INTERN SPOTLIGHT: JULIA GARRISON
As a SUNY Poly undergraduate majoring in nanoscale science, Julia Garrison’s interest in biosensors and nanoscale biotechnology are what led her to apply for an internship at AIM Photonics, where her work is having a direct impact on the institute’s connections with world-class researchers in the life sciences at SUNY Poly.
Garrison’s project involves the characterization of integrated photonics-based sensor structures, as well as conducting biological experiments with the help of a PhD student in Professor Sharfstein’s lab at SUNY Poly.
Initially, Garrison admitted she was a bit worried about struggling to comprehend “everything about photonics” but said her Physics 3 knowledge paid off, helping her to understand the purpose and goals of her project.
“I’m currently working on characterizing different silicon nitride optical devices to determine which will be best for biosensing purposes,” Garrison said. “I’ve learned a lot about how silicon-based integrated photonics work, as well as how to analyze optical spectra to determine which device is best.”
Garrison says that her AIM Photonics internship has opened her up to the world of integrated photonics technology and how it can be used for biosensing applications that will help advance many different medical and biological fields. She added that she also sees bio-photonics being used in combination with AI for making biotechnology tools that require greater precision and efficiency, such as robotic surgery devices and tools for measuring neuronal activity.
“The work that Julia is doing will provide life science researchers at SUNY Poly access to a multitude of different photonic sensing architectures,” said AIM Photonics Senior Electro-optics Engineer Lewis Carpenter, who served as Garrison’s mentor in the internship program. “This, in turn, will enable us to research new paradigms in biological sensing in order to realize cost-effective CMOS scaling with world-class resolution for neuron and protein sensing,” he added.
Seeing the collaborations between the integrated photonics industry and the biomanufacturing industry, Garrison appreciates even more the important connections being made to produce more bio-photonic devices.
As for her future plans, Garrison is planning on taking more undergraduate classes related to both biology and photonics so she can pursue a career in bio-photonics. “I’m also considering getting a PhD in bio-photonics after I finish my bachelor’s degree,” she added.
You can find out more about Julia Garrison on her LinkedIn profile.
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Students Explore Integrated Photonics through Summer Internships at AIM Photonics