News

October, 2011
'Nanostructure' process to streamline production of magnetic material

Polymer Science and Engineering's Gregory Tew and colleagues have designed a completely new and simpler method of preparing ordered magnetic materials by coupling magnetic properties to nanostructure formation at low temperatures.

September, 2011
Thomas Russell Receives 2011 Award for Outstanding Accomplishments in Research and Creative Activity

Tom was honored at the Seventh Annual Faculty Convocation on Friday, September 16, 2011. He was one of six acclaimed faculty members who were presented with the Award.

Read more: 7th Annual Faculty Convocation

July, 2011
Laying groundwork for next-generation flexible photovoltaics

Ryan Hayward of the Polymer Science and Engineering department has received a five-year, $750,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Energy to improve understanding of the fundamentals for the next generation of lightweight and flexible electricity-conducting polymers.

June, 2011
Briseno Wins Young Investigators Program Award from US Navy

Alejandro Briseno, who joined Polymer Science and Engineering faculty in 2008, has won the U.S. Navy's high-profile Young Investigators Program (YIP) award, with a three-year, $510,000 grant to support his research on how organic semiconductor nanostructures can be used as tools for understanding fundamental processes of charge transport in solar cells.

November, 2010
Ryan Hayward among 100 outstanding young researchers to receive a Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE)

The White House has announced that cell biologist Magdalena Bezanilla and polymer scientist Ryan Hayward are among 100 outstanding young researchers to receive a Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE). It is the highest award bestowed by the United States government upon scientists and engineers in the early stages of their independent research careers.

October, 2010
Doctoral programs on the rise: Among the best in NRC ranking

The recently released National Research Council (NRC) rankings of 5,000 doctoral programs may be difficult to decipher but one conclusion is clear - some of the nation's best programs are right here.

Of the 39 fields of study in which the campus was eligible to be assessed, four programs- food science, kinesiology, linguistics, and polymer science and engineering - are ranked among the country's top programs, public or private.

October, 2010
Center for UMass Amherst-Industry Research on Polymers Celebrates 30 Years of Practical Collaboration

The nation’s oldest industry-university collaborative research center, established by the National Science Foundation (NSF) in 1980, will celebrate its 30th anniversary of partnerships this month during a three-day conference at the University of Massachusetts Amherst campus, Oct. 12-14.

The Center for UMass Research on Polymers (CUMIRP) was one of several centers funded by NSF beginning 30 years ago to bring basic research to industry for practical applications and new technologies, says James Capistran, center director.

September, 2010
Doctoral Programs Shine in NRC Rankings

A dozen doctoral programs here made impressive showings in rankings released this week by the National Research Council. The campus's nationally recognized programs in Chemical Engineering, Computer Science, Linguistics, Polymer Science and Psychology remain among the nation's strongest. These programs were highlighted in the 1995 National Research Council (NRC) study, and over the ensuing decade continued their leadership.

August, 2010
Battery Alternative Could Lighten Load for Soldiers

American soldiers today carry so many electronic devices in their field packs that the weight of batteries alone is a concern, leading the Department of Defense to enlist polymer scientist Bryan Coughlin and others to develop a lighter-weight power source.

August, 2010
On the edge of a fold...

Two papers by UMass Amherst polymer scientists and physicists appeared recently in the prestigious journal, Physical Review Letters, offering insight into what determines the size and shape of wrinkles in soft materials. Editors highlighted both in a synopsis, singling the investigations out as worthy of special interest. "The experiments offer complimentary insights into how defects, such as an edge or a fold, influence the presence of wrinkles and could prove helpful in understanding the formation of wrinkles in biological tissue," they noted.

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