Chemistry

Research area: This research area focuses on additive manufacturing of functional materials for flexible and wearable electronics. It combines materials science, chemistry, and engineering to develop conductive inks and printable materials that enable the fabrication of stretchable electronic devices. The work investigates how material composition, processing conditions, and printing parameters influence electrical, mechanical, and functional performance for applications in wearables, soft robotics, and next-generation flexible electronic systems.

Student roles:
The student will assist with conductive ink formulation, materials characterization, and 3D printing experiments. Responsibilities may include preparing ink formulations, conducting rheological and material analyses, fabricating printed structures, measuring electrical properties, and evaluating mechanical performance under bending and stretching conditions. The student will analyze experimental data, document results, participate in research discussions, and contribute to the development and optimization of printed electronic devices for wearable technology applications.

Skills required:
Applicants should be enrolled in Materials Engineering, Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Biomedical Engineering, or a related discipline. A basic understanding of materials science, chemistry, electronics, or engineering principles is desirable. Familiarity with laboratory work, data analysis, and scientific problem-solving is beneficial. Prior experience with polymers, nanomaterials, additive manufacturing, or electronics is an asset but not required. Strong motivation to learn and work in a multidisciplinary research environment is essential.

Research area: We develop 3D printed and/or laser cut apparatus to make the study of chemical reactions more accessible.

Student roles:
Get trained on the relevant equipment and software available in the McIndoe group laboratory.
Attend weekly group meetings.
Meet with advisor weekly to discuss progress.
Some or all of 3D design, 3D printing, laser-cutting, electronics, programming.
Testing of prototypes.
Process and interpret data.
Write experimental sections and contribute figures and analysis.

Skills required:
A background in (and/or and interest in learning) 3D design, electronics, modern making methods or programming.

Research area: Research area focuses on additive manufacturing, microfabrication (light-based 3D printing), with particular emphasis on the development of advanced microfluidic systems, organ-on-chip platforms, and functional biomaterials. The research integrates high-resolution 3D printing technologies, materials science, and bioengineering to create innovative microscale devices for healthcare applications. Current activities include the design and fabrication of microfluidic devices.

Student roles:
The student will actively participate in all stages of the research project, including literature review, device design, fabrication, experimental testing, data collection, and analysis. Responsibilities may include developing CAD models, operating 3D printing equipment, preparing materials, assembling microfluidic devices, conducting laboratory experiments, and evaluating device performance. The student will document research findings, contribute to technical reports and presentations, and participate in regular meetings with the research team. Through these activities, the student will gain valuable experience in advanced manufacturing, biomedical engineering research, and interdisciplinary collaboration while contributing to the successful development of innovative organ-on-chip technologies.

Skills required:
Applicants should have a background in chemistry, chemical engineering, materials science, biomedical engineering, bioengineering, or a related discipline. Experience with computer-aided design (CAD), 3D printing, microfabrication, laboratory experimentation, or biomaterials is desirable but not mandatory. Students should possess strong analytical and problem-solving skills, attention to detail, and the ability to work independently as well as collaboratively within a multidisciplinary research team. Familiarity with data analysis, scientific communication, and experimental design will be considered an asset. Motivated students with an interest in additive manufacturing, microfluidics, and biomedical device development are encouraged to apply.

Research area: We are an interdisciplinary research group with an overarching theme of multifunctional fibrous polymeric composites. Under this umbrella we focus on: - 3-Dimensional and 2-Dimensional braided composites for a broad range of applications ranging from polymeric rebars to dental arch-wires and sutures. - Additive manufacturing for 4-D additive manufacturing using shape memory polymers and conductive materials - Electrospinning and Melt electrospinning for formation, characterization and modeling of nano fibers and nano-composite fibers and their aligned and randomly distributed fiber mats.

Student roles:
The student will produce the materials and conduct the experiments and analysis.

Skills required:
Mechanical angineering or related disciplines background is needed.
Additive manufacturing and polymers knowledge are desired.

Research area: Artificial intelligence for scientific discovery, X-ray spectroscopy, scientific software development, autonomous laboratories, and advanced materials characterization.

Student roles:
The student will work as part of an interdisciplinary research team developing software tools for advanced X-ray spectroscopy and AI-enabled scientific discovery. Activities may include Python programming, machine learning model development, data visualization, software testing, and analysis of experimental datasets.

The project will leverage modern AI-assisted software development approaches, including the use of generative AI coding tools to accelerate code development, debugging, documentation, and testing. Students will gain hands-on experience working with both conventional programming techniques and emerging AI-enabled development workflows that are increasingly being adopted across research and industry.

The student will interact with researchers developing new instrumentation, data analysis methods, and digital research infrastructure for the Laboratory for In Operando X-ray Science (LinXS). The resulting software will contribute directly to a new laboratory-based X-ray spectroscopy user facility and support future researchers from academia, government, and industry.

Through the project, the student will gain experience in scientific programming, machine learning, data analytics, collaborative software development, and the application of artificial intelligence to real-world scientific challenges.

Skills required:
Applicants from chemistry, computer science, physics, engineering, data science, or related disciplines are encouraged to apply. Previous experience with Python programming is beneficial but not required. Successful applicants should be curious about applying artificial intelligence to real scientific challenges and interested in working at the interface of computation, instrumentation, and discovery science.

