Nikhil Dhanankam – nikhildh@udel.edu

UD Computer & Information Science
Nikhil (he/him/his) is a Ph.D. student in Computer Science at the University of Delaware. Originally from Mumbai, India, he earned his bachelor’s degree in Computer Science and Engineering from Sikkim Manipal Institute of Technology. At UD, Nikhil joined Dr. Ulf Schiller’s lab, where he is focusing on generative AI and diffusion models for the generation of ceramics microstructures. He is particularly interested in leveraging these advanced techniques to address challenges in microstructure research. As part of the NRT program, he is excited to enhance his professional development and collaborate with like-minded researchers. Outside of work, Nikhil enjoys playing tennis, traveling, driving, and stock trading and analysis.
Rudolph DiMura – rdimura@udel.edu

UD Materials Science & Engineering
Rudolph (Rudy) is from Syracuse, NY, and earned his B.S. in Biophysics from SUNY Geneseo in 2023. Throughout his undergraduate career, Rudy gained a variety of experiences from utilizing a particle accelerator to characterize thin film targets, to synthesizing and characterizing porous allomelanin nanoparticles. Before starting his graduate studies, Rudy was a laboratory technician at SGS Galson, operating and maintaining X-ray Diffractometers for the analysis of respirable air samples for the presence of silica. Following his work as a lab technician, Rudy became a Summer Undergraduate Laboratory Intern (SULI) at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory utilizing computational methods to understand how transcription factors play a role in the regulation of model cyanobacteria. Currently, Rudy is a Ph.D. student in the Materials Science and Engineering Department where he is a member of the Pochan group, focusing on the biosynthesis of bundlemer peptides. His interests in the NRT program stem from his desire to expand upon his skillset in data science and machine learning to gain the background needed to communicate across disciplines and making the language more accessible. In his free time, Rudy enjoys cooking, movies, video games, and working out.
Aimen Khan – akhan25@students.desu.edu

DSU Applied Optics
Aimen is from Virginia and obtained her bachelor’s in physics from Swarthmore College. Throughout her undergrad, she worked on a covid-19 biosensor in the Daniels Dimensional Materials lab at UMD, as well as modeling the bidirectional flow of different species of particles across a narrow hallway in Professor Graves’ lab at Swarthmore. She is currently a first year masters student in Applied Optics at Delaware State University and is working in Dr. Lu’s lab on creating hydrogels with controllable stiffness that can be analyzed using dark-field hyperspectral microscopy, as well as investigating the role of cholesterol in the membrane integrity of Giant Unilamellar Vesicles(GUV’s). She hopes that the NRT program will aid her professional development in pursuing an MD/pHD in the future, as well as provide her with skills such as molecular modeling and machine learning to enhance her research at DSU. Outside of research, Aimen enjoys sewing and upcycling clothes, making jewelry, and knitting.
Joyanta Jyoti Mondal – joyanta@udel.edu

UD Computer & Information Science
Joyanta is from Dhaka, Bangladesh, and is currently a first-year PhD student in the Department of Computer and Information Sciences at the University of Delaware. He received his bachelor’s degree in Computer Science from BRAC University, Dhaka. At UD, Joyanta joined the lab of Dr. Ulf Schiller and is now working on how to develop an AI framework for accurately predicting and stratifying liver disease progression, leveraging multimodal data (clinical records, medical imaging, and synthetic simulations) to reduce the need for invasive diagnostic procedures. Outside of work, Joyanta enjoys traveling and watching anime.
Uchenna Okorie – ujokorie21@students.desu.edu

