Mark C. Hersam | |
---|---|
Born | Downers Grove, Illinois, U.S. | January 31, 1975
Nationality | American |
Alma mater | University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign University of Cambridge |
Known for | Density Gradient Ultracentrifugation (DGU) of carbon nanotubes Contributions in the fields of nanotechnology and nanochemistry. |
Awards | Materials Research Society Outstanding Young Investigator Award (2010) SES Research Young Investigator Award, Electrochemical Society (2010) Peter Mark Memorial Award (2006) TMS Robert Lansing Hardy Award (2006) Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (2005) |
Scientific career | |
Fields | Chemistry, Materials Science and Engineering |
Institutions | Northwestern University |
Thesis | Silicon-based molecular nanotechnology: Fabrication and characterization with the scanning tunneling microscope (2000) |
Doctoral advisor | Joseph W. Lyding |
Doctoral students | Nathan Guisinger |
Mark Christopher Hersam (born January 31, 1975) is a professor of Chemistry and Materials Science Engineering at Northwestern University (2000–present) who, according to the National Science Foundation, has made "major breakthrough[s]" [1] in the field of nanotechnology. He is a 2014 recipient of the MacArthur "Genius" Award and a 1996 Marshall Scholar.[2] He is also an Executive Editor of ACS Nano. As of October 2023, he has been cited over 68,000 times according to Google Scholar.[3]
Mark Christopher Hersam[4] attended Downers Grove South High School in Downers Grove, IL where he was Valedictorian[5] and an Eagle Scout. He then went on to receive his B.S. in Electrical Engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 1996. Upon winning the Marshall Scholarship,[6] Hersam received a M.Phil. in Microelectronic Engineering and Semiconductor Physics from the University of Cambridge in 1997. His Ph.D was granted from the Electrical Engineering Department at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2000.[4]
While at UIUC, Hersam did research[7] under Professor David Ruzic[8] in the Nuclear Engineering Department and Professor Joseph Lyding[9] in the Electrical Engineering Department.
After graduating from UIUC, Hersam was an intern at the Argonne National Laboratory where he did research in the Energy Technology Division studying the energy-related applications of surface acoustic-wave-based sensing.
While at Cambridge University, Hersam was advised by Mark Welland and the two co-authored the paper "Potentiometry and repair of electrically stressed nanowires using atomic force microscopy"[10] in the journal of Applied Physics Letters.
As a doctoral candidate, Hersam again worked with Professor Joseph Lyding at the Beckman Institute where they studied "atomic level manipulation and silicon-based molecular nanotechnology."[11]
As head of the Hersam Group at Northwestern University,[12] Hersam has authored more than 137 peer-reviewed publications[13] studying hybrid hard and soft nanoscale materials[14] for applications in information technology, biotechnology, nanotechnology, and alternative energy.
In 2016, he was selected as a U.S. Science Envoy by the United States State Department.[34]
Hersam hosts Undergraduate Research Experience opportunity[33] for students each summer.