Research area: Prof. Matta Kaur is interested in using computational chemistry, machine learning, and quantum-based calculations to study clean-energy materials. Her research interests include catalyst discovery, structure–property relationships, molecular descriptors, and computer-aided analysis of reactions important for green hydrogen production. In particular, Dr. Kaur’s research focuses on identifying promising catalyst features from published/open data and testing selected examples using computer-based molecular calculations. Research areas: Computational Chemistry, Green Hydrogen, Catalyst Discovery, Machine Learning in Chemistry, Clean Energy Materials. Research sub-fields: Water-splitting catalysts, Molecular Descriptors, Density Functional Theory (DFT) calculations, Ranking Models, Feature-importance analysis, and Data Visualization.

Student roles:
The research plan of this project is highly multidisciplinary, allowing the student to be integrated into different tasks related to green hydrogen, catalyst discovery, machine learning, and computer-based chemistry. This will offer possible future career paths according to the student’s interests and study background, including clean-energy research, materials discovery, computational chemistry, data science, and industrial catalyst development.

The student will join Prof. Matta Kaur’s research group, where the project will be organized into specific activities: (1) literature review and collection of published information on catalysts for green hydrogen production; (2) development of a small curated catalyst database, including metal type, composition, structure, reported activity, stability, and reaction conditions; (3) application of machine-learning and data-analysis methods such as descriptor-based ranking, clustering, principal component analysis, random-forest models, and feature-importance analysis; and (4) computer-based quantum calculations on selected catalyst examples to examine molecular features relevant to water-splitting chemistry.

Initially, the student will be supervised throughout all steps while learning how to read selected papers, extract reliable catalyst information, organize data, and understand the basic chemical meaning of catalyst descriptors. In the second part of the internship, the student will develop skills and competencies in one of the specific sub-areas according to their background and preferences, such as database building, machine-learning analysis, molecular visualization, or quantum-based catalyst testing. The student will directly contribute to a focused task, gradually developing independence and contributing to the smooth progress of the research. A fundamental part of the internship will be devoted to training the student in responsible data handling, reproducible computational workflows, scientific figure preparation, and clear research communication.

Skills required:
The required background of the student is in the fields of Chemistry, Materials Science, Physics, Computer Science, Catalysis, or related areas. Skills in literature review, data organization, Excel, Python, machine learning, molecular visualization, and basic computational chemistry will help the student understand the steps of catalyst-data collection, analysis, and candidate selection. Basic courses in physical chemistry, inorganic chemistry, materials chemistry, or data analysis will be useful. Background in catalyst discovery and computer-based chemistry will be more specific to the project related to green hydrogen production and quantum-based molecular calculations.

Research area: We are a synthetic bioorganic/materials/medicinal chemistry group focused on applying the tools of synthetic organic chemistry to the challenges of biology, medicine and materials science. Our chemistry involves developing new unnatural amino acids and carbohydrates and making more stable artificial oligosaccharides and peptides for immunological and anti-cancer applications, and using these biomaterials as the basis for new classes of sustainable materials for a variety of applications including smart drug-delivery, environmentally benign plastics, and for use as nano-probes for medical diagnostics.

Student roles:
The candidate will be working as part of a multi-disciplinary team comprising post-doctoral, doctoral, masters and undergraduate students. After a short period of getting comfortable with the lab and the project, they will be provided a self-contained subproject to manage and develop. They will be working very closely with the other members of the carbohydrate team (4 PhD students, 4 postdocs, 1 staff technician, and 7 undergraduates) and the rest of the group as a whole. As this work is progressing very quickly in our group, the exact project will be decided upon arrival of the student and upon agreement on a subject of mutual interest.

Skills required:
Ideally we are looking for a synthetic chemist with broad interests in multidiciplinary science. The candidate will have the opportunity to meet and work with our network of local collaborators and experience a variety of different research environments while developing expertise in total synthesis.

Research area: Photocatalytic materials, advanced spectroscopy, materials chemistry, semiconductor materials, environmental technologies, and sustainable agricultural water systems.

Student roles:
The student will work as part of a collaborative research team focused on developing and understanding advanced photocatalytic materials for agricultural water treatment applications. Activities may include solid-state synthesis, sample preparation, materials characterization, data analysis, and interpretation of experimental results.

The student will gain hands-on experience with a variety of modern characterization techniques, including X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), Raman spectroscopy, X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS), and X-ray emission spectroscopy (XES), along with other complementary methods. These techniques will be used to investigate the structural, electronic, and chemical properties of materials and relate these characteristics to their functional performance.

The student will work closely with graduate student mentors and the principal investigator, participate in research group meetings, and contribute to the analysis and communication of scientific results. Throughout the project, the student will develop practical laboratory skills, scientific problem-solving abilities, and experience in advanced materials characterization.

Skills required:
Applicants with backgrounds in chemistry, materials science, physics, engineering, or related disciplines are encouraged to apply. Previous laboratory experience is beneficial but not required although some exposure to basic chemical laboratory methods is essential. Successful applicants should have a strong interest in materials research, environmental technologies, and experimental science. Curiosity, attention to detail, and enthusiasm for learning new laboratory and analytical techniques are important assets.

Research area: I am an environmental engineer/Earth system scientist by training and work on the environmental impacts of large human waste streams. The main goal of my research is to explain the occurrence, transport and transformation of metal pollutants in natural and industrial context, so that appropriate prevention and remediation measures can be developed. For this, my group uses an interdisciplinary combination of concepts from environmental (bio)geochemistry, hydrology, analytical chemistry, and civil and environmental engineering, et cetera.

