V O LU M E 1.

S U M M E R 2 0 1 6

Informer
N E W S F R O M T H E U N I V E R S I T Y O F WA S H I N G T O N M O L E C U L A R E N G I N E E R I N G & S C I E N C E S I N S T I T U T E

DesIgnIng the
cIrcuItry of ceLLs
We commonly think of circuits as
conduits for electricity or information
that flow from one point to another.
In biology, organisms and cells also
process
information
and
control
behavior via sophisticated biochemical
circuits. Researchers at the University
of Washington Molecular Engineering
and Sciences Institute are working
to understand and design molecular
circuits with applications in disease
diagnosis and therapy.

An illustration of the strong valley exciton interactions and transport in a 2-D

semiconductor heterostructure. Pasqual Rivera, Kyle Seyler

AtomIc Legos:
Building blocks for
next-gen semiconductors

A team at the Molecular Engineering and Sciences Institute

is developing ways to connect two-dimensional sheets of
semiconductor material, one atom thick, that have the potential
to be as flexible and foldable as a piece of paper and as strong as
any material that exists on earth.

Georg Seelig, Associate Professor of Computer

Science and Engineering and Electrical Engineering
Georg Seelig is an associate professor of Computer
Science and Engineering and Electrical Engineering
at the University of Washington. His focus is in the
emerging and expanding field of synthetic biology,
a field that concerns the design and construction
of new genetic parts, bio-molecular devices and
synthetic organisms.
Seeligs goal is to be able to program cell behavior
the way we currently program computers. Because
many diseases arise from cell behavior gone awry,
methods that regain control can lead to new
CONTINUED: See Circuitry of Cells page 4

Heterostructures formed by different three-dimensional semiconductors form

the foundation for modern electronic and photonic devices. Now, University
of Washington scientists have successfully combined two different ultrathin
semiconductors each just one layer of atoms thick and roughly 100,000 times
thinner than a human hair to make a new two-dimensional heterostructure
with potential uses in clean energy and optically-active electronics. The team,
led by Boeing Distinguished Associate Professor Xiaodong Xu and Kyle Seyler
and Pasqual Rivera, both doctoral students in the UW physics department,
synthesized and investigated the optical properties of this new type of
semiconductor sandwich.
What were seeing here is distinct from heterostructures made of 3-D
semiconductors, said Xu, who has joint appointments in the Department
of Physics and the Department of Materials Science and Engineering. Weve
created a system to study the special properties of these atomically thin layers
and their potential to answer basic questions about physics and develop new
electronic and photonic technologies.
CONTINUED: See LEGOS page 6

messAge from the DIrector

Suzie Pun

It has been nearly four years since the

Molecular Engineering and Sciences (MolES)
Institute moved into our new MolES building
at the heart of the UW campus. Since then
we have seen remarkable growth and
collaboration among our faculty and students
across colleges, departments, and disciplines.
We are launching the Informer, to provide
an update on our research and recognize
the achievements of our interdisciplinary
researchers.

In this issue you will meet two of our faculty researchers

who are applying engineering principles to better understand natures systems
and build platforms on which biotech and cleantech innovations can launch.
Georg Seelig is engineering building molecular nucleic acid-based circuitry that can
be used in applications such as disease diagnostics and medical therapies. Xiaodong
Xu has developed novel engineered building blocks that can be used for energy and
electronics applications.
A large part of our researchers success is due to the world-class instruments and
expertise co-located with research labs in the MolES Building. Our Molecular Analysis
Facility (MAF) offers the best tools for microscopy, spectroscopy and surface science
research, and experienced staff to help design, perform and troubleshoot experiments.
Learn more about their expertise and capabilities in the newsletter insert. And, learn
how members of the greater Washington biotech and cleantech industries can access
this world-class resource.
Also in this issue you will read about two of our Molecular Engineering PhD candidates
who earned prestigious national graduate fellowships to support their research. We
are particularly proud of their accomplishments, as it speaks to the quality of students
and faculty mentorship that our Ph.D. program has attracted in just its first few years.
Finally, it has been my great pleasure to serve as the interim director of the Molecular
Engineering & Sciences Institute for the past several months while Director Pat Stayton
has been away on a sabbatical. I am also happy to inform you that Pat has been reappointed for another five year term, which will begin when he returns in September.
Meantime, we look forward to your feedback on our inaugural newsletter and are
happy to answer any questions you have about our institute.

