For ThINC intern, a golden opportunity to learn and grow

As a comprehensive core facility of the Advanced Energy Research and Technology Center (AERTC), the Thermomechanical & Imaging Nanoscale Characterization (ThINC) laboratory aims to fill critical gaps on the road to high-tech commercialization.

ThINC is also knee-deep in the professional development of Stony Brook University’s brightest future scientists, as evidenced by its participation in SBU’s Presidential Mini-Grants for Departmental Diversity Initiative, which is designed to foster new research projects, test out student and faculty ideas and identify fertile seeds of growth for the university.

Among other programs, the Presidential Mini-Grant initiative – which typically doles out rewards in the $1,000 to $4,000 range – funded a year-long ThINC internship program, designed to expose less-experienced students to the vast world of major-league scientific research. The internship is right in line with ThINC’s overall mission and aligns perfectly with the goals of the grant funding, according to AERTC Chief Operating Officer David Hamilton.

“As a core scientific facility, ThINC is uniquely equipped to support the AERTC mission of educating and training the next-generation workforce,” Hamilton notes. “The ThINC internship aims to support the university’s efforts to enhance diversity for various demographics, contribute to an inclusive community and build a diverse future workforce”

Last fall, Kayla Barnes, an undergraduate pursuing a bachelor’s degree in biology, became the latest ThINC intern supported through this grant – “a great opportunity to gain more lab experience and work on my science communication skills,” according to Kayla.

“I'm hoping to obtain many skills from this program,” she says. “I am hoping to be able to communicate scientific topics more efficiently, and to gain more confidence in my personal career path.

“I’m also hoping to gain more confidence in my knowledge of the instruments used in the ThINC lab.”

She’s certainly enjoying plenty of opportunities to further her knowledge of the lab’s cutting-edge characterization equipment. ThINC provides multiscale imaging, thermo-mechanical characterization and sample-preparation services – critical services for industrial and academic pharmaceutical research, advanced-materials design, medical-device manufacturing and other next-gen pursuits – with an array of radical devices.  

Practical experience with those machines – and rubbing elbows with the big brains who both manage the ThINC and leverage its copious technologies – has been “amazing,” according to the intern.

“I have hands-on experience with the scanning electron microscope, the confocal microscope and the transmission electron microscope,” Kayla notes. “Working and learning in the lab under Dr. Simon Chang has been so informative.”

The biology undergrad, who will ultimately complete a comprehensive internship program, also credited the hard work of the grant’s Project Coordinator Dr. Shruti Sharma, who doubles as program manager for the AERTC itself.

“Working with Shruti has been such an enlightening experience,” Kayla says. “She has been such a great resource in helping me settle into my role at ThINC as well as in providing me with information for numerous future opportunities.”

So far, the internship is proving to be everything Kayla – and the powers behind the AERTC, ThINC and the Presidential Mini-Grants for Departmental Diversity Initiative – hoped it would be.

“Not only am I gaining more confidence in my laboratory skills, but I am also gaining confidence in scientific communication and charting my personal career path,” Kayla said. “I feel very grateful for all that I have learned at ThINC so far, and I look forward to learning more.”