DSU Applied Mathematics
Uchenna was born and raised in the northern part of Nigeria though she hails from Ebonyi State in the South-Eastern part of the country. She obtained her bachelor’s degree in Statistics from Alex-Ekwueme Federal University, Ikwo, in 2019, and her Master’s degree in Applied Mathematics from Delaware State University, Dover, in 2023. Currently, she is pursuing a Ph.D. in Applied Mathematics, focusing on biomedical image analysis through the development of mathematical algorithms using machine learning.
Uchenna joined the NRT program due to its cross-disciplinary nature, which offers a unique blend of divers fields and methodologies, providing her the opportunity to explore innovative solutions and broaden her expertise, particularly in data science and computational analysis. Beyond her academic pursuits, Uchenna enjoys dancing, watching movies, spending quality time with her family, and indulging in window shopping
Alex Sawyers – asawyers@udel.edu

UD Biomedical Engineering
Alex Sawyers grew up in the small town of Shrewsbury, Pennsylvania. She began her academic journey at Penn State University, where she explored her interests through research in both the materials science and biomedical engineering departments. Under the guidance of Dr. Hayes, Alex completed her Schreyer Honors College senior thesis on synthesizing gold-silver-gold core-shell-shell nanoparticles and using them in combination with photothermal therapy to treat glioblastoma. Additionally, she gained industry experience as an intern at Becton Dickinson in the Microbiology and Systems Engineering Department. These experiences solidified Alex’s passion for biomedical engineering, ultimately driving her to pursue a Ph.D. under the guidance of Dr. Day at the University of Delaware. Her current research focuses on examining and comparing different nanoparticles and their interactions with reproductive tissue barriers. Outside of her academic pursuits, Alex enjoys reading, baking, and traveling to explore new cultures and cuisine.
Xinyang Shen – xinyangs@udel.edu

UD Computer & Information Science
Xinyang is a PhD student in the Computer and Information Science department, with a research focus on AI applications in healthcare. She earned her bachelor’s degree in Pharmacy from China Pharmaceutical University and dual master’s degrees in Computer and Information Technology and Biotechnology from the University of Pennsylvania. Driven by her passion for the intersection of computer science and biomedical sciences, Xinyang conducts research on using AI technologies to solve biomedical engineering problems in Dr. Yixiang Deng’s lab. In her free time, she enjoys music and attending live performances.
Quang Tran Thai – tranthai@udel.edu

UD Materials Science & Engineering
Tran is from Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, and earned her B.S. in Chemical Engineering and M.S. in Materials Science and Engineering from Drexel University in 2023. For her thesis, she studied machine learning models to predict thermodynamic properties of inorganic compounds. After graduation, Tran worked at Sartomer, focusing on the development of 3D printing resins for footwear applications. Currently, she is a Ph.D. student in Materials Science and Engineering in the Pester group, where she focuses on developing photocatalyst-functionalized optical fibers to be used as heterogeneous catalysts. Tran joined the NRT program to deepen her expertise in computational methods for experimental design, data visualization, and process modeling. Outside the lab, she enjoys hosting dinner parties, traveling, and spending time with her cats.
Dylan Trott – dtrott@udel.edu

UD Materials Science & Engineering
Dylan is a PhD student in Materials Science and Engineering. Dylan was born in Libertyville, Il, and received his B.S. in Chemical Engineering from University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. During undergrad, Dylan worked in the Paul Braun research group studying thin film silica deposition for its use in inverse opal photonics. His thesis will be conducted in the Pester group studying tactile polymer brush-based inks. In the NRT program, Dylan is excited to incorporate data driven techniques to soft materials research problems. Outside of research, Dylan also enjoys spending time with his cats, playing piano, and dislocating his shoulder.
Emily Yao – eyao@udel.edu

UD Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
Emily (she/her) is from Kennett Square, Pennsylvania and completed her bachelors in Materials Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University. As an undergraduate, she worked in Dr. Thi Vo’s research group and studied the bottom-up assembly of polymer and DNA origami material systems using molecular dynamics simulations. Now, as a PhD student at the University of Delaware, she is advised by Dr. Arthi Jayaraman and continues her work in computational modeling by leveraging machine learning tools developed by the lab (i.e. CREASE) for materials discovery and advancement. Outside of work, Emily loves to run and boulder(indoors), listen to music and podcasts, and advocate for more equitable food systems through innovating animal-free alternatives (aka alternative proteins!).