Boltasseva selected as inaugural Discovery Park fellow

Alexandra (Sasha) Boltasseva, professor of electrical and computer engineering with a courtesy appointment as professor of materials science and engineering, has been selected as the inaugural Discovery Park fellow, beginning Feb. 1.  

Boltasseva is a graduate of the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology and Technical University of Denmark. She currently leads a research team in the Birck Nanotechnology Center specializing in nanophotonics, nanofabrication and optical materials. The focus of her research is to develop new technological platforms to unlock properties of nanophotonic devices, from materials growth to advanced designs and demonstrations.

“Sasha’s unbound enthusiasm for engineering-driven multidisciplinary approaches to problems and deep commitment to Discovery Park are contagious. The selection committee felt she would be an outstanding ambassador and leader in this role,” says Tomás Díaz de la Rubia, vice president for Discovery Park.

The Discovery Park Fellowship is a leadership development opportunity created to expose emerging faculty leaders to transdisciplinary research and Discovery Park’s strategic framework. The fellow will work closely with the colleges, Discovery Park centers/institutes and faculty across campus to strategize and devise new faculty-driven multidisciplinary initiatives to address grand challenges with world-changing ideas.

Boltasseva has collaborated with Discovery Park and its Birck Nanotechnology Center since her arrival at Purdue in 2008.

“I am extremely excited to have the opportunity to help Discovery Park create multidisciplinary teams that align with its strategic goals and to promote expertise exchange across various research units,” Boltasseva says. “One of my priorities in this position will be to raise awareness of the importance of fundamental science  and interdisciplinary research in solving today’s grand challenges and improving the quality of life.”

The Discovery Park Fellowship is a half-time appointment located within the Discovery Park administrative office in the Burton D. Morgan Center for Entrepreneurship building. The appointment is for one year with an option for a second year.

About Discovery Park

Discovery Park is a place where Purdue researchers move beyond traditional boundaries, collaborating across disciplines and with policymakers and business leaders to create solutions for a better world. Grand challenges of global health, global conflict and security, and those that lie at the nexus of sustainable energy, world food supply, water and the environment are the focus of researchers in Discovery Park. The translation of discovery to impact is integrated into the fabric of Discovery Park through entrepreneurship programs and partnerships.