Molecular Engineering Students Land Prestigious

Research Fellowships to Study Batteries and
Energy Storage
Two students in the University of
Washington Molecular Engineering
PhD program recently earned
prestigious
graduate
research
fellowships awarded to outstanding
students
pursuing
doctorate
degrees in the STEM fields. Both
Grant Williamson and Dion Hubble
are interested in cleantech research
and discovering new materials
and techniques for more efficient
batteries and energy storage.
Grant Williamson, who is completing
his first year as a Molecular Engineering
(MolE) graduate student, received a research
grant from the National Science Foundation
Graduate Research Fellowship Program
(GRFP), the countrys oldest fellowship
program that directly supports students
in STEM fields. Grant will be working with
Assistant Professor of Chemical Engineering,
Vince Holmberg. The laboratory is devoted to
the large-scale production of nanowires and
nanocrystals, which could generate valuable
insights into nanomaterial dynamics. The
goal is to develop a new class of fabrics,
fibers, and other macroscopic materials built
from assemblies of nanostructures, to be
used in energy applications such as batteries
and energy storage systems.

Dion Hubble is a second year MolES graduate student in Materials

Science and Engineers Professor Alex Jens lab. He earned a National
Defense Science and Engineering Graduate (NDSEG) Fellowship
administered by the Department of Defense. Dions research focus
is developing batteries with better energy density and high resource
availability. By connecting molecular design to device optimization
and chemistry, Dion hopes to improve crucial battery performance
parameters such as life cycles and capacity to store energy.

The fact that two of

our students received
competitive grants in only
the second year of the
Molecular
Engineering
PhD program speaks to
the quality of students
and
recognizes
the
impact of our world-class
research at the University
of Washington
Suzie Pun, Acting Director
of the Molecular Engineering
and Sciences Institute

Both of these graduate

fellowships
are
very
competitive with less
than 10-percent of the
applicants accepted each
year. The fact that two
of our students received
competitive grants in only
the second year of the
Molecular
Engineering
PhD program speaks to
the quality of students
and
recognizes
the
impact of our world-class
research at the University
of Washington, said Suzie
Pun, acting director of the
Molecular
Engineering
and Sciences Institute.

Dion Hubble and Alex Jen

For more information on the Molecular Engineering PhD program

and its students, visit www.moles.washington.edu/phd

Grant Williamson and Vince Holmberg

Sincerely,

Suzie Pun
Robert F. Rushmer Professor of Bioengineering
Acting Director, Molecular Engineering and Sciences Institute

cIrcuItry of ceLLs

(CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1)

treatment approaches. A major hurdle for

programming cells is that we do not fully
understand how the genome sequence
relates to function. In recent work published
in Cell, we have developed computational
models that predict how changes at the
DNA level produce observable differences,
said Seelig. In order to accomplish this work,
Seelig and team relied on machine learning
and sophisticated algorithms to process and
make sense of the millions of data points
collected from biochemical circuits. We are
now building on this work to engineer gene
therapy methods, getting us closer to our
initial goal of controlling cells.
Seelig has assembled a research group
comprised of 15 graduate students and

Essentially we are building

a control circuit for a cell
that is designed to detect
information from multiple
sensory inputs. We are not
trying to mimic nature; instead
we are rationally designing
from scratch and then hope
to adapt our results quickly
for other types of cancer and
diseases.
Georg Seelig, Associate Professor
of Computer Science and Engineering
and Electrical Engineering

postdocs with multidisciplinary specialties

from electrical engineering, bioengineering,
computer sciences and physics as well
as collaborators at the UW and elsewhere
in the world. Collaboration is key to his
research, and he fosters many different
relationships. For example, a five-year grant
from the National Institutes of Health was
recently awarded to support Seelig and Ron
Weiss from MIT to develop molecular-scale
computer devices that can diagnose diseases
from inside living cells.

to building the aircraft while flying the plane.

But that is the fun part, he said.
To learn more about the Seelig Lab visit

www.homes.cs.washington.edu/~seelig

Seelig says his research and approach

has been helped by the fast adoption of
genome mapping tools that have become
commonplace in the last five years. However,
he compares much of his research process

Synthetic biology enables living systems to perform

new and useful functions.