Student roles:
Along experienced graduate students, you will help conduct laboratory experiments where we accelerate the weathering of mine waste materials under a variety of conditions (acidic/neutral, oxic/anoxic). All experimental setups and required sampling and testing materials are already operated in our laboratory, so you can get started right away. Over the course of several weeks, you will collect drainage samples from these experiments. Some parameters will be analyzed by our departmental laboratories, but you are expected to perform additional analyses (e.g., high performance ion chromatography) on select samples yourself. In addition, you will measure samples collected in the field and assist in batch experiments aimed at assessing isotopic fractionation.

Your analyses will result in a quantitative assessment of the occurrence of dissolved Se species, as well as the geochemical conditions generating these species. You will have the opportunity to collect hands-on experience with a variety of exciting and state-of-the-art laboratory tools. You will also be provided opportunity to work on field samples collected at mine sites through our industry partnerships, and join regular meetings with collaborators to report on your results. If time permits, your data and results may be used to establish thermodynamic constants that can be used in numerical simulations aimed at reproducing the observed laboratory results.

Skills required:
This project would be suitable for students pursuing degrees in various disciplines (e.g., [analytical] chemistry, environmental sciences, chemical or geological engineering). Excellent oral and written communication skills in English are required. Quantitative problem-solving skills (an 'engineering mindset') and basic knowledge of inorganic chemistry are important and hands-on experience in the laboratory (e.g., best-practice in safety, chemical handling, pipetting) are useful.

Research area: Dr. Liao’s research focuses on green infrastructure, water treatment, water resource management, plant-soil-water interactions, environmental monitoring and remediation, and remote sensing. Her work aims to optimize the monitoring and design of nature-based systems to improve water quality, plant performance, and ecosystem functions. She also investigates the design and application of sustainable, engineered materials for the removal of both traditional and emerging contaminants from water and the environment, while protecting ecosystem health. In addition, Liao employs remote sensing and data science approaches (e.g., meta-analysis) to understand, assess, and optimize vegetation, water, and environmental performance and management at multiple spatial scales.

Student roles:
The student will contribute to a broader research project focused on developing environmentally friendly functionalized materials for water contaminant removal. The role will involve supporting material modification and preparation, conducting material characterization, assisting with batch experiments, collecting and analyzing water quality data, assessing the ecotoxicity of materials, and organizing and summarizing research findings. The student will play an active role in evaluating contaminant removal performance and the environmental safety of functionalized materials while gaining hands-on experience in applied materials research and water treatment.

Skills required:
- Academic background in materials science, chemistry, chemical engineering, environmental engineering, civil engineering, analytical chemistry, environmental science, or a closely related field.
- Strong interest in applied research related to materials science, chemistry, water treatment, and engineering solutions for environmental challenges.
- Previous research experience in laboratory analysis relevant to material synthesis, material functionalization, or water treatment.
- Strong analytical, organizational, communication, and teamwork skills, with attention to detail and the ability to work effectively in a collaborative research environment.

Research area: The Advanced Renewable Materials Lab investigates the molecular structure and reactions of wood to transform trees and recycled fiber into novel materials that will serve as a platform for the bioeconomy. Critical to this transformation is the application of fundamental polymer science principles to the characterization, processing, and performance of the biopolymers and biobased composites. The research group’s goal is to apply novel processing methods to create new composites for the next generation of advanced renewable materials from Canadian forests and fields.

Student roles:
The students involved in this project will have the opportunity to develop a wide range of skills, from technical lab expertise to leadership and communication. The proposed research will require extensive analytical skill development, biomass handling, and organic synthesis techniques. This includes extracting and modifying biomass in reactors, separating products, and analyzing mass yields. Students will learn spectroscopy, such as nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy and Fourier Transform infrared spectroscopy. Students will have opportunity to process material on extruder to form filaments for textiles and/or 3D printing. Students will learn transferable laboratory skills such as operating centrifuge, rotovaps, freeze-dryers, and purification methods. Students will keep records in laboratory notebook, and provide weekly project updates.

Skills required:
Understanding of working in a chemistry wet-lab with fumehoods.
Must have curiosity and attention to detail.
Interest in chemistry, knowledge of biomass, and laboratory experience preferred.

Research area: Graham Gagnon, Ph.D., P.Eng., is a Professor in the Department of Civil and Resource Engineering and he is also the Director for the Centre for Water Resources Studies at Dalhousie University in Halifax. His professional and research interests focus on the management of water quality and treatment for natural and engineered systems. Throughout his career he has worked on applied water research projects for municipalities in Atlantic Canada, private companies, provincial departments, and federal agencies. Dr. Gagnon is the author of more than 200 peer reviewed journal articles and has supervised more than 150 students and PDFs.

Student roles:
Dr. Gagnon’s goal is to enhance student skills in: Communications, Research Management, Student Leadership, and Scholarship Advancement. Each student involved in this research program will develop individual research plans at the start of their program under Dr. Gagnon’s mentorship along with one of his graduate student or Postdoctoral researchers. To address the skills sets, students will works in a specific research project whereby individual research plans describe the central research hypothesis, the novelty of the research; the resources (labour and capital) required for research, and projected outcomes. Dr. Gagnon’s students work as part of a team of undergraduate and graduate students and technical staff, which allows for knowledge transfer and leadership opportunities to be further developed.

Skills required:
Students with backgrounds in civil and/or environmental engineering, chemistry, microbiology and environmental science are encouraged to apply. Our lab has a diverse student population and excellent communication skills are essential. Students that have a strong passion for environmental science and engineering is critical - we are developing innovative ideas to transform the water industry and aim to recruit students with this goal.

