Reika Katsumata

Assistant Professor/ Grad Program Director

Faculty
Reika Katsumata
Contact
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Location
Department of Polymer Science and Engineering
Room: A516, Conte Research Center
University of Massachusetts Amherst
120 Governors Drive
Amherst, MA 01003

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Current Research

illustration explaining Katsumata research group vaporization and condensation

At the intersection of chemical engineering and materials science, Katsumata Research Group procures material performance otherwise impossible by “vaporization” of fundamental science and “condensation” of real-world problems, nurtured by education and mentoring. Specifically, we design extremely confined soft/hard interfaces through synergistic studies on Taming their fundamental properties focusing on dynamics and wettability, Tailoring them by robust chemistry, and Transforming them by novel rapid thermal annealing, bridging the knowledge gap between soft/hard materials and science/engineering. Thrust 1 leverages rapid thermal annealing of polymers to fabricate functional porous materials and defect-healing/doping 2D materials, which are relevant for energy materials and 2D materials-based devices. Thrust 2 aims to develop reprocessible, thus sustainable, crosslinked polymers via ultrasound-mediated bond-exchange reactions. Thrust 3 is the foundation of our research group; understanding dynamics and wettability of polymers at interfaces by creating new characterization methods and/or rationally designed model systems.

Research Interests

Read Reika Katsumata's CV
Design Extremely Confined Soft/Hard Interfaces

Degree Information

B.Eng. Organic and Polymeric Materials, Tokyo Institute of Technology, 2009
M.Eng. Organic and Polymeric Materials, Tokyo Institute of Technology, 2011
Ph.D. Chemical Engineering, The University of Texas at Austin, 2016

Katsumata Group Website

Honors and Distinctions

  • Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR): Young Investigator Research Program (YIP) (2023)
  • Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST): PRESTO Award (2022)
  • 3M: Non-Tenure Faculty Award (2022)
  • National Science Foundation: NSF CAREER (2021)
  • American Chemical Society, Petroleum Research Fund, Doctoral New Investigator Grant (2019)
  • Robert H. DeWolfe Teaching Fellowship in Organic Chemistry, The Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry UCSB (2018)
  • Takenaka Scholarship Foundation, International Study Fellowship (2012-2016)

Research Areas

Materials for Sustainable Resources and Energy,
Materials for Next-Generation Manufacturing,
Polymer and Soft Matter Physics,
Polymer Materials Engineering,
Katsumata Research Group