Noah Stevenson

Theoretical and experimental evidence suggests harnessing quantum mechanics to execute algorithms on qubit-based quantum hardware may allow us to calculate answers to intractable mathematical problems and process data exponentially faster than is possible with classical computers. Characterizing how qubit states evolve in time is imperative for benchmarking quantum hardware, however has been difficult due to the inability to fully measure a quantum state without disrupting it. A solution is weak measurement, which recent work has improved for a single qubit by leveraging the data-processing power of a recurrent neural network […]

Loren Jiang

I plan to develop a new meso-scale device for the mechanical stimulation of cell cultures using repulsive-force electrostatic actuators that I have helped fabricate and characterize in prior work. Cells live within a dynamic micromechanical environment, sensing and adapting to external mechanical forces, including tension, compression, fluid shear, and hydrostatic pressure. Basic cellular functions like proliferation and differentiation, as well as many diseases including osteoporosis and atherosclerosis, have been associated with these types of mechanical cues. Because of the complexity of in vivo models, a wide variety of in vitro […]

Elizabeth Coda

Quantum dots are tiny, semiconducting particles with unique electronic properties that distinguish them from larger particles. Notably, quantum dots have discrete energy levels. Thus, by changing the size of the dot, the difference between these energy levels change. As the size of a quantum dot decreases, the energy difference increases between the highest and lowest bands. Thus, more energy is needed to excite the dot and more is released when it returns to its ground state. As a result, quantum dots can emit light of any frequency. Notably, two-dimensional transition […]

Anagh Sinha

Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) is a devastating neuropsychiatric disorder affecting 16 million people in the United States, with an estimated public burden of $210 billion/year. Yet, mechanisms leading to MDD progression remain poorly understood. Persistent activation of microglia, resident immune cells of the brain, has been previously linked to depression. This activation also appears to be linked with changes in expression of cannabinoid receptor 2 (CB2). Targeted activation of CB2 has shown to bias microglia to a pro resolution state, but whether proper CB2 expression is necessary for the normal […]

Kendall E. Lee

Dengue virus (DENV) is the most prevalent mosquito-borne virus worldwide, causing ~390 million infections annually. Disease ranges from inapparent infection to classic dengue fever to severe dengue, characterized by vascular leak that can lead to systemic shock, organ failure, and death. Non-structural protein 1 (NS1) is the only protein secreted from DENV-infected cells and plays a role in pathogenesis through induction of barrier dysfunction of human endothelial cells. However, the receptor for NS1 on endothelial cells and the molecular determinants of pathogenesis on NS1 remain unknown. In my research, I […]

Alexander Frenkel

Symmetry is a very important and beautiful tool in physics. From every symmetry in a physical system, one can derive a conserved quantity. However, when one attempts to study various quantum systems with interesting and useful symmetries compatible with Einstein’s Special Theory of Relativity, one finds that some of them fall apart and create divergences at high energies. One method of resolving this problem is to work in a hypothetical space-time where Lorentz symmetry doesn’t have to hold at high energies. This gives us more freedom in building the theory, […]

Samara Michaelson

My work will focus on the autobiographical tendencies of James Baldwins texts as they engage with the sociopolitical and philosophical problems inherent to black autobiography’s genesisslaverywith the larger task of reexamining understandings of autobiography as a genre. The research will explore the history of African American literature in order to find how questions originating from the slave narrative are reformulated, and how the slave narratives resilient strain has injected itself into the nature of black literature so as to make autobiographical practice a fundamental method of communication. This will predictably […]

Nikhil Sharma

Matrix multiplication is one of the most fundamental operations in mathematics, and its usage is extensively pervasive in modern-day computer systems; innumerable algorithms employ techniques from linear algebra in their implementation. As a result, it’s critical to perform matrix multiplication as quickly as possible to ensure the smooth and efficient performance of everyday computer applications. It’s been shown in existing literature that there is an intrinsic relationship between properties of matrix multiplication and a special geometric object known as a tensor. To date, an extensive exploration observing this relationship in […]

Spencer Doyle

Transition metal dichalcogenides make up a class of 2D semiconductors that are of high interest in the field of condensed matter currently. I plan on synthesizing two primary intercalated versions of these compounds: Fe(1/3)NbS2 and Fe(1/3)TaS2. These two compounds have competing magnetic orderings (antiferromagnetism and ferromagnetism respectively), so what happens in a hybrid material where both Nb and Ta are present? The Fe sites in Fe(1/3)NbS2 already host frustrated moments, but by incorporating some ferromagnetic ordering from the Ta compound, the frustration can be tweaked. Frustration is one of the […]

Michael Cerda-Jara

Recently, the U.S. has seen a growing increase in the number of programs advocating for more formerly incarcerated college students. In California, the Bay Area is home to a number of these programs. One prime example, the Underground Scholars Initiative (USI), is a pioneering program located at the University of California, Berkeley that focuses on creating a pathway into higher education for formerly incarcerated individuals. As a leading institution, UC Berkeley has seen an increasing number of formerly incarcerated students graduate with a Bachelors degree. USIs first graduation ceremony was […]