Research area: We are a synthetic bioorganic/materials group focused on applying the tools of synthetic organic chemistry to the challenges of biology, medicine and materials science. Our chemistry involves developing new unnatural amino acids and carbohydrates and making more stable artificial oligosaccharides and peptides for immunological and anti-cancer applications, and using these biomaterials as the basis for new classes of sustainable materials for a variety of applications including smart drug-delivery, environmentally benign plastics, and for use as nano-probes for medical diagnostics.

Student roles:
The candidate will be working as part of a multi-disciplinary team comprising post-doctoral, doctoral, masters and undergraduate students. After a short period of getting comfortable with the lab and the project, they will be provided a self-contained subproject to manage and develop. They will be working very closely with the other members of the analytical team (2 PhD student, 2 undergraduates, 2 technicians, and 3 postdocs) and the rest of the group as a whole. As this work is progressing very quickly in our group, the exact project will be decided upon arrival of the student and upon agreement on a subject of mutual interest.

Skills required:
Ideally we are looking for an analytical chemist with broad interests in multidiciplinary science. The candidate will have the opportunity to meet and work with our network of local collaborators and experience a variety of different research environments while developing expertise in analytical chemistry (GC-MS, HPLC, and some natural products isolation chemistry).

Research area: We develop theoretical frameworks for understanding quantum systems. Our research bridges fundamental quantum mechanics with practical applications in chemistry and materials science. We study quantum statistics of many-body quantum systems, chemical reaction kinetics, and quantum dynamics in open system settings.

Student roles:
The student will contribute to the development and implementation of numerically exact simulations of open quantum systems in anharmonic environments. Specifically, the student will: write and optimize computational code to perform numerically exact quantum dynamics calculations; model the effects of anharmonic baths on decoherence in small quantum systems; analyze and benchmark the simulation results against existing models; and help develop new effective models for complex anharmonic environments relevant to quantum technologies. The student will also assist in exploring connections between numerical results and analog quantum simulator (AQS) implementations using coupled quantum dots and nonlinear circuits. The student will work closely with the supervisor and the research group, participate in regular meetings, read relevant scientific literature, and contribute to writing a research report summarizing the findings.

Skills required:
Theoretical and/or computational chemistry OR background in physics/engeneering/chemistry/materials with ability and experience in programming in any language. Experience performing chemistry-relevant calculations is preferred.

Research area: We are a synthetic bioorganic/materials/medicinal chemistry group focused on applying the tools of synthetic organic chemistry to the challenges of biology, medicine and materials science. Our chemistry involves developing new unnatural amino acids and carbohydrates and making more stable artificial oligosaccharides and peptides for immunological and anti-cancer applications, and using these biomaterials as the basis for new classes of sustainable materials for a variety of applications including smart drug-delivery, environmentally benign plastics, and for use as nano-probes for medical diagnostics. We also make drugs.

Student roles:
The candidate will be working as part of a multi-disciplinary team comprising post-doctoral, doctoral, masters and undergraduate students. After a short period of getting comfortable with the lab and the project, they will be provided a self-contained subproject to manage and develop. They will be working very closely with the other members of the synthesis team (6 PhD students, 5 postdocs, and 14 undergraduates) and the rest of the group as a whole. As this work is progressing very quickly in our group, the exact project will be decided upon arrival of the student and upon agreement on a subject of mutual interest.

Skills required:
Ideally we are looking for a synthetic chemist with broad interests in multidiciplinary science. The candidate will have the opportunity to meet and work with our network of local collaborators and experience a variety of different research environments while developing expertise in total synthesis.

Research area: Currently, my research explores the use of mobile phone cameras in spectrophotometry, primarily for education purposes. My primary goal is to use this technology to make chemistry lab education more accessible and affordable by replacing commercial spectrophotometers with a mobile phone. I also do research in aquatic environmental chemistry, looking at the effects of pharmaceuticals and personal care products on aquatic biofilms.

Student roles:
The student will collect environmental samples, prepare standardized solutions, and collect spectrophotometric and photometric data. From this, the student will work to develop simple analytical methods that use mobile phone cameras.

Skills required:
Students should have basic knowledge and experience in chemistry, at the first-year university level. Students should be comfortable with the using spreadsheet programs such as MS Excel. Experience with 3D printing is an asset.

Research area: The primary objective of my research program is to convert naturally abundant biomass into functional biomaterials through a cost effective and energy efficient means, ultimately creating alternative sources of materials for our society. Specifically, the research in my group will strive to streamline green and efficient bio-based nanomaterials isolation to achieve high yield conversion and reduced cost, comprehensive surface modification of as-derived nanomaterials to diversify functionalities, controlled assembly into high performance hierarchical structures, and novel materials development to broaden the applications in both energy and environmental areas towards sustainability.

Student roles:
The interns will apply advanced nanotechnologies in deriving and characterizing bio-based nanomaterials from wood, and will continue to design hierarchical structure using techniques such as layer-by-layer, spin-coating, solvent casting, spinning, and 3D printing. The project will lead to assembled materials with improved performance and/or novel functionalities.

Skills required:
Students are expected to be in the discipline of Chemistry, Materials Science, Polymer Science and Engineering, Wood science and chemistry, etc.
Previous experience in working in a chemistry lab is preferred.
Desired skills will include: organic/polymer synthesis, characterization techniques using NMR, GPC, FTIR, SEM, TEM, and thermal analysis.

