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Darshan Parmar, Class of 2019, works as a Pixel Development Engineer at Apple. He develops innovative new camera technologies that are used by millions of people around the world. He credits a large part of his success to experiences and the connections he made in the Nanotechnology Engineering (NE) Program at U Waterloo. It was another UWaterloo alumnus who referred him to his current job.

The co-op jobs Parmar enjoyed during his undergrad degree were foundational to his career journey. He had an exciting co-op position in Singapore at the National University of Singapore as a research assistant. He worked in optical system development at Lumentum in Ottawa and as an optics specialist at P & P Optica.

The journey toward aerogel research began for three students in Nanotechnology Engineering’s (NE) third-year Soft Nanomaterials course. The concept which captured the students’ interest was the hierarchical design and assembly of nanomaterials, which involves structuring materials at multiple scales.

“The Soft Nanomaterials course was a really cool course! What stuck with me after the lecture was the idea that nanomaterials can have a hierarchical design with different levels of structure at different scales, from nano- all the way to macro-scale. The idea to achieve extraordinary properties by controlling materials features at different levels was fascinating.” said Anthony Keen, an NE student.

Nanotechnology Engineering Team 18 won this year’s Esch Competition with their project GeneDetek. Team members Karla Castro, Andrea Parra, Sara Thompson, and Nube Torres developed an electrochemical biosensor for genetic mutation detection.

Depression is a complex mental health condition that affects millions worldwide. For many patients, finding an effective treatment can be a daunting challenge, often complicated by adverse side effects of prescription drugs.

Capstone Team 2 had two big wins at this year’s Capstone Design Symposium. They won the Baylis Medical Award along with Team 3. They also won the UN Sustainable Development Goal Award for the Nanotechnology Engineering Program. The team’s project was titled “ A+ Blood Typing”.

This team aimed to address the increasing demand for O-negative blood for blood transfusions. The demand for O-negative blood, also known as the "universal donor" blood type, is high because it can be safely transfused to patients of any blood type in emergency situations. This is critical when there isn't enough time to determine the patient's blood type. O-negative blood use is crucial in trauma situations, where quick transfusions are necessary to save lives.

The members of Capstone Project Team 6 are very passionate about sustainability. Their project aim was to discover solutions to problems that harm the environment. The group chose to concentrate on the critical problem of microplastics in wastewater. Microplastics are not only harmful to delicate ecosystems but also pose a threat to human health, as well as land and marine life.

The project was called MicroSeize. Team members areRyan Ellis, Helen Engelhardt, Alex Matos, and Matthew Scarfo. They developed a scalable methodology for capturing common plastics that other methods cannot retrieve, such as polystyrene and PET microplastics, from wastewater. Most of their testing was conducted on polystyrene because it creates the smallest microplastics.

Cervical cancer is diagnosed in over 1,000 Canadian women each year, and approximately 410 women die from the disease annually. Women need to undergo regular cervical cancer screening, as early detection can significantly increase the chances of successful treatment.

However, in Ontario, women are only eligible for the Pap Test (or Pap smear) every three years. CT Murphy a Nanotechnology Engineering (NE) graduate (BASc ’23) aims to create a new testing method that allows women to screen for the human papillomavirus (HPV) that usually causes cervical cancer.

Nanotechnology Engineering (NE) alumnus Thomas Storwick (Class of 2019) has made Forbes prestigious 30 under 30 list. Storwick co-founded Coastal Carbon with University of Waterloo alumna Kelly Zheng.

Nanotechnology Engineering Program Director, Professor Ting Tsui took part in two discussions in the Sustainable Future Perspectives panel dialogue. The ongoing series is hosted by the Waterloo Institute for Nanotechnology (WIN) and the Department of Chemical Engineering.