2026 REU Research Projects
Applications and information for our 2026 REU Program can be found on the main page. Check out our website on Getting Involved in Undergraduate Research to learn more about our programs.
Click on the links below to jump to each project description and to view the faculty member's website.
- Professor Zhenan Bao – Synthesis and characterization of dynamic polymer semiconductors
- Professor Zhenan Bao – Development and characterization of soft actuators and sensors for artificial muscles
- Professor Dan Congreve – Multi-material resins for upconversion-based nanoscale additive manufacturing
- Professor Will Chueh – Investigating MnO2 cathodes for high-performance aqueous batteries
- Professor Reinhold Dauskardt – Nano-mechanical behavior and reliability in energy devices
- Professor Reinhold Dauskardt – Barrier and biomechanical function of human skin
- Professor Leora Dresselhaus-Marais – Establishing the Rules of Metal 3D Printing
- Professor Leora Dresselhaus-Marais – Measuring extreme dynamics in materials during shock waves
- Professor Vivian Feig – Developing bioadhesive and contractile injectable hydrogels
- Professor Vivian Feig – In situ forming macroporous and anisotropic hydrogels
- Professor Wendy Gu - Metal additive manufacturing of high performance magnetic alloys
- Professor Wendy Gu - Mechanical testing and in-situ imaging of environmental degradation in structural alloys
- Professor Sarah Heilshorn – Biomaterials for regenerative medicine
- Professor Sarah Heilshorn – New materials as inks for 3D bio-printing
- Professor Guosong Hong – A circulatory light source enabled by an endogenous optical flow battery
- Professor Felipe Jornada - Predicting novel 2D materials with large-scale simulations and machine learning
- Professor Felipe Jornada - Capturing the electronic and optical properties of complex energy and quantum materials with deep learning
- Professor Natalie Larson - New materials for multimaterial 3D printing
- Professor Aaron Lindenberg – Switching dynamics in 2D materials
- Professor Andy Mannix – Exploring quantum defects through atomically resolved optical spectroscopy
- Professor Colin Ophus – Strain mapping and n-body correlation functions for disordered materials
- Professor Eric Pop - Atomically thin 2D semiconductors and topological semimetals for ultralow power electronics
- Professor Alberto Salleo – Multifunctional soft materials for sustainable IoT devices
- Professor Shan Wang – Synthesis and characterization of magnetic nanoparticles for ultrasensitive biodetection and medical imaging
- Professor Yunzhi Peter Yang – Hybprinting functionally graded biomaterials for tissue engineering
- Professor Yunzhi Peter Yang – Injectable biological-laden hydrogel-based therapy
Synthesis and characterization of dynamic polymer semiconductors
Project Description: Flexible and stretchable electronics are of great interest given their broad applications, particularly in bioelectronics. Organic semiconductors can be intrinsically stretchable, but most structures known to date are crystalline or semicrystalline substances, below their glass transition temperatures at room temperature. Dynamic polymer semiconductors, based on new molecular architectures currently being developed in our lab, are promising targets for removing charge trapping by grain boundaries and studying charge transport in well-defined plastic substances. In this project, students will be able to learn and conduct organic and polymer synthesis, materials purification and transistor fabrication. They will also be introduced to various soft matter characterization techniques. Due to the breadth of this project, students will be able to focus on their interests, as determined with their mentors. [Back to Top]
Development and characterization of soft actuators and sensors for artificial muscles
Project Description: Soft actuator and sensors, inspired by biological muscles, are gaining significant attention for their applications in robotics, medical devices, and wearable technologies. In our lab, electroactive polymers and conductive electrodes, are being developed to mimic the movement of natural muscles. In this project, students will explore the characterization of mechanical and electrical properties of these artificial muscles, as well as the fabrication of stretchable actuators and sensors. With guidance from their mentors, students will have the opportunity to tailor the project to align with their specific interests. [Back to Top]
Project Title: Multi-material resins for upconversion-based nanoscale additive manufacturing
