu layers, studied their surface morphology by in-site STM, and demonstrated specular electron scattering at their surfaces.

Chunming Zhou joined our group in Fall 2004. He developed novel self-assembled patterns by nanosphere lithography and used them to create nanorod arrays by glancing angle deposition. After his graduation, he joined Novellus Inc. and then moved on to Applied Materials.

Sai joined our group in Spring 2003. He developed various nanostructures by glancing angle deposition. After his Ph.D., he joined Novellus Inc. and then moved on to Applied Materials Inc.

Sit joined our group in Spring 2016. He used epitaxial thin film deposition to create various new materials.

Alejandro joined our group in Spring 2021. He worked on building a sputter deposition system with in situ transport measurement capabilities. After graduation, he joined IBM.

Paul joined our group in Fall 2010 while simultaneously working at IBM. He studied the effect on the interfacial oxide in the gate stack of future integrated circuits. After graduation, he continues his work at IBM.

Dan joined our group in Fall 2011. He studied electron transport in tantalum nanostructures. After graduation, he joined SpaceX.

PJ joined our group in Fall 2010. He studied nanoporous self-lubricating hard coatings. After graduation, he joined Boeing.

Trevor joined our group in Fall 2009. He worked on nanostructured materials for inorganic thin film solar cells. He continued his Ph.D. studies with Prof. Lewis.

Ken joined our group in spring 2003. He developed various nanostructures including his famous nanocucumbers. Ken came back to our group in 2008 to finish his M.S. degree, working on 1-D nanostructure arrays.

Joanna is the first graduate student of our group. She built an ultra-high vacuum deposition system and studied surface morphology and nanostaircases in single crystal CrN layers. After her degree, she did some work in our group on hybrid carbon nanotube structures, then left to work for Picatinny Arsenal and then for Benet Laboratories as a research engineer.

Harper joined our group in Fall 2022. He explored thin film device concepts.

Katie joined our group in Summer 2022. She studied electronic transport and optical properties of thin films.

Nichenggong (Tony) joined our group in spring 2019. He studied thin film properties with optical methods. After graduation, he joined the graduate program at the University of Cambridge.

Jinqiao joined our group in summer 2019. She worked on the development of neuromorphic memristor devices. After graduation, she joined the graduate school at the University of Pennsylvania.

Hanchuan joined our group in fall 2018. He used x-ray diffraction to characterize thin films. After graduation, he joined the graduate school at the University of Pennsylvania.

Jiaqi joined our group in fall 2019. He worked on carbides.

Kathleen joined our group in spring 2018. She has deposited nitride layers by reactive sputtering. After graduation, she took a position as research and development scientist at Diversified Technologies, Inc.

Destiny joined our group in fall 2016. She used atomic force microscopy to study the surface roughness of metals used in the microelectronics industry. After graduation, she joined Micron.

Juliana joined our group in fall 2017. She studied electron transport in 2D materials. After graduation, she joined the graduate program at

Zach joined our group in spring 2016. He is working on electron scattering and high-impulse magnetron sputtering.

James joined our group in fall 2015. He was working on high-pressure x-ray diffraction. After graduation, he joined the graduate program and Northwestern.

Yumeng joined our group in fall 2015. He used first-principles simulations to predict properties of nitrides.

Angelika joined our group in spring 2016. She was working on transmission electron microscopy of nitride coatings.

Luke joined our group in fall 2014. He has developed a vacuum sample storage system and studied electron transport in nanowires.

Jodi joined our group in spring 2014. She was working on unexplored ultra-high temperature nitride ceramics.

Joe joined our group in fall 2014. He has been working on vacuum deposition for microelectronic devices.

Sarah joined our group in spring 2011. She worked on coatings for novel x-ray generation.

Brendan joined our group in spring 2013. He worked on first principles calculations to simulate electron transport.

Chauncey joined our group in spring 2012. He worked on sample preparation for transmission electron microscopy.

Gabriel joined our group in spring 2012. He worked on nanostructure growth and resistivity measurements.

