Diandra
Leslie-Pelecky
Associate Professor
University of Nebraska—Lincoln
Department of Physics and Astronomy
Center for Materials Research & Analysis
Workshop
Panelist: Ethics in Physics IV: Tenure & Academic Freedom
Biographical
Sketch
After
earning undergraduate degrees in physics and philosophy, Diandra
Leslie-Pelecky earned the Ph.D. from Michigan State University
in 1991 for research on the crossover of spin-glass behavior
from 3D to 2D in multi-layered nanoscale structures. Following
postdoctoral work on the structural glass transition in orientationally
disordered crystals and magnetic transitions in chemically
synthesized magnetic nanoparticles, she became an Assistant
Professor in the Department of Physics & Astronomy and
the Center for Materials Research & Analysis at the University
of Nebraska – Lincoln in 1996 and an Associate Professor
in 2002.
Professor
Leslie-Pelecky’s research has been funded by the National
Science Foundation, the Office of Naval Research, the Air
Force Office of Scientific Research, the National Institutes
of Health, and the Nebraska Research Initiative. One aspect
of her research involves basic understanding of disorder in
magnetic nanostructures, including enhancing the properties
of permanent and soft magnets, and investigating the nature
of glassy magnetic transitions. A more recent line of research
is in collaboration with the University of Nebraska Medical
Center and Los Alamos National Laboratory to develop and understand
biocompatible multifunctional magnetic nanofluids to be used
for simultaneous detection and treatment of cancer.
In
addition to research, Professor Leslie-Pelecky has a long-standing
interest in scientific education in K-12 schools and for the
general public. She currently co-directs Project Fulcrum,
a National Science Foundation-funded program that teams graduate
students in math, science, and engineering with middle- and
elementary-school teachers to enhance science and math education
in the Lincoln Public Schools.
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