Samuel Oberdick of NIST

Magnetic nanoparticles have emerged as exciting materials with applications ranging from data storage and catalysis to biomedical imaging and biomedicine. For each unique application, the efficacy of the particles is highly dependent on the quality of the particles themselves. Precise control of particle synthesis is needed to engineer monodispersed particles with uniform shape and magnetic properties. I will discuss the relationship between synthetic pathways for nanoparticle formation and their final size, shape and magnetic properties. I will also describe how advanced characterization techniques (atomically resolved STEM, polarized neutron scattering, magnetometry and simulation) can be used to understand nanoparticle formation pathways. Finally, I will discuss biomedical applications of magnetic nanoparticles where the nanoscale composition of particles is reflected in MRI contrast generation.

Biography:

Dr. Samuel Oberdick is a postdoctoral associate working with the Magnetic Imaging Group in the Applied Physics Division at NIST, Boulder. Sam received a BA in physics, with honors, from the University of Chicago in 2010. From there, he went on to receive a MS and PhD in physics from Carnegie Mellon University. At Carnegie Mellon, he was supervised by Prof. Sara Majetich and studied synthesis, self-assembly and fundamental properties of magnetic nanoparticles and nanostructures. In 2016, he started an NRC postdoctoral fellowship at NIST Boulder researching MRI contrast agent synthesis and characterization. His current research interests include microfabrication of MRI contrast agents and non-invasive characterization of bio-iron compounds.

Email:

Address:Physics Department, CU Boulder/NIST, Boulder, Colorado, United States