Departments

Research & Relationships

Faculty Mentor Students In The Lab And The Field

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Encouragement Among The Test Tubes

(PICTURE) David Son oversees the
research of Christiana Rissing.


Christiana Rissing (’03), a Ph.D. student in SMU’s Chemistry Department, studies the interaction of dendrimers based on a tetravinylsilane core with metals like copper, platinum and silver. Any interesting properties that develop “could prove useful for medical and electronic applications,” she explains. If she has any questions, Rissing can call on Associate Professor of Chemistry David son, her adviser. She began studying with Son as an undergraduate and stayed at SMU to pursue her Ph.D. because she enjoys working with him.

“In the lab, we’re always teasing Dr. Son about his favorite line: ‘It looks promising,’” Rissing says. “He always looks for and finds the silver lining. I can work on a stubborn experiment for weeks, and I start questioning my technique. Even when the results look bad, he will look at all the data and find something that ‘looks promising.’ “It makes me want to go that extra step – read that extra paper or search through the literature in case I’ve missed something.” As a Ph.D. student, Rissing works independently, Son says. “I treat her more like a colleague now. But, in the beginning, with any student, you have to be a cheerleader. When I was a graduate student, more than half of my reactions didn’t work. A big part of my role is to be an encourager.”

The Physicist’s Apprentice

(PICTURE) Amy Hand learns the ropes
in the physics lab from Tom Coan.

Junior Amy Hand is writing a computer program to design a solenoid magnet that students will use in the physics lab to study the properties of “muons,” electron- like radioactive particles produced in Earth’s upper atmosphere. (A solenoid magnet is made by wrapping copper wire in a pattern around a specially shaped mechanical frame to produce a uniform magnetic field within the frame’s interior.) Hand, a President’s Scholar, chose to study at SMU because of research opportunities made available to undergraduates, she says. “Working with a professor who has so much more experience and can guide me through a project is a huge benefit.”

Tom Coan, associate professor of physics and Hand’s adviser, helps students to develop a broad set of skills, from learning how to solder to selecting and purchasing mechanical and electrical components. “There are a lot of practical things and a bewildering assortment of things that students have to learn to be efficient in a lab,” he says. Hand researches, tests and refines the various components of her project, working closely with Coan to devise solutions as issues arise. “The best way to learn the nitty-gritty details is elbow to elbow with a mentor,” Coan says. “It’s like an apprenticeship. You have to invest a fair amount of your time working with a student before you see any return, but the work can be beneficial to both of us.”

Planting The Seed Of Research

Sophomore Jason Stegall spent last summer in the SMU School of Engineering’s Laser Micromachining Laboratory using a laser process called micromachining to cut tiny channels on material that can be used to make artificial bones. “I was testing to see how strong the laser needed to be and how many pulses were required per task,” he says. A National Science Foundation grant awarded to David Willis and Paul Krueger, associate professors of mechanical engineering, supported Stegall’s research. The three-year grant funds summer research opportunities for nine undergraduate students through 2009.