Research area: Dr. Liao’s research focuses on green infrastructure, water treatment, water resource management, plant-soil-water interactions, environmental monitoring and remediation, and remote sensing. Her work aims to optimize the monitoring and design of nature-based systems to improve water quality, plant performance, and ecosystem functions. She also investigates the design and application of sustainable, engineered materials for the removal of both traditional and emerging contaminants from water and the environment, while protecting ecosystem health. In addition, Liao employs remote sensing and data science approaches (e.g., meta-analysis) to understand, assess, and optimize vegetation, water, and environmental performance and management at multiple spatial scales.

Student roles:
The intern will work closely with the graduate student and research team to support a larger research project focused on wastewater treatment using biofilter systems. The student’s role will include assisting with routine operation, monitoring, and maintenance of biofilter systems, sample collection, sample preparation, and laboratory analyses. The student will also support plant monitoring and environmental data collection and organization. Through these activities, the intern will gain practical experience in water quality analysis, biofilter system operation, green infrastructure research, and environmental monitoring, while contributing to an applied research project in sustainable wastewater treatment.

Skills required:
- Academic background in environmental engineering, chemical engineering, civil engineering, environmental science, environmental microbiology, analytical chemistry, or a closely related field.
- Strong interest in applied research focused on water quality, water treatment, and nature-based solutions.
- Previous research experience in laboratory analysis and greenhouse monitoring relevant to water or environmental systems.
- Strong analytical, organizational, communication, and teamwork skills.

Research area: Research in the Ollevier Group is centered on the field of organic synthesis and catalysis. We are inspired by the pursuit of new concepts in synthetic organic chemistry involving metal-mediated catalysis and asymmetric synthesis. Please visit our Publications page to see our latest work or scroll down to view highlights of the various areas of research we are currently engaged in. Over the years, our laboratory has assumed a strong leadership in green Lewis acid catalysts. Recently, we developed efficient enantioselective processes using new green catalysts. We develop general applications for new classes of catalysts.

Student roles:
The first part of the project will involve the preparation of the new catalysts. The preparation will be done in a few steps from products available in our research group. Preliminary results from our group suggest that this project is very well suited for an intern student. In the second part of the project, the student will develop conditions to test the efficiency of the catalyst on the model reaction by varying the different parameters. Several substrates will be chosen. Since this reaction is part of a set of reactions which were already studied in our research group with other catalysts, the identification of the reaction products will be facilitated. The methodology consists of optimizing reaction conditions with the aim of getting the best enantiomeric enrichment of the reaction products.

Skills required:
Research abilities for laboratory experimental work

Research area: - Recovery and recycling of forest products (end-of-life residues, contaminated wood residues, effluents from the pulp and paper industry) - Production and characterization of bioproducts (bio-oil, biochar, and syngas) and porous and carbonaceous biosourced materials - Study of the application of carbonaceous materials according to their porosity, surface chemistry, and physical and chemical properties - Development of new technologies to produce carbonaceous materials from forest residues - Application of biosourced and carbonaceous materials: bioenergy, bioremediation, agriculture, forestry, CO2 capture and sequestration, wastewater treatment, catalysis, energy storage, and electrochemistry, among others.

Student roles:
Each student will have a specific role to play and will be primarily responsible for achieving the objectives of their research. Contacts with external partners will allow students to better understand how the results of their work can be applied. They will acquire knowledge and expertise in the fields of biopolymers, biobased materials, extraction processes, characterization, and application of biopolymers and biomaterials.

Skills required:
• Autonomy
• Motivation and rigor
• Willingness to go beyond current knowledge and practices
• Good level of French and/or English (Reading / Writing / Speaking / Understanding)
• Openness to criticism to benefit from it
• Use of different means of communication and digital tools to support the development of professional skills

Research area: I am a seasoned chemical engineer with specialized area on separation engineering and reaction engineering. One of my research interests is focused on Bio-refinery of Biomass, namely, biomass conversion to produce an array of products. Feedstocks are low value biomass or organic waste, including agriculture/forest residues, microalgae/macroalgae, municipal solid waste, food processing waste and animal manure etc. The target products are value-added bioactive compounds with antioxidant, antibacterial, antiviral, and anticancer activities (polyphenols, carotenoids, polysaccharides, and fatty acids), platform chemicals (organic acids and lubricants), and renewable carbon materials.

Student roles:
The students will work on an independent project under the assistance of gradate students and the supervision of the professor.
- Based on the project assigned, literature review would be the first step, followed by experimental design (identify influential factors on process and choose statistical method) .
- The student will conduct experiments of either extraction or hydrothermal liquefaction, and characterize the products obtained.
- Data analysis is required to evaluate the experimental error and valid the reliance of data.
- Write a final report and prepare a poster in English.

Skills required:
The students with chemical engineering/environmental engineering/chemistry background are preferred.
Working experience at research labs is necessary. Skills of using analytical instruments such as GC-MS, HPLC, and elemental analyzer will be an asset.
Good oral/written English communication skills are required

Research area: Our group's area of research focuses on the development of sustainable materials for environmental applications, particularly hydrochars derived from biomass used as adsorbents for CO₂ capture and water treatment. Our work combines hydrothermal carbonization, surface modification, and thermal post-treatment to optimize the porosity, surface chemistry, and adsorption performance of the materials. Advanced characterization techniques such as BET, FTIR, XRD, SEM-EDS, and GC-TCD analyses are used to establish a correlation between material properties and their gas adsorption behavior, fixed-bed breakthrough performance, and regeneration potential.

