Join us for the UW MSE Research & Industry Showcase! We’re excited to welcome our alumni, industry partners, students, and friends of the department for an evening of connection and conversation.
Come see how the department has grown, reconnect with classmates, meet our faculty and students, and make new connections across the MSE industry community.
The evening will include a casual reception, brief talks from alumni, industry leaders, and students, followed by a poster session and open networking. We look forward to reconnecting and celebrating the UW MSE community together.
March 9, 2026
5:00-7:30 p.m.
HUB Lyceum (HUB 160)
Registration is now open!
Thank you for your interest in attending the 2026 Research & Industry Showcase. Please RSVP at the link below to let us know you'll be there!
RSVP NOW2026 invited speakers
Dr. Mandana Veiseh, Ph.D. '04
Founder and president, Polybiomics
Mandana Veiseh is founder and president of Polybiomics and a science and technology executive. She leads invention and R&D of polybiosensing systems and analytics that leverage live-cell intelligence. Previously, she held technical leadership roles at Xerox-PARC and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) and conducted bioresearch at LBNL and Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center, resulting in entrepreneurial outcomes. She holds affiliate positions at LBNL and University of Washington (UW). Her career spans translation of deep science into scalable technologies, fully commercialized inventions and multidisciplinary publications, service on advisory councils and boards, strategic planning, and mentorship within industry, national labs, and academia. She has received research and impact awards from organizations including Society of Women in Engineering, Guild Association, NIH, and Xerox. Mandana holds a dual PhD in Materials Science & Engineering and Nanotechnology from UW through a DOE–ALS fellowship spanning LBNL and UC Berkeley and is alumna of NAE Frontiers of Engineering.
Dr. Megan Brewster, B.S. '06
Vice president of advanced technology, Impinj
Megan Brewster is Impinj’s vice president of advanced technology and brings more than 15 years of experience in technology and public policy. At Impinj, she brings clarity and strategy to the company’s product and technology roadmaps and fosters growth in emerging opportunities to deliver the Internet of Every Thing. Prior to Impinj, Megan served at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, and GE Global Research. Megan earned a Ph.D. in materials science and engineering from MIT with a minor in technology and public policy and a bachelor's degree from the University of Washington.
Dr. Aaron Feaver, Ph.D. '07
Executive director, JCDREAM/CHARGE (Washington State University)
As Director of JCDREAM, Aaron aims to bring together researchers and industry leaders across Washington State to focus on sustainable material supply chains for clean energy and transportation. Under the umbrella of JCDREAM, Aaron has led the development of the Consortium for Hydrogen and Renewably Generated E-Fuels (CHARGE), which supports the growth of the regional hydrogen economy. Prior to this, Aaron specialized in energy storage, nanotechnology, and ultra-capacitors. He co-founded EnerG2 and Group14 Technologies: two startups in the Seattle area focused on the synthesis and processing of high-performance carbon materials. Aaron received a Ph.D. in Materials Science from the University of Washington.
Dr. Mike Beerman, Ph.D. '07
Principal aerospace systems engineer, Blue Origin
Mike Beerman is a Principal Aerospace Systems Engineer at Blue Origin, where he leads reusable thermal protection system development and testing for the New Glenn rocket. With a Ph.D. in Materials Science and Engineering from the University of Washington, Mike has spent 19 years advancing aerospace technology—from composite fuselage systems at Boeing and structural ceramics at Northrop Grumman, to hypersonic materials and re-entry vehicle technologies at Andrews Space and Intellectual Ventures. His work spans arc jet testing at NASA facilities, agile manufacturing systems, and establishing new test capabilities at Blue Origin. Mike holds patents in satellite recovery and composite fuselage fabrication, has published in leading journals on fluid mechanics and materials science, and brings a unique perspective shaped by his Peace Corps service in the 1990s. He is passionate about mentoring the next generation of engineers and regularly works with students and early career professionals to inspire careers in aerospace.