Calvin joined our group in fall 2012. He worked on nanoscale transport for integrated circuits.

Matthew joined our group in fall 2012. He worked on x-ray diffraction of various coating materials.

Donya joined our group in spring 2011. She worked on the next generation of the "Materials Machine".

Jessica joined our group in spring 2012. She worked on electron transport measurements of single crystal layers.

Marco joined our group in fall 2010. He worked on ZnMgO layers for solar cell applications.

Adam joined our group in fall 2008. He worked on a quantitative micrograph analysis of metallic nanorod arrays and also developed a thin film growth simulator.

Eric joined our group in fall 2008. He worked on Ag-diffusion in hard coatings, for applications in high-temperature lubrication.

Heather joined our group in fall 2007. She is the initial developer of a Thin Film Growth Simulator, using ping-pong balls as atoms, which will ultimately be used for K-5 educational outreach.

Quinn joined our group in Spring 2007. He utilized ultra-high vacuum magnetron sputtering to deposit nanocomposite coatings and developed a new vacuum sample storage system. After his B.S., he joined the graduate program at the University of Delaware.

Evan joined our group in Spring 2007. He has designed and built various power supply support structures for thin film deposition. After receiving his B.S. degree, he joined the Ph.D. program in Materials Science at Northwestern University.

Siddharth joined our group in fall 2005. He used reactive magnetron co-suputtering to develop multi-layer lubricious coatings. After his degree, he joined the Ph.D. program at Cornell University.

Nick joined our group in fall 2004. He was utilizing in-situ scanning tunneling microscopy to study graphite surfaces and was designing and testing a rod-fed e-beam evaporator. After his degree, he joined the Franklin Pierce Law Center law-school. Add picture

Joe joined our group in fall 2003. He developed a method for cross-sectional transmission electron microscopy sample preparation. He joined the graduate program in mechanical engineering at RPI.

Quentin joined our group as a visiting scientist in 2015. His focus is on developing new approaches to mid-bandgap doping for infrared detectors. He is holding a research position at Benet Laboratories.

Guirong joined our group as a visiting scientist in 2013. She is working on novel Ni based protective coating materials.

Kan joined our group in Fall 2013. He studied super hard and lubricious carbo-nitrides .

Zhihua joined our group in Fall 2013. She studied optical properties and sputter deposition.

Kai joined our group in Fall 2012. He studied optical properties of novel nitride materials.

Min Zhang joined our group as a visiting Professor in December 2016. Min is working on novel hard on optical coating materials.

Sun Kyu Kim has joined our group to work on novel concepts of hard coatings. He received his Ph.D. degree from the University of Utah in 1981 and held industrial positions at Exxon and Kia Motors Co. He currently holds a professor position at the University of Ulsan in Korea, working on superhard nanocomposites, aqueous corrosion resistant coatings, high temperature oxidation resistant thin films, and biomaterials.

Prof. Singh has visited our group in the summer of 2007. He has developed various experimental skills in our laboratory, including measuring the heat transport between nanorod layers and air, and doing tunneling spectroscopy on single crystal CrN surfaces. JP is a professor at the Indian Institute of Technology in Delhi.

Qing joined our group in Fall 2007. His research focused on the deposition of BTO-based nanostructured composite layers with extreme stiffness. He left the group to continue his graduate studies with Prof. L. Huang at RPI.

Xiao has joined our group as a summer student in 2007. She has grown Ti nanorod arrays which will be used as electrodes in organic solar cells. She is a student at Smith College.

Lori did research in our group over the summer of 2003. She developed a novel patterning technique using anisotropic etching. After her B.S. from UMBC, she joined the Louisiana State University's MD/PhD program.

Andrea joined our group in fall 2018. She was working on 2-dimensional nitride materials.

Ann joined our group in fall 2017. She was working on electronic and optical properties of thin films.

Nghi joined our group in fall 2016. She was working on thin film deposition.

Esra joined our group in fall 2015. She was working on thin film deposition and optical property measurements.