REU: Chemical Assembly
We're engaged in cutting-edge research for the future! Join our team and we'll make history!
Pending funding approval.
Description
Our 10-week summer REU in Chemistry cultivates a learning environment that provokes students to ask, "What are the most important issues that face our society?" and then provides them with enough training that they can contribute to addressing those issues and communicating what they’ve learned. Participants progress from undergraduate textbook learning to discovering and solving challenging research problems.
This REU offers a wide range of topics, including organic radicals, biochemical sensors, chemical biology, catalytic nanoparticles, drug-protein interactions, graphene nanoribbons, green chemistry, metabolomics, organic synthesis, and mechanically-responsive materials.
The faculty advisors bring strong records of commitment to one-on-one mentoring of undergraduates in their research laboratories, and each brings their multidisciplinary approach, specific research objectives, and experimental methods.
Students will learn and experience a wide range of communication skills during REU meetings, mentor group meetings, career development seminars, social activities, and tours of local industries. The program concludes with students presenting their research findings at both a departmental poster session and a campus-wide poster symposium.
See the list below for associated mentors and projects.
Benefits
- Competitive stipend: $6,000
- Suite-style room and meal plan
- Travel expenses to and from Lincoln
- Campus parking and/or bus pass
- Full access to the Campus Recreation Center and campus library system
- Wireless internet access
Learn more about academic and financial benefits.
Events
- Department seminars and presentations
- Professional development workshops (e.g., applying to graduate school, taking the GRE)
- Welcome picnic
- Day trip to Omaha's Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium
- Outdoor adventures
- Research symposium
Questions about this program?
Please direct any questions related to this program to:
Martha Morton: 402-472-6255 • mmorton4@unl.edu
Research Associate Professor > Chemistry
Who Should Apply
Related Fields of Study
- Chemistry
- Chemical Biology
- Biochemistry
This program encourages applications from students with sophomore or junior standing and those planning to pursue an advanced degree (M.S. or Ph.D.) upon completion of the bachelor's degree.
Eligibility
Participation in the Nebraska Summer Research Program is limited to students who meet the following criteria:
- U.S. Citizen or Permanent Resident
- Current undergraduate with at least one semester of coursework remaining before obtaining a bachelor's degree
See Eligibility for more information.
How to apply
Follow the application steps to submit the following materials.
Mentors and Projects
| MENTORS | PROJECTS |
|---|---|
Dr. David B. BerkowitzCHEMISTRY | Hybrid Biocatalytic/Organic Synthesis Ventures REU students in the Berkowitz group will learn to express, purify, and characterize enzymes and utilize them in stereo-controlled synthetic applications. In addition to organic synthesis and enzymology methods, students will learn to use 1H, 13C NMR, and chiral HPLC to analyze both organic and biocatalytic reactions. In addition, the group has a highly interactive weekly research group meeting in which all undergraduate, graduate students, and postdoctoral fellow members of the team actively participate. |
Dr. James CheccoCHEMISTRY | Exploration of cell-cell signaling pathways The Checco group combines chemical biology and biological mass spectrometry to investigate cellular communication signaling in the nervous and endocrine systems. REU students will design and synthesize peptides with non-natural functionalities, perform small molecule synthesis, and become familiar with biological assays and mass spectrometry. |
Dr. Barry CheungCHEMISTRY | Plasma-assisted synthesis of organic molecules The Cheung group develops mixed metal oxide catalysts to synthesize organic molecules with cold plasma from carbon dioxide and hydrogen. REU students learn techniques in plasma-assisted organic synthesis and the characterization of products by chromatography and mass spectrometry. Through analyzing the reaction kinetics and catalyst structures, students learn how to elucidate the reaction mechanisms to synthesize targeted organic chemicals. |