Project Description: Nanoscale 3D printing is a rapidly growing field of additive manufacturing (AM), with exciting applications in optics/photonics, tissue engineering, on-chip rapid prototyping, and more. The Congreve lab has developed a novel method of nanoscale AM based on the upconversion of red photons to blue photons that is cheaper, more efficient, and more scalable than traditional methods. While the system was initially developed to print polymers, this project will focus on developing novel resin inks for printing functional materials such as glass, metal oxides, and ceramics. We will optimize resin components, test them in our printing system, post-treat printed components, and characterize the resulting prints for mechanical and material properties. Ultimately, the goal of the project is to demonstrate the ubiquity of our printing system in non-polymeric materials systems and open doors for large-area nanoscale 3D printing in a variety of fields. [Back to Top]
Investigating MnO2 cathodes for high-performance aqueous batteries
Project Description: Stationary battery energy storage is going to play a crucial role in grid systems integrated with renewable energy, and aqueous batteries are attractive candidates due to their low cost and high safety. MnO2 is one of the most ideal aqueous cathodes in this regard. However, traditional Zn-MnO2 alkaline batteries fail to achieve satisfactory performance metrics because of the irreversible Zn intercalation into MnO2. The aqueous subgroup has been developing Sn-based materials as a novel type of aqueous anode with the potential of overcoming the drawbacks of the Zn counterpart. Working with our aqueous subgroup, you will work to assess the stability of MnO2 in different aqueous electrolytes and their compatibility when paired with a Zn- or Sn-based anode. This will provide critical information for enabling a well-performing aqueous full cell. Techniques you will learn or be exposed to: hydrothermal syntheses of MnO2 materials, X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), rotating disk electrodes (RDE) and electrochemical tests, electrode sheet and pouch cell fabrication, and cell testing. [Back to Top]
Nano-mechanical behavior and reliability in energy devices
Project Description: The intent of this project is to study the nano-mechanical properties and adhesion of advanced thin-film structures that have applications in a wide range of emerging technologies. The goal of the work is to develop a fundamental understanding of how the films’ mechanical properties are related to their nanostructure and processing conditions. The student will gain familiarity and experience with a number of experimental techniques, including thin-film sample preparation and the use of atomic force microscopy (AFM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) for analyzing fracture surface composition and morphology. [Back to Top]
Biomechanical function of human skin
Project Description: This project takes a quantitative, in-vitro experimental approach to examine the biomechanical properties of human skin, which are vital for its function but poorly understood. Students will use a range of thin film characterization techniques to explore the outermost stratum corneum layer of skin and determine the effects of preconditioning treatments and cellular structure. We would also like to expand the research project to include multiple layers of skin. The project involves applying novel and new micromechanical and characterization techniques to study the structure and biomechanical function of human skin. Students will learn to separate, enzymatically treat and condition human skin, fabricate specimens, and conduct testing and analysis using methodologies developed in our research group. Analysis techniques such as scanning electron and optical microscopy will be employed, together with newly developed techniques involving wafer curvature and bulge testing of soft tissues. [Back to Top]
Professor Leora Dresselhaus-Marais
Establishing the Rules of Metal 3D Printing
Project Description: Metal 3D printing is transforming the world of manufacturing today – enabling us to print shapes never possible previously! But we rarely see 3D printed metal parts in industry because the unusual printing conditions cause defects that are hard to predict and result in high variability between parts that are made exactly the same way. This project will study a type of metal 3D printing called laser powder bed fusion, focusing on real-time X-ray videos of the printing process that allow us to study how defects form or annihilate. [Back to Top]
Measuring extreme dynamics in materials during shock waves