Student roles:
The student will contribute to the synthesis, characterization, and performance evaluation of biomass-derived adsorbents for CO₂ capture. Under supervision, the student will assist in preparing hydrochar materials by hydrothermal carbonization using residual biomass. The student will also participate in sample recovery and preparation, including filtration, washing, drying, grinding, sieving, and thermal treatment when required. As part of the materials characterization process, the student will prepare samples for FTIR analysis and assist in interpreting the results. The student will also support CO₂ adsorption experiments using a fixed-bed column system. This will include adsorbent packing, gas line preparation, leak checking, pretreatment under N₂, and collection or online analysis of outlet gas using GC-TCD. Finally, the student will analyze experimental data and contribute to weekly research discussions.

Skills required:
The student must have a background in chemical engineering, environmental engineering, materials science, chemistry, or a related field. Basic laboratory experience is required, including experience with solution preparation, filtration, drying, weighing, and the safe handling of chemicals. Knowledge of adsorption, porous materials, carbon-based materials, or gas chromatography would be an asset.

Research area: We develop theoretical frameworks for understanding quantum systems. Our research bridges fundamental quantum mechanics with practical applications in chemistry and materials science. We study quantum statistics of many-body quantum systems, chemical reaction kinetics, and quantum dynamics in open system settings.

Student roles:
The student will contribute to the development and implementation of path integral Monte Carlo (PIMC) simulations to calculate isotopic fractionation factors for small molecules relevant to geochemistry. Specifically, the student will: write and optimize computational code to perform PIMC calculations using high-precision potential energy surfaces; run simulations for molecules containing up to 20 atoms; analyze and validate the resulting isotopic fractionation data against available experimental benchmarks; and help interpret the results in the context of geological and biological processes. The student will work closely with the supervisor and the research group, participate in regular meetings, read relevant scientific literature, and contribute to writing a research report summarizing the findings.

Skills required:
Theoretical and/or computational chemistry OR background in physics/engeneering/chemistry/materials with ability and experience in programming in any language. Experience performing chemistry-relevant calculations is preferred.

Research area: Using low toxicity early transition metals we prepare novel N,O-chelated metal complexes suitable for the catalytic synthesis of amines and N-heterocycles using Green Chemistry approaches. Amines and N-heterocycles are important organic small molecules for the pharmaceutical and agrochemical industries. Such compounds can be prepared using a catalytic C-N bond formation reaction by adding an N-H bond across a C-C multiple bond (hydroamination). Alternatively, amines can be prepared using a catalytic C-C bond formation adjacent to the nitrogen of amines by direct C-H bond functionalization (hydroaminoalkylation). Using these catalytic reactions we can make these industrially relevant amines with 100% atom economy.

Student roles:
Students will work under the direct supervision of a postdoctoral or senior graduate student researcher, who will be their peer mentor. The peer mentor will be a co-author for the publication of the research and as such, they are invested in supporting student success. The student will be trained in all required synthetic skills for success in the project and will also be trained in report writing, assembling data for publication, presentation of research results and discussion of recent literature. My lab aims to support students in realizing their full potential by providing training at the highest level to support next steps at any globally leading institution, including UBC. Ambitious students seeking international experience in a dynamic and diverse research environment are encouraged to apply. The student will design and perform experiments with the guidance of their peer mentor and bi-weekly progress reports will be assembled for discussion with the Prof. Schafer. Students will gain hands-on experience in advanced NMR spectroscopy, glovebox techniques and GCMS. There may be opportunities for the student to gain experience in computational chemistry and/or X-ray crystallography during their stay in the group. There may also be the opportunity to attend a regional research conference during the summer. Safety is a top priority in the lab and students will be expected to complete departmental safety training upon arrival. Only applicants with a strong interest in a collaborative research environment and the ability to work in a team are suitable for working on this project.

Skills required:
Students will be pursuing a bachelor's degree in chemistry and will have an interest in organic and/or organometallic chemistry and will aspire to continue in research at the post-graduate level. Students should have a keen interest in synthetic chemistry (organic and/or inorganic). Previous research laboratory experience is an asset, but not required. Students will be required to maintain a laboratory notebook, complete safety training, participate in group-meetings, assemble bi-weekly reports that summarize research progress, present their work to the group upon project completion and support the maintenance of a tidy and safe laboratory.

Research area: We are an inorganic chemistry research group specializing in the design and synthesis of paramagnetic ligands. Typically, our ligand design is based on sulfur-nitrogen (i.e., thiazyl) heterocycles. We coordinate our novel ligands to main group metals, transition metals, lanthanides, and actinides, thus our chemistry spans the entirety of the periodic table. The primary purpose of this research is to create new crystalline materials and/or molecular surfaces with novel and/or enhanced properties or combinations of properties. For example, we have recently made supramolecular structures that behave as Ising-like spin chains (Chem. Eur. J., 2024) via intermolecular contacts.

Student roles:
The student will work regular hours in the synthetic chemistry lab. Their responsibilities include reading background literature and safety data sheets, cleaning glassware, undertaking chemical reactions - including designing the reaction in consultation with the PI, monitoring & trouble-shooting, collecting and purifying products, disposing of waste, and collecting appropriate characterization data. Students will maintain a lab book and present their work at weekly group meetings.

Skills required:
The student should have at least one semester of inorganic chemistry training at a 3rd-year undergraduate level. They should have at least three semesters of upper-year undergraduate synthetic laboratory training (e.g., organic or inorganic synthesis at 2nd- or 3rd- year level). They should have basic spectroscopic training, including knowing how to prepare an NMR sample, collect NMR, and interpret NMR spectra. They should have basic understanding of chemical safety protocols and willingness to abide by safety rules in our lab.