AWArDs AnD recognItIon

Wendy Thomas (right)

Daniel Ratner

Several MolES faculty and staff were nominated and

winners of the 2016 UW College of Engineering Awards:
AWARD WInnERS:

noMInEES:

Wendy Thomas, Faculty Award: Teaching

Deok Ho Kim, Junior Faculty

James Carothers, Faculty Award: Junior

David Castner, Research

Daniel Ratner, Deans Award

Hugh Hillhouse, Research

Jill Aronson Pfaendtner,
Professional Staff

James Carothers
Allan Hoffman will receive an award
from the Controlled Release Society in
July 2016 at the CRS Annual Meeting in
Seattle. Allan will also receive the 2017
Acta Biomaterialia Gold Medal Award of
the Acta Materialia at the 2017 Society for
Biomaterials meeting in Minneapolis.
Christine
Luscombe,
Associate
Professor of Materials Science and
Engineering, has been named a fellow of the
Royal Society of Chemistry.

Allan Hoffman (left)

Peter Pauzauskie (left)

David Masiello, Assistant Professor of

Chemistry, has received a 2016 Presidential
Early Career Award for Scientists and
Engineers, the highest honor given by the
U.S. government to early career scientists
and engineers.

Materials Science & Engineering Assistant

Professor Peter Pauzauskie was awarded
a Multidisciplinary University Research
Initiative grants by the U.S. Department of
Defense for his research on an approach to
cooling liquids using laser light

Joseph Mougous, Associate Professor

of Microbiology, has been named one of
26 new Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Investigators, a
select group of highly
innovative and productive scholars across
the nation who are at the forefront of their
respective fields

Electrical Engineering and Computer

Science & Engineering Associate Professor
Georg Seelig, together with MIT Professor of
Biological Engineering Ron Weiss, received a
five-year National Institutes of Health (NIH)

Patrick Stayton
grant for $3 million. The grant will further the
development of molecular-scale computing
devices that can diagnose diseases from
inside living cells.
Patrick
Stayton
was
named
Distinguished
Career
Professor
of
Bioengineering. The UW recently reappointed Dr. Stayton as Director of the
Molecular
Engineering
and
Sciences
Institute.

Legos

(CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1)

Getting these devices to emit light posed a
unique challenge, due to the properties of
electrons in each layer.
Once you have these two sheets of material,
an essential question is how to position
the two layers together, said Seyler. The
electrons in each layer have unique spin and
valley properties, and how you position
them their twist angle affects how they
interact with light.
By aligning the crystal lattices, the authors
could excite the heterostructure with a laser
and create optically active excitons between
the two layers.

Xiaodong Xu
When semiconductors absorb light, pairs of positive and negative charges can form and
bind together to create so-called excitons. Scientists have long studied how these excitons
behave, but when they are squeezed down to the 2-D limit in these atomically thin materials,
surprising interactions can occur.
While traditional semiconductors manipulate the flow of electron charge, this device allows
excitons to be preserved in valleys, a concept from quantum mechanics similar to the spin
of electrons. This is a critical step in the development of new nanoscale technologies that
integrate light with electronics.
It was already known that these ultrathin 2-D semiconductor have these unique properties
that you cannot find in other 2-D or 3-D arrangements, said Xu. But as we show here, when
we put these two layers together one on top of the other the interface between these
sheets becomes the site of even more new physical properties, which you dont see in each
layer on its own or in the 3-D version.
Xu and his team wanted to create and explore the properties of a 2-D semiconductor
heterostructure made up of two different layers of material, a natural expansion of their
previous studies on atomically thin junctions, as well as nanoscale lasers based on atomically
thin layers of semiconductors. By studying how laser light interacts with this heterostructure,
they gathered information about the physical properties at the atomically sharp interface.
Many groups have studied the optical properties of single 2-D sheets, said Seyler. What we
do here is carefully stack one material on top of another, and then study the new properties
that arise at the interface.
The team obtained two types of semiconducting crystals, tungsten diselenide (WSe2) and
molybdenum diselenide (MoSe2), from collaborators at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. They
used facilities developed in-house to precisely arrange two layers, one derived from each
crystal, a process that took a few years to fully develop.
But now that we know how to do it properly, we can make new ones in one or two weeks,
said Xu.

