FIRST Research Projects

Research projects at FIRST span basic research through applied development. Funding is received from federal, state, and industrial sources. Current topics of interest include:

  • Gas Sensors for Toxic Chemicals
  • Liquid Phase Chemical Sensors
  • BioSensors to Detect Pathogens
  • Sensors and Microsystems for Health Monitoring
  • Pesticide Detection in Food Products
  • MEMS and Microsystems
  • Thin Film Ceramic and Semiconductor Materials
  • High Temperature Materials and Sensors
  • Porous Materials and Selective Gas Adsorption / Filtration
  • Nanomechanics and Tribology
  • Microwave Acoustic Devices
  • Paper Coatings and Nanocellulose Materials
  • Time of Flight Electron / Ion Detectors
  • Modeling of Phase Transitions
  • Membranes for Battery Applications
Researcher preparing sample for thin film growth

Recent Grants

Air Force

  • LGX High Temperature Acoustic Wave Sensors
  • Microwave Acoustic Sensors for Condition Based Maintenance in Harsh Environments
  • Surface Acoustic Wave Sensors for Turbine Engines
  • Multifunctional SiAlON Films for High Temperature Applications

Army

  • Automated System for Liquid Phase Detection of Toxic Compounds
  • Characterization of LGX Crystals for Military Electronic Systems

Department of Energy

  • Thermochemical Conversion of Woody Biomass to Fuels and Chemicals
  • Micro-Tribology: Friction and Wear in Advanced Materials

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

  • Nitric Oxide / Ammonia Sensor for Combustion Control

Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA)

  • Nitric Oxide Sensor for Early Detection of Pathogenic Exposure
  • A Fluidic Microinstrument with Biomolecular Pump

National Science Foundation

  • Accelerated Testing of Oxynitride Films for High Temperature Applications
  • Lateral Field Excited Acoustic Wave Sensor for Peroxide Based Explosives
  • Nanoscale Sensing Device for Measuring the Supply of Iron
  • Acoustic Wave Filters for High Frequency Wireless Communication
  • Exact Results in Model Statistical Systems
  • A Microsystem for Detection of Bacterial Endospores
  • A New Class of Modified Mesoporous Silica Membranes
  • Integrated Fluorocarbon Microsensor System Utilizing Catalytic Modification
  • Electrochemiluminescence at Microelectrodes During PCR Amplification of DNA

National Institutes for Health

  • Nanopore Gene Sequencing

National Science Foundation

  • Accelerated Testing of Oxynitride Films for High Temperature Applications
  • Lateral Field Excited Acoustic Wave Sensor for Peroxide Based Explosives
  • Nanoscale Sensing Device for Measuring the Supply of Iron
  • Acoustic Wave Filters for High Frequency Wireless Communication
  • Exact Results in Model Statistical Systems
  • A Microsystem for Detection of Bacterial Endospores
  • A New Class of Modified Mesoporous Silica Membranes
  • Integrated Fluorocarbon Microsensor System Utilizing Catalytic Modification
  • Electrochemiluminescence at Microelectrodes During PCR Amplification of DNA

Navy

  • Advanced Development of a Chemical and Biological Sensor Suite

Packard Foundation

  • Microinstrument for Nucleic Acid Sequencing by Nanopores

U.S. Department of Agriculture

  • Organophosphate Pesticide Sensor for Foods

W.M. Keck Foundation

  • Environmental Gas Sensors for Ice Core Research