Project Description: Shock waves drive materials to extreme states of matter–faster than they can respond to their surroundings. The resulting phase transformations, failure mechanisms, or strengthening effects are highly exotic, making even the most established material models fail. This internship will explore experimental work and data analysis studying how materials deform under these extreme and unusual conditions, giving insights into macroscopic properties not possible to observe otherwise. [Back to Top]
Developing bioadhesive and contractile injectable hydrogels
Project Description: Mechanical forces play critical roles in a number of biological processes including wound healing, bone remodeling, and cancer progression. This motivates the development of medical devices and materials that promote healing through the application of force. Bioadhesive and contractile hydrogels have been demonstrated to be effective for surface-level wound healing; however, to use mechanical forces to treat conditions that are beyond skin-deep, we need a liquid or paste with the same properties. This project aims to develop an injectable hydrogel that can adhere to tissue and apply a contractile force to promote healing. [Back to Top]
In situ forming macroporous and anisotropic hydrogels
Project Description: Macroporous hydrogels are important in myriad biomedical applications ranging from tissue engineering to soft medical robotics. In these applications, anisotropic pores are often needed to realize desired transport and mechanical properties. However, most macroporous gels with anisotropic features need to be fabricated ex situ and surgically implanted, increasing invasiveness and reducing accessibility. This project aims to develop an in situ forming macroporous and anisotropic hydrogel that is compatible with introduction into the body via minimally invasive needle injections. [Back to Top]
Metal additive manufacturing of high performance magnetic alloys
Project Description: Magnets are important components of electric motors and other machines. Novel magnetic alloys that are also mechanically strong will enable new machine designs and increase energy efficiency. In this project, laser-based metal additive manufacturing will be used to mix, melt and solidify metal powders to discover ideal compositions and microstructures. [Back to Top]
Mechanical testing and in-situ imaging of environmental degradation in structural alloys
Project Description: Coming soon! [Back to Top]
Biomaterials for regenerative medicine
Project Description: A unique approach to designing biomaterials involves mimicking the tools evolved by nature to create functional materials at the molecular level. The REU student will be involved in the synthesis, purification, and characterization of protein-based biomaterials using engineered bacterial hosts. These biomaterials will be evaluated for use as regenerative medicine scaffolds to induce the formation of new tissue. [Back to Top]
New materials as inks for 3D bio-printing
Project Description: 3D bio-printing is similar to traditional 3D printing, but the inks include embedded cells. This promising technology can be used to fabricate living devices for regenerative medicine and disease modeling. In this project, we are working to develop and validate new cell-compatible materials that function well as bio-inks. [Back to Top]
A circulatory light source enabled by an endogenous optical flow battery
Project Description: Light is used in a wide array of processes and methods in biology and medicine, ranging from photosynthesis, fluorescence imaging, optogenetics, to photodynamic therapy to treat COVID infection. A critical challenge of applying light in vivo arises from the poor penetration of photons in biological tissue due to scattering and absorption. Therefore, delivering light deep into the body requires invasive procedures, such as the insertion of optical fibers and endoscopes, as well as surgical dissection of overlying tissues. The very invasiveness of these procedures also precludes easy repositioning and volume adjustment of the illuminated region in the same subject. In this project, you will be able to address this long-standing challenge by developing a circulatory light source that can be produced from inside the body and programmed in a logic circuit to yield emission of desired colors and sizes at any location in vivo. Specifically, you will synthesize and inject trap-engineered phosphor materials (e.g., Sr2MgSi2O7) into the mouse, effectively turning the endogenous circulatory system into an "optical flow battery". When blood circulates past superficial vessels near the skin, light energy incident on the skin will be absorbed by and stored in trap-engineered phosphors in the blood. Blood then carries the stored energy until triggered by focused ultrasound, releasing the energy as localized emission inside the body, thus fulfilling a circulatory light source. You will be able to use fluidic dynamic modeling, spectrophotometry, electron microscopy, and immunohistochemistry to characterize the efficiency of the in-vivo light source and optical flow battery. [Back to Top]
