SVCF NEWS

Lina received a B.S. in chemical engineering from the Universidad del Valle in Colombia. She is now pursuing a Ph.D. in chemical engineering at Louisiana State University. Lina says, “My research involves understanding the optical and electronic properties of noble-transition metal alloy thin films and nanoparticles for applications in ultrafast near-infrared photodetection. Addressing challenges such as combinatorial deposition and growth of high-quality metal alloy, characterization of thin films, and understanding the role of band hybridization on the electron dynamics in the alloys, has made the comprehension of vacuum coating technologies a central theme of my research. I have concentrated on physical vapor deposition using magnetron sputtering in a dual-chamber deposition system. This allows me to co-sputter up to four metals to create complex disordered alloys from pure metal targets.”

Lina says, “I am very grateful to J.A. Woollam Company and SVC Foundation (SVCF) for supporting my research goal of mastering vacuum techniques for depositing complex binary and ternary alloys and being able, through characterization techniques, to understand the alloy’s optical properties, electronic characteristics, and electron dynamics, and making substantial contributions to the field of vacuum systems.”