Research area: Prof. Cuccia’s research program is supramolecular in nature and concentrates on self-assembly and chirality, focusing on interactions between organic and inorganic crystalline components (liquid/solid and solid/solid). As an example, they are one of the first groups to demonstrate enantiomer-specific oriented attachment in conglomerate crystalline systems. A new and exciting research direction in the Cuccia lab is the investigation of the Chirality Induced Spin Selectivity (CISS) effect, which combines chiral molecules with spintronics and has broad and promising implications in various fields of physics, chemistry and biochemistry.

Student roles:
The chiral induced spin selectivity (CISS) effect is a type of spintronics where electron transport through chiral molecules is dependent on electron spin. The selected student will investigate enantioselective spin-dependent electron transport at spin filter surfaces. The ferromagnetic spin filter surfaces will be prepared electrochemically or by electroless deposition of nickel and gold onto silicon substrates, while the spin-up/spin-down selectivity will be controlled with a permanent magnet. For example, The student will learn how to prepare spin filter surfaces, how to perform and analyze electrochemistry experiments (i.e. cyclic voltammetry) and how to grow crystals and determine crystal chirality.

Skills required:
The selected student should have fundamental background in Chemistry (Organic, Physical and Analytical). The required skills and techniques for the success of the described project will be taught to the student during the 12-week internship, but having some laboratory experience is an asset. The student will learn how to prepare spin filter surfaces, how to perform and analyze electrochemistry experiments (i.e. cyclic voltammetry) and how to grow crystals and determine crystal chirality. The main requirements are to have: an inquisitive mind, the ability to work hard and enthusiasm.

Research area: Materials Chemistry with a focus on liquid crystals, nanoparticles, and biopolymers with solid-state NMR as a characterization tool.

Student roles:
The student will learn how to prepare the nanoparticles and attach the polymer ligands under the supervision of an experienced research associate and/or graduate student followed by studying their properties using the techniques mentioned above. The students should keep a handwritten laboratory book and write a report to summarize their results at the end of their internship. The supervisor will regularly meet with the students during the week to discuss their results and make changes in the research project as needed.

Skills required:
Some experience in chemical or materials synthesis and/or characterization along with having completed laboratory courses in organic, inorganic and analytical/physical chemistry.

Research area: Mining hydrogeology and mining environment

Student roles:
- Literature review on the different reclamation methods of mine sites
- Assess of the different numerical codes used for evalauating acid mine drainage or neutral contaminated drainage
- Sample preparation for oxygen consumption tests
- Provide assistance to graduate students in their lab work.

Skills required:
Knowledge of mineralogy, geochemistry, or mining environments

Research area: Professor Karin Kleiner focuses on advanced lithium-ion battery materials, combining synthesis, electrochemistry, and operando characterization to understand performance and degradation mechanisms. She develops new materials to improve sustainability, energy density, and cost efficiency for next-generation lithium-ion batteries. Her group also investigates direct and hydrometallurgical recycling of cathode materials to enable a low-carbon circular battery economy.

Student roles:
The student will be an active member of the research team and will participate in the synthesis, characterization, and electrochemical testing of lithium-ion battery materials. Under the supervision of senior students and the professor, the student will assist with data collection, analysis, and interpretation. The student may also participate in synchrotron beamtime experiments when applicable and contribute to sample preparation and characterization activities. Additional responsibilities include maintaining laboratory records, following safety protocols, participating in group meetings, and contributing to technical reports, presentations, and scientific literature reviews.

Skills required:
The student should be enrolled in a program in chemical engineering, materials engineering, chemistry, physics, or a related field. An interest in energy materials, lithium-ion batteries, and experimental research is essential. The candidate should demonstrate attention to detail, independence, and the ability to work effectively as part of a team. Basic data analysis and scientific communication skills are desirable. Previous experience in a laboratory setting, electrochemistry, materials characterization, or programming (Python, MATLAB, or equivalent) is considered an asset but is not required. Training on experimental techniques and safety procedures will be provided.

Research area: We are a multidisciplinary computational group that spans Physics, Chemistry (pH) and Materials Science. Research in my group focuses on understanding kinetic processes dictating the performance and durability of batteries and catalysts from first principles. To improve energy efficiency and lifetime of a device, it is necessary to understand ion diffusion and reaction coupled with the evolution of defects in materials. Our simulations will unveil factors affecting materials performances with atomistic details that are not easily accessible experimentally. Ultimately, our goal is to guide the atomistic-level control of materials for a sustainable future.

Student roles:
Learn the basics of running calculations on a supercomputer.
Conduct DFT calculations on various proposed compositions and structures.
Examine the stabilities of the proposed compositions by comparing their energies with those of reference compounds.
Build the computational phase diagram based on the above stability analysis.
Compare the computed phase diagram with experimental results in the literature.

Skills required:
The ideal candidate should enjoy working with computers and be familiar with the Linux operating system by the time the project starts.
Coding experience is a plus.
Basic knowledge of thermodynamics or statistical mechanics.

Research area: My research area is in the crossroad of physical chemistry/chemical physics, computational modeling (molecular simulations, continuum modeling), biological/biochemical systems, computer science, biophysics. We develop computational methodologies and analytical theory in the framework of computational modeling to study (i) protein and nuclei acid interactions, (ii) macromolecule (protein, nuclei acid )-ion interactions, (iii) aerosol droplets/clusters, with applications in atmospheric chemistry, electrospray ionization/ mass spectrometry, physics of jets and nanofluidics; (iv) physics of ice & supercooled water. From computer science we borrow machine learning methods to implement them in our studies.