Predicting novel 2D materials with large-scale simulations and machine learning
Project Description: The student will use a combination of theoretical and computational tools to predict the electronic and optical properties of novel 2D materials, their moiré structures, and emerging properties. The project uses state-of-the-art computational tools based on density-functional theory (DFT), first-principles calculations based on many-body perturbation theory (MBPT), and machine-learned force fields. The student will also use large-scale computational resources to carry out these calculations and will be able to engage with the vibrant experimental community at Stanford on 2D materials to test their predictions. [Back to Top]
Capturing the electronic and optical properties of complex energy and quantum materials with deep learning
Project Description: State-of-the-art simulations of materials are based on density-functional theory (DFT). While successful and often predictive, DFT scales cubically with system size and can, in practice, only handle materials containing up to a few thousand atoms. In this project, the student will get familiarized with deep-learning techniques that learn the DFT Hamiltonian, allowing one to scale such methods to tens to hundreds of thousands of atoms. This is an exciting and quickly changing research direction and, as a result, we envision that the student can work on various applied problems to be discussed with the mentor. They include: understanding the properties of complex interfaces, including the role of defects and dangling bonds; predicting the electronic properties in amorphous and defective materials; computing the transport properties in materials, including vibrational (phonon) contributions. [Back to Top]
New materials for multimaterial 3D printing
Project Description: Multimaterial 3D printing is enabling fabrication of multifunctional materials systems for applications in soft robotics, smart structural materials, biomaterials, and communications technologies. Summer REU students will gain experience designing, mixing, characterizing and printing novel ink materials aimed at these application spaces. [Back to Top]
Switch dynamics in 3D materials
Project Description: In recent years, two dimensional ferroelectric materials have enabled new types of atomically-thin devices with applications to information storage and energy harvesting technologies. The fundamental time-scales on which these materials can be reconfigured and the ultimate speed limits that define these processes remain largely unknown. In this project a summer student will learn to use nonlinear optics to probe these dynamical properties within an operating device. [Back to Top]
Exploring quantum defects through atomically resolved optical spectroscopy
Project Description: The Abbe criterion sets a far-field resolution of ≈ λ/(2 NA), typically ~200 - 300 nanometers in visible light with high-NA objectives. Yet optical functionality in solids is often governed by atomic-scale structure at the picometer scale, including point defects that host single electron spin states and control emission, nonradiative recombination, carrier capture, and local fields relevant to quantum information, photovoltaics, photocatalysis, and lighting.
Our group develops near-field and scanning-probe spectroscopies that circumvent the far-field limit and access defect-scale physics. We focus on photoinduced force microscopy (PiFM) and photocurrent scanning tunneling microscopy (pc-STM), which probe absorption and optoelectronic response rather than relying on radiative emission. These modalities are less susceptible to plasmonic-environment radiative quenching than tip-enhanced photoluminescence and Raman scattering. Together, they map nanoscale energy flow (excitation, dissipation, and charge transfer) with sensitivity to local dielectric environment and band structure.
Our ongoing goal is to develop robust implementations of these techniques on a new experimental platform: our cryogenic ultra-high-vacuum scanning tunneling microscope. We will validate these methods on well-characterized prototypical materials and then apply them to 2D semiconductors to resolve structure–property relationships of individual quantum defects. The goal is quantitative, atomic-proximity optical spectroscopy that links local geometry, electronic states, and measured optical response.