These excitons at the interface can store

valley information for orders of magnitude
longer than either of the layers on their
own, said Rivera. This long lifetime allows
for fascinating effects which may lead to
further optical and electronic applications
with valley functionality.
Now that they can efficiently make a
semiconductor heterostructure out of 2-D
materials, Xu and his team would like to

explore a number of fascinating physical

properties, including how exciton behavior
varies as they change angles between the
layers, the quantum properties excitons
between layers and electrically driven light
emission.
Theres a whole industry that wants to use
these 2-D semiconductors to make new
electronic and photonic devices, said Xu.
So were trying to study the fundamental
properties of these new heterostructures
for things like efficient laser technology,
light-emitting diodes and light-harvesting
devices. These will hopefully be useful for
clean energy and information technology
applications. It is quite exciting but theres a
lot work to do.
Other co-authors are Hongyi Yu and Wang
Yao at the University of Hong Kong; Jiaqiang

Kyle Seyler
Yan and David Mandrus at Oak Ridge National
Laboratory and the University of Tennessee;
and UW physics postdoctoral researcher
John Schaibley. The UW authors were
primarily funded by the U.S. Department

of Energy, with additional support from the

UWs Clean Energy Institute and the National
Science Foundation.
James Urton, UW News and Information

S P R I N G 2 0 16

recent PuBLIcAtIons of note

For a more complete listing of publications by faculty associated with the Molecular Engineering & Sciences Institute, please visit
www.moles.washington.edu/publications

Theres a whole industry

that wants to use these 2-D
semiconductors

to

make

new electronic and photonic

devices,

said

Xu.

So

were trying to study the

fundamental

properties

of

these new heterostructures

for things like efficient laser
technology,

light-emitting

diodes and light-harvesting

devices. These will hopefully
be useful for clean energy
and information technology
applications.
Xiaodong Xu,
Associate Professor of Physics

Jim Pfaendtner, Venkat Subramanian,

James Carothers, and David Becks
journal article Data science: Accelerating
innovation and discovery in chemical
engineering was featured on the May 2016
cover of AlChE Journal. The authors discuss
how science and engineering is being
transformed by new sources of data and
provide an overview of applications within
areas of chemical engineering.

Deok-Ho Kims Self-assembling peptides

for stem cell and tissue engineering was
featured on the inside front cover of the April
2016 issue of Biomaterials Science.

Albert Folch and collaborators article Art

on the Nanoscale and Beyond was featured
on the cover of Advanced Materials in March
2016. The team discusses applications of
nano and microscale materials in art, and the
mediums utility in communicating science to
a broader audience.

The Molecular Analysis Facility (MAF) is a fully staffed instrumentation facility

for users from the University of Washington, other universities, and industry.
Capabilities include microscopy, spectroscopy, and surface science. Users can
be trained to perform experiments independently, or an experienced staff
member can perform experiments for you.

STAFF SCIENTISTS
The MAF employs a group of full-time staff
scientists to help you design, perform,
and troubleshoot your experiments.
Contact the MAF with questions about
instrumentation or to see if we have the
right tool for your job.
Liam Bradshaw
XRD, Ellipsometer, GDOES, UPS
Expertise: Spectroscopy, nanoparticles,
optics, inorganic chemistry, metalloenzymes
Scott Braswell
SEM, FIB, EDS
Expertise: Electron microscopy, FIB imaging/
milling/lift-out, image processing, education,
x-ray microanalysis
Micah Glaz
AFM, Raman, Confocal Microscope,
Profilometer
Expertise: AFM, physical chemistry, organic/
inorganic semiconductors, solar materials,
microscopy, spectroscopy
Dan Graham
ToF-SIMS, XPS
Expertise: Surface analysis of polymer and
biological materials, 2D and 3D imaging,
multivariate data analysis methods
Gerry Hammer
XPS, UPS
Expertise: Surface and interface analysis,
metals, films, polymers, fibers, composites
Ellen Lavoie
TEM
Expertise: Electron microscopy, TEM,
including preparation of materials,
biological, and polymer samples

A Message from the Director

The ability to understand and engineer the surface of materials has led
to innovative design for biomedical devices, drug delivery systems and
thin film coatings to name just a few. And, recent advances have made
it possible to control chemistry on a
local scale undreamed of only a few
years ago. Meantime the complexity of
the molecules being introduced at the
surface is increasing, and the techniques
used to analyze surface characteristics at
the molecular level are ever-changing and
improving.
These advances on the frontiers of
surface science offer great opportunities
for researchers to advance their surface
analysis and learn new methods to collect
and review data. At the Molecular Analysis Facility we offer a unique facility
that combines world-class instrumentation and staff expertise to help
faculty, students and industry advance their research. Please contact us
for more information on our capabilities, user fees and how access our
suite of instruments.
Sincerely,