Tentative schedule
| Time | Activity |
|---|---|
| 5:00-5:30 p.m. | Reception and networking Reception with light refreshments available throughout the event. |
| 5:30-6:05 p.m. | Welcome and short talks Brief department welcome, industry/alumni mini-talks on career paths, and student activity highlights. |
| 6:05-7:30 p.m. | Poster session Student posters with continued mingling, reception, and networking. |
Student presentations
Oral presenters
Ian Campbell (Adviser: Eleftheria Roumeli) The Roumeli Group: Innovative sustainable materials from biological matter
Yueyao Fan (Adviser: Di Xiao, Ting Cao) Layerwise Stratification and Band Reordering in Twisted Multilayer MoTe2
Huilong (Max) Fu (Advisers: Navid Zobeiry) Physics-Informed AI for Accelerated Composites Design, Manufacturing, Testing, and Qualification
Katie Tang (Adviser: Dwayne Arola) Overview of the Laboratory of Advanced Materials and Processes
Wenhao Zhou (Adviser: Shuai Zhang) Interfacial Structure and Metal Coordination in Crystalline Peptoid Membranes
Poster presenters
Jacob Beitzel (Adviser: Miqin Zhang) Polysaccharide based Hydrogels for Tissue Engineering
Michel Bernardo (Adviser: Quansan Yang) Design and Microfabrication of a PDMS-Based Microfluidic Device for Single-Cell Capture
Vanessa Bradshaw (Advisers: Navid Zobeiry) Degradation of Polyetherimide Blends in the Marine Environment
Katheryne Chen (Adviser: Bruce Hinds) Effect of thermal cycling on thermoplastic composite properties
Cal Davis (Adviser: Navid Zobery) Implosion carving: The future of cycling isn't carbon fiber
Alex Dixon (Advisers: Navid Zobiery) Boeing Lightweight Composite Repair
Matilda Gauss (Adviser: Dwayne Arola) Towards development of cement-free geopolymer concrete with natural clinoptilolite zeolite
Hareesh Iyer (Adviser: Eleftheria Roumeli) Fabricating Strong and Stiff Bioplastics from Whole Spirulina Cells
Surbhi Kakar (Adviser: Dwayne Arola) Color-Responsive Materials for IV Failure Detection
Rachael Lee (Adviser: Dwayne Arola) Evaluating Age-Dependent Whitening Efficacy and Surface Alterations: An Exterior Enamel Analysis Using Hydrogen Peroxide
Kuotian Liao (Adviser: Eleftheria Roumeli) ML-assisted autonomous assistant robot for high-throughput algal bioplastics fabrication
Celine Lityo (Adviser: Dwayne Arola) A Multi-Scale Investigation of Structural, Mechanical, and Compositional Differences Between Primary and Permanent Tooth Enamel
Yujin Liu (Adviser: Quansan Yang) Continuous ultra sensitive biosensor
Picea Liu (Adviser: Miqin Zhang) Pneumatically Controlled Microfluidic Synthesis of Polymeric Nanoparticles for mRNA Delivery
Daniel Lund (Adviser: Dwayne Arola) What are we actually looking at: predicting metal AM performance variations from in-situ data
Ryan Parekh (Adviser: Avik Som) Magnetic Localization for Line Placement Procedures: A Magnetometer Array keeps the Radiation Away!
Ren Pumulo (Adviser: Xiaodong Xu) Magnetically Tunable Coupling in CrSBr-Integrated Photonics
Abigail Sohm (Adviser: Matt Yankowitz) Effects of proximity-induced spin-orbit coupling in rhombohedral graphene
Marcus Uhm (Adviser: Dwayne Arola) Developing a ternary system of cement, natural zeolite, and hydrated lime for maximizing the degree of cement replacement and strength of next-generation structural composites.
Caitlynn Wohlford, Marina Ray (Adviser: Mo Chen) Development and Characterization of Sputtered TiN Thin Films for High-Impedance Microwave Applications