Dr. Liangcheng DuCHEMISTRY | Discovery of new antibiotics The REU students will learn how to isolate and identify new bioactive natural products from underexplored microorganisms. They will be exposed to techniques in microbial fermentation, metabolite analysis, biosynthetic gene identification and mutation, cloning and expression, biosynthetic enzyme activity assay, and metabolic pathway engineering. The outcomes will contribute to the ongoing fight against multidrug-resistant pathogens. |
Dr. Catherine EichhornCHEMISTRY | RNA folding and RNA-cofactor assembly The group’s primary focus is on understanding how RNA folds and interacts with cofactors to perform cellular functions. Students learn how to prepare RNA, protein, or small molecule samples and interdisciplinary methods including chromatography, electrophoresis, NMR, crystallography, and computational modeling. |
Dr. Tim GatzenmeierCHEMISTRY | Synthesis of sulfur-fluorine compounds The Gatzenmeier group develops the synthesis of compounds containing sulfur-fluorine functional groups such as -SF5, -SF4Cl, and -SO2F for designing molecules with bioactive characteristics and as alternatives for PFAS. REU students learn techniques and methods in organic synthesis including transition-metal catalysis, fluorine chemistry, purification, and characterization via NMR and MS. |
Dr. Jiantao GuoCHEMISTRY | Bio-orthogonal investigation of biology in living cells The Guo group genetically incorporates non-canonical amino acids into proteins in living cells. REU students learn how to carry out non-canonical amino acid synthesis, site mutagenesis, protein overexpression, and characterization. For example, Gloricelly Román-Arocho (2014 REU) worked on the modification of the Green Fluorescent Protein for super-resolution microscopy. She later entered the UNL Chem graduate program and is now working as a scientist at 23andMe after graduation. |
Dr. Yinsheng GuoCHEMISTRY | Structural dynamics and optoelectronic properties in advanced materials REU students learn to grow bulk, micro, or nanocrystals and use laser spectroscopy and microscopy to explore their lattice motions, charge carrier dynamics, and solid-state chemistry. For example, Amaya Street (2023 REU) grew halide perovskite crystals and measured micro-reflectance and micro-photoluminescence at cryogenic temperatures to probe how charge carriers are stabilized in these novel semiconductors. |
Dr. David HageCHEMISTRY | Rapid separation-based analysis of chemical and biochemical interactions The binding of drugs to agents such as blood proteins or dissolved organic matter in water controls the activity effects of many pharmaceutical agents in the body and environment. The Hage group uses affinity microcolumns to rapidly determine equilibrium constants and rate constants for these processes, and how these interactions change with disease or in the environment. REU students learn about high-performance liquid chromatography, analytical/bioanalytical chemistry, data analysis, and bioconjugation, as well as methods such as mass spectrometry or spectroscopy. |
Dr. Rebecca LaiCHEMISTRY | Electrochemical sensors using biomolecules The Lai group creates electrochemical sensors on gold electrodes in which DNA or proteins change conformation upon binding to an analyte. The sensors are rapid, sensitive, cost-effective, and operationally convenient. REU students learn to prepare gold-plated screen-printed carbon electrodes, characterize them by SEM, study sensor response as a function of analyte concentration, and investigate matrix effects on sensor performance. |
Dr. Stephen A. MorinCHEMISTRY | Animate materials Animate materials combine the characteristics of active, adaptive, and autonomous matter to yield materials that self-optimize for specific functions given the status of their environment. The Morin Group combines the versatile capabilities of polymer chemistry with innovative soft matter microfabrication techniques to build hierarchical materials with macroscopic, stimuli-responsive functionality. REU students learn how to synthesize silicones, hydrogels, and hybrids thereof using photochemistry, surface conjugation schemes, and soft lithography. |
Dr. Andrzej RajcaCHEMISTRY | Stable organic radicals for organic magnets, spin labels, and MRI contrast agents REU students learn to synthesize spin labels and high-spin organic molecules. For instance, UGs helped develop new high-spin molecules with ultra-robust stability and electrical conductivity. The next generation of these radical-based materials involves properties such as chirality, magnetoresistance, and much stronger magnetic properties. |
Funding
Funding for this research program will be provided by grants from:
NSF - National Science Foundation
