In the news


November 2, 2017

Microfluidic device simulates cancer treatment as effectively as research animals

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — A new technology that simulates tumors has been shown to perform as well as research animals in testing chemotherapy drugs, representing a potential tool for screening drugs before treating a patient. A long-term goal is to incorporate biopsied cancer cells from patients and test the effectiveness of different drugs on the patient-derived cells, said Bumsoo Han, a Purdue University professor of mechanical and biomedical engineering.
October 24, 2017

Purdue develops ‘intrachip’ micro-cooling system for high-performance radar, supercomputers

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Researchers have developed a new type of cooling system for high-performance radars and supercomputers that circulates a liquid coolant directly into electronic chips through an intricate series of tiny microchannels. Conventional chip-cooling methods use finned metal plates called heat sinks, which are attached to computer chips to dissipate heat. Such attachment methods, however, do not remove heat efficiently enough for an emerging class of high-performance electronics, said Suresh V. Garimella, who is principal investigator for the project and the Goodson Distinguished Professor of Mechanical Engineering at Purdue University.
October 9, 2017

Single ‘solitons’ promising for optical technologies

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Researchers are a step closer to harnessing single pulses of light called solitons, using tiny ring-shaped microresonators, in findings that could aid efforts to develop advanced sensors, high-speed optical communications and research tools. Being able to harness the solitons using devices small enough to fit on an electronic chip could bring a host of applications, from miniature optical sensors that detect chemicals and biological compounds, to high-precision spectroscopy and optical communications systems that transmit greater volumes of information with better quality.
September 12, 2017

Key process to be modernized in production of life-saving drugs, food preservation

A consortium of experts is working to modernize a process that is used in making a wide range of products, from freeze-dried space foods to life-saving wonder drugs. The process, called "lyophilization," removes water at low temperature and pressure. Lyophilization is needed for products that would be damaged if they were dried by heating, but it can be slow, energy-intensive and expensive. A new 10-year road map to identify the improvements that are needed in lyophilization is being published by the Advanced Lyophilization Technology Hub, or LyoHUB, at Purdue University.
September 11, 2017

Purdue researchers create device to identify risks for breast cancer

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Researchers at Purdue University are creating a device that they hope will help identify risk factors that cause breast cancer. The device, known as risk-on-a-chip, is a small plastic case with several thin layers and an opening for a piece of paper where researchers can place a portion of tissue. This tiny environment produces risk factors for cancer and mimics what happens in a living organism.
August 25, 2017

Dimitrios Peroulis is one of five faculty selected as fellows for Big Ten Academic Alliance’s Academic Leadership Program

The Office of the Provost has selected five faculty members to participate in the Big Ten Academic Alliance, Academic Leadership Program during the 2017-18 academic year. The Big Ten Academic Alliance is a consortium of the Big Ten member universities. The Big Ten Academic Alliance-ALP is designed to develop the leadership and managerial skills of faculty who have demonstrated exceptional ability and administrative promise. It is specifically oriented to the challenges of academic administration of major research universities and to the preparation of faculty members to meet those challenges.
August 22, 2017

Purdue researchers explore new chapter of physics

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Interactions between light and matter are a fundamental unit of modern physics, but recently researchers have started to look beyond the standard textbook interactions. Alexandra Boltasseva is a professor of electrical and computer engineering at Purdue University. For years, she’s been working with optical metamaterials (artificially engineered materials containing nanostructures which give them unique visual properties) to create nanotweezers, metasurfaces and other tiny objects. Now, she’s exploring an entirely new chapter of physics.
August 10, 2017

New solid lubricant shown to reduce friction and wear on steel surfaces

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Researchers have created a new type of non-liquid lubricant that has been shown to reduce friction and wear significantly under the extreme conditions found in various applications, from air compressors to missile systems. The new liquid-free composite is made from a slurry of a material called graphene, zinc oxide, and the polymer polyvinylidene difluoride. Graphene is an extremely thin layer of carbon that has many potential technological applications, including lubrication. “It has superior thermal conductivity, high strength and provides ultralow friction,” said Vilas Pol, an associate professor of chemical engineering at Purdue University.