David Caster
Professor, Bioengineering and Chemical Engineering;
Director, Molecular Analysis Facility

Contact the Molecular Analysis Facility

The Molecular Analysis Facility is located in the Molecular Engineering &
Sciences Building at the University of Washington.
Facility Directors: David Castner, Director
Lara Gamble, Associate Director
Web site: www.moles.washington.edu/MAF
Email: UWMAF@uw.edu
Phone: 206-616-6627

CASE STUDY

Nanoparticle Analysis Techniques

Nanoparticles (NPs) exhibit unique surface properties and
require well-controlled surface properties to achieve optimum
performance in complex environments.
The Molecular Analysis Facility (MAF) provides instrumentation
and professional expertise for rigorous and detailed
characterization of NPs with complementary techniques.
MAF instrumentation that valuable information about NPs
includes transmission electron microscopy (TEM), atomic
force microscopy (AFM), x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy
(XPS), time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry
(ToF-SIMS) and sum frequency generation (SFG) vibrational
spectroscopy.

For more information, contact the Molecular Analysis Facility:

Website: www.moles.washington.edu/MAF
Email: UWMAF@uw.edu
Phone: 206-616-6627

Chemical Composition of Nanoparticle Surface

70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0

d
ol
G

ge
xy

bo

ar
C
Above: The data shows a series of
peaks characteristic of the molecule
attached to the gold NP.

14 nm
40 nm
Flat

Atomic Percent

C19H40SO5

lfu

XpS

Au -

Tof-SiMS

Su

Chemical Species Determination

We use TEM and AFM to determine the size, shape and

distribution of NPs (quantum dots, gold NPs, etc.). XPS is
used to determine the composition, chemical species and
thickness of overlayers on NPs. ToF-SIMS and SFG provide
molecular structure information about species present on
the NP surface. Together these methods provided a detailed
understanding of the NP structure and chemical composition.

Above: XPS-determined elemental

composition of the outer ~ 10 nm of
functionalized 14nm gold NPs (red),
40nm gold NPs (blue) and flat gold
surface (green).

Nanoparticle Size and Shape

TrAnSMiSSion ELEcTron MicroScopy

Left: 7nm cadmium

selenide/cadmium
sulfide/zinc sulfide
quantum dots

10nm

Left: 14nm gold

nanoparticles

NON-PROFIT ORG
U.S. POSTAGE
PAID
SEATTLE, WA
Molecular Engineering
& Sciences Institute
University of Washington
Box 351653
Seattle, WA 98195-1653

uPcomIng events
Controlled Release Society
Annual Meeting & Exposition
July 17-20, 2016
Washington State Convention
Center, Seattle
www.controlledreleasesociety.org
nESAC/BIo Surface
Characterization of Biomaterials
Workshop and UWEB21
Biomaterials Short Course
August 1-3 and August 3-5, 2016
University of Washington, Seattle
www.moles.washington.edu/
biomaterials-workshops
oRCAS 2016: International
Conference on Energy
Conversion & Storage

PERMIT NO. 62

ABoUt thE MoLECULAR EnginEERing & SCiEnCES inStitUtE

The MolES Institute brings together teams from across the University of Washington
campus to catalyze translational research in the cleantech and biotech areas. It is intended
to serve both as an intellectual accelerator to bring fresh approaches and ideas to societal
challenges and as a physical incubator where interdisciplinary teams can come together
in a shared space. The Institute has more than 115 members from 14 departments.
The Institute is located in the new
Molecular Engineering and Sciences
Building, a facility specially designed to
promote collaborative molecular-scale
research. The building houses 16 faculty
members, 4 institutes and research
centers, and a major instrumentation
center. Together these centers provide
state-of-the-art instrumentation for molecular characterization and analysis for the use
of the UW research community and the larger non-profit and tech communities in Seattle.
The Institute is also creating and coordinating interdisciplinary education programs for
undergraduate and graduate students. Drawing on the expertise of multiple departments,
these programs teach students the fundamental aspects of molecular-level engineering
through core courses and top-notch research opportunities.

September 7-9, 2016

Friday Harbor, Washington
www.cei.washington.edu/orcas

ConTACT US

Website: www.moles.washington.edu
Email: MolES@uw.edu
Phone: 206-616-6627