Academic Biography

I am a research scientist at Cree-LED where I use my background in optics to develop advanced LED products with novel features and leading performance. Born in North Carolina, I attended the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill where I received a B.S. in chemistry with a minor in computer science. I then moved to the University of Colorado Boulder where I earned my Ph.D. studying ultrafast carrier relaxation in semiconductor quantum dots and developing theory for modeling two-dimensional Fourier-transform spectra with Prof. David Jonas. Following graduate school, I relocated to Chicago where I worked with Prof. Elad Harel at Northwestern University to develop multidimensional spectroscopy methods and apply them to nanomaterials and light harvesting protein complexes. Also at Northwestern University, I worked as a postdoctoral researcher in the group of Prof. Lin Chen where I studied the electronic and vibrational dynamics of coupled chemical systems. Following my time at Northwestern, I worked as a laser physicist at the Dynamic Compression Sector of the Advanced Photon Source at Argonne National Laboratory where I used a 100 J UV laser to generate shockwaves in materials in order to study their properties under extreme conditions. A central theme of my research has been to use lasers and optics to study the dynamics of complex materials under extreme conditions and timescales.

Research Projects

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Compressive Sensing

Collect information, not data.

4D Raman–electronic spectroscopy

Gradient-assisted multidimensional electronic–Raman spectroscopy (GAMERS)

Carrier dynamics in quantum dots

Carrier dynamics and interactions in semiconductor quantum dots

Recent Publications

All publications

Phonon-induced plasmon-exciton coupling changes probed via oscillation-associated spectra

Coherent vibrations detected in optical experiments can offer insights into material properties and electronic interactions, but also …

Beyond the Gouy–Chapman Model with Heterodyne-Detected Second Harmonic Generation

We report ionic strength-dependent phase shifts in second harmonic generation (SHG) signals from charged interfaces that verify a …

Carrier Dynamics and Interactions for Bulk-Like Photoexcitation of Colloidal Indium Arsenide Quantum Dots

The remarkable photonic and photochemical properties of colloidal quantum dots (QD) depend critically on the dynamics of carrier …

Four-Dimensional Coherent Spectroscopy of Complex Molecular Systems in Solution

An understanding of microscopic interactions in liquids is of fundamental importance in chemistry. However, the structure and dynamics …

Coherences of Bacteriochlorophyll a Uncovered Using 3D-Electronic Spectroscopy

Mapping the multidimensional energy landscape of photosynthetic systems is crucial for understanding their high efficiencies. …

Recent & Upcoming Presentations

All presentations

Dissecting quantum coherence in photosynthesis: lessons from porphyrin dimers

Modeling nonadiabatic enhancement of photosynthetic energy transfer using porphyrin dimers.

Coherent dynamics in porphyrin dimers

A commonality among many highly efficient light harvesting protein complexes is that they exhibit strong and persistent coherent …

Electronic–vibrational coupling probed by 4D Raman–electronic spectroscopy

Electronic-vibrational coupling is the driving force behind many fundamental photochemical processes, ranging from phonon-assisted …