2/25/2010
Kimani C. Toussaint, Jr., an assistant professor in the Department of Mechanical Science and Engineering has been awarded a prestigious CAREER Award from the National Science Foundation (NSF).
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Kimani C. Toussaint, Jr., an assistant professor in the Department of Mechanical Science and Engineering has been awarded a prestigious CAREER Award from the National Science Foundation (NSF).
Toussaint, who joined the Illinois faculty in August 2007, conducts interdisciplinary research in the area of optics, particularly as it relates to nano- and biophotonics. He uses cutting-edge methods in optical physics to explore the properties of light and light/matter interactions, and to develop imaging techniques with better spatial resolution and detection sensitivity, and improved contrast mechanisms.
“The research objective is to develop the next-generation nonlinear optical microscope that can obtain both qualitative and quantitative measurements of the spatial organization and optical scattering properties of collagen fibers in mammalian eyes,” Toussaint explained. “The ability to noninvasively determine the spatial organization and optical properties of collagen fibers in the eye would permit an unprecedented spectrum of characterization capabilities in a single microscope.”
According to Toussaint, an eventual aim would be for the instrument to differentiate between the various fibrillar collagen types in vivo through the unique combination of nonlinear (second-harmonic generation) microscopy, three-dimensional polarization control, and a mathematical model that analyzes (spatial) frequency content.
In addition, Toussaint is planning to establish an online educational “You Tube” series on optics for high-school and college students, develop a hands-on optics module for middle school students, and to develop a Minority Contributions to Science and Technology Series for use in the local community.
Toussaint earned his BA from the University of Pennsylvania, and MS and PhD degrees in Electrical Engineering from Boston University. Prior to starting at Illinois, Toussaint was an NSF Minority Postdoctoral Fellow in Biology at the University of Chicago, where he worked on interference microscopy, exotic polarization states, and optical trapping. In 2006, he was one of 100 top American scientists in the United States (under 45) to be selected for the National Academy of Science's 18th Annual Kavli Frontiers of Science Symposium. He also has affiliations in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, the Department of Bioengineering, and the Beckman Institute, as well as in the Department of Ophthalmology at the University of Illinois at Chicago.
The NSF's Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) initiative selects the nation's best young university faculty in a highly competitive annual program. These teacher-scholars are recognized for their extraordinary promise to integrate research and education in the nation's universities and to make lifelong contributions to their disciplines.
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Contact: Kimani C. Toussaint, Jr., Department of Mechanical Science and Engineering, 217/244-4088.
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