We are seeking motivated undergraduate researchers interested in uncovering new physics at the nanoscale. Opportunities exist in sample preparation, AFM/STM probe fabrication, computational modeling, and microscopy control and data analysis (e.g., atom-tracking and data acquisition algorithms). Candidates with a foundation in electronic structure, crystal or molecular structure, or a keen sense of excitement and desire to design advanced instrumentation and software for atomic-scale imaging are encouraged to apply (and to reach out by email to Prof. Mannix if they have any questions: ajmannix@stanford.edu). [Back to Top]
Strain mapping and n-body correlation functions for disordered materials
Project Description: Scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM) provides the highest resolution characterization of materials, but when we perform atomic-resolution imaging we are restricted to a relatively small field of view. One experimental method to overcome this limitation is rather than collect images, we instead record diffraction patterns which contain the atomic-scale information we wish to measure. By using fast direct electron detectors, we can record millions of these diffraction patterns, tuning the step size between adjacent measurements to match the functional length scale of our materials. These techniques are known by the umbrella term 4D-STEM, as the resulting datasets contain 2D images over a 2D grid of probe positions and are thus four-dimensional. 4D-STEM is a powerful characterization method, but the very large dataset sizes require fast and robust analysis codes and methods. In this project, the intern will develop two families of 4D-STEM data analysis methods, creating mathematical algorithms and implementing them in python codes. These two methods are strain mapping crystalline samples, and n-body correlation function measurements from amorphous materials. In both tasks, the intern will first construct atomic models with a known "ground truth" structure, including defects like deformation fields, surfaces and interfaces. Next, the intern will learn how to simulate 4D-STEM nanobeam diffraction experiments using the abTEM code. The intern will work to develop analysis methods which extract the desired material properties. In the final step, the intern will apply their methods to experimental 4D-STEM datasets. [Back to Top]
Atomically thin 2D semiconductors and topological semimetals for ultralow power electronics
Project Description: We will examine ultrathin (nanometer-scale) new materials for applications in electronics, such as beyond-copper interconnects, beyond-silicon transistors, and data storage devices. [Back to Top]
Multifunctional soft materials for sustainable IoT devices
Project Description: This project involves the utilization of Organic Mixed Ionic Electronic Conductors (OMIECs) for electrochemical sensor electrodes, transistors, energy storage devices, and actuators to enable fully integrated and sustainable IoT devices. OMIECs are polymeric materials that are redox-active and ionically and electrically conductive, resulting in their usage in a wide variety of electrochemical devices. The student will learn how to fabricate the above electrochemical devices and characterize their electronic and electrochemical performance. Ultimately, the goal is to demonstrate the unique processability and multifunctional properties of OMIECs to enable the circular economy of electrochemical devices. [Back to Top]
Synthesis and device integration of magnetic nanoparticles for high frequency electronics
Project Description: Our project is focused on the intersection of chemistry and physics in magnetic nanoparticle synthesis and integration of magnetic nanoparticles in radio frequency devices. Future applications include high frequency inductors for telecommunications advancements in autonomous vehicles, cellular networks, and radio astronomy. [Back to Top]
Hybprinting functionally graded biomaterials for tissue engineering
Project Description: In our project, we harness the potential of hybrid bioprinting, or Hybprinting, to advance tissue engineering. Our innovative bioprinter, developed previously, has set the stage for us to fabricate complex tissues that combine both soft and hard elements with various functional and biocompatible materials. In this new venture, we are dedicated to designing and constructing next-generation biomaterials and engineered tissues. These are specifically tailored for interfaces such as the bone-tendon and bone-cartilage connections, incorporating gradations in mechanical strength and biological signals. The project offers the opportunity to delve into the synthesis of biomaterials, the creation of implantable devices, and their comprehensive evaluation using the forefront of Hybprinting technology. [Back to Top]
Injectable biological-laden hydrogel-based therapy
Project Description: Therapeutic angiogenesis via cell-based approaches offers promising solutions for repairing damaged tissues, yet challenges persist in safeguarding cells from inadequate vascularization and ensuring the stability of the vascular network essential for anastomosis and microcirculation. This study aims to develop an innovative injectable hydrogel enriched with biological agents that promotes the formation of functional blood vessels, combats vessel regression, and accelerates the restoration of blood flow. We will design hydrogel systems with adjustable physicochemical and mechanical characteristics, assess interactions between endothelial cells (EC), targeted tissue cells, and the modifiable hydrogels, and ultimately, determine the in vivo effectiveness of this bioactive hydrogel therapy in tissue regeneration. [Back to Top]