Terahertz Graduate Researcher Listed Among “Scientific American 50”
Recent innovations in optics and imaging have landed doctoral student Brian Schulkin on the 2007 Scientific American 50 – the magazine’s prestigious annual list recognizing outstanding acts of leadership in science and technology from the past year.
Selected by the magazine’s Board of Editors with the help of distinguished outside advisers, the Scientific American 50 recognizes research, business, and policy leaders who have played a critical role in driving key science and technology trends over the past year in biotechnology, microelectronics, energy, genetics, and other fields.
“We applaud Brian’s breakthrough work and congratulate him for this exciting recognition,” said Rensselaer Provost Robert Palazzo. “The fact that two Rensselaer projects were featured on this highly selective list provides further evidence of Rensselaer’s growing reputation as a world-class research university.”
Brian Schulkin, a Rensselaer doctoral student in physics and winner of the prestigious Lemelson-Rensselaer Student Prize in 2007, was included on the Scientific American 50 for his work on terahertz imaging.
Schulkin designed, created, and is looking to commercialize the Mini-Z, a fully integrated, portable terahertz spectrometer. The briefcase-sized, five-pound device allows doctors, the military, security personal, and scientists to peer through flesh, plastics, ceramics, and other materials to detect anything from early-stage breast cancer to explosive materials. NASA has even used the Mini-Z to detect cracks in the outer foam of space shuttles.
The 2007 Scientific American 50 will appear in the magazine’s January issue, which is expected to hits newsstands on Dec. 20. The complete list may also be accessed on the magazine’s Web site at www.sciam.com.
For more information on Schulkin’s Mini Z, visit: Handheld ‘T-ray’ Device earns new $30,000 Lemelson-Rensselaer Student Prize