Student roles:
The student is expected to perform molecular simulations with the NAMD or GROMACS or LAMMPS simulation package and data analysis. Initially exploratory simulation runs will be performed by molecular dynamics methods. The students will learn how to set-up those simulations, usage of VMD, analysis of data. In the later stage of the project advanced sampling methods will be used. The student is expected to learn MD methods, NAMD/GROMACS/LAMMPS, set-up the simulations, perform the simulations, analyze the data. The data should be written in a formal report that leads to publication of the data. The student is expected to attend the regular weekly group meetings held in the group and provide regular research updates in the meetings. The student should prepare on computer coding skills and on the usage of molecular modelling software before they join the Consta Lab.

Skills required:
Required background in physics and/or chemistry, and/or physical chemistry, and/or chemical physics, statistical mechanics and/or statistical physics, and/or applied mathematics, and/or biophysics in combination with physical chemistry knowledge, and/or molecule simulations, and/or Molecular Dynamics (MD) and Monte Carlo methods. Computer programming skills such as python and/or Java and/or C++ and/or FORTRAN and/or scripting languages are absolutely required. Knowledge of software packages mainly NAMD (or GROMACS), or LAMMPS and VMD visualization are optional. Lack of this knowledge should be filled prior to joining the Consta group. Required ability for team and individual work.

Research area: We are a synthetic bioorganic/materials group focused on applying the tools of synthetic organic chemistry to the challenges of biology, medicine and materials science. Our chemistry involves developing new unnatural amino acids and carbohydrates and making more stable artificial oligosaccharides and peptides for immunological and anti-cancer applications, and using these biomaterials as the basis for new classes of sustainable materials for a variety of applications including smart drug-delivery, environmentally benign plastics, and for use as nano-probes for medical diagnostics.

Student roles:
The candidate will be working as part of a multi-disciplinary team comprising post-doctoral, doctoral, masters and undergraduate students. After a short period of getting comfortable with the lab and the project, they will be provided a self-contained subproject to manage and develop. They will be working very closely with the other members of the computational team (2 PhD students, 5 PDFs, and 1 undergraduate) and the rest of the group as a whole. As this work is progressing very quickly in our group, the exact project will be decided upon arrival of the student and upon agreement on a subject of mutual interest.

Skills required:
Ideally we are looking for a computational chemist with broad interests in multidiciplinary science. The student should have some familiarity with computational chemistry before arriving, but can be taught any of the software they will need. The specific project to be undertaken will be selected both based on the interests and capabilities of the student. Unlike any other MITACS project, the student can continue to collaborate on the science after returning to their home country if they wish. The student will also, ideally, be interested in continuing their studies in graduate school in computational chemistry.

Research area: Our research is driven by the challenge of powering a sustainable future. We design and investigate electrochemically active materials for cutting-edge energy storage technologies, with a current focus on lithium-ion, sodium-ion, all-solid-state, multivalent, and metal-air batteries. By exploring new material chemistries and rethinking how electrodes are made, we aim to streamline battery fabrication and unlock higher performance at lower cost. From synthesizing novel materials to probing their properties through advanced electrochemical and chemical techniques, we take a hands-on, integrated approach—building and testing real batteries to push the boundaries of what’s possible in energy storage. Our goal is to develop the

Student roles:
My group recently discovered a new class of electrode matrices—molecular-level composites of conducting polymers and polyanions—with exciting potential for battery applications. As part of this project, you will join our active research efforts while leading your own investigation into how these materials perform in an alternative battery chemistry of your choice. Your work will follow a step-by-step progression:
1. Synthesize Electroactive Polymers
You’ll begin by synthesizing electroactive polymers using our established protocols. This will help you become familiar with the materials and techniques central to our research, while integrating you into the lab’s daily activities.
2. Select a Battery Chemistry
In collaboration with your supervisor, you will choose one alternative battery system to focus on—such as lithium-sulfur, sodium-ion, or magnesium-ion—based on your interests and project goals.
3. Source or Synthesize Battery Components
You will obtain or synthesize the relevant active materials and electrolytes needed for your selected battery chemistry.
4. Fabricate and Test Composite Electrodes
You’ll prepare composite electrodes incorporating your electroactive polymer matrix and test their performance under realistic conditions.
5. Assemble and Evaluate Full Cells
Finally, you will fabricate full battery cells and assess their electrochemical performance, helping to determine the potential of these sustainable matrices in next-generation energy storage systems.

Skills required:
You should have a background in materials chemistry, electrochemistry or functional material engineering and excitement to contribute to solutions to our fossil fuel dependence.

Research area: The research of our group is at the intersection between physics, chemistry and biology. We utilize optical methods to study biophysical problems, including protein dynamics, energy and charge transfer processes, in particular occurring in the context of photosynthesis. We also build our own instruments (or modify existing ones), write our own software and engage in computer modeling.

Student roles:
The student will become a member of the group that currently contains 2 graduate students and some undergraduate students.
The student will participate in instrument design and modifications as well as proof-of-principle optical/spectroscopic measurements utilizing existing setup, analyze obtained data, perform some chemistry for protein immobilization purposes, discuss his/her results with the graduate student and supervisor and produce reports and figures. Tilting the project more towards development of software (for equipment control or data analysis or modeling) may be arranged if student so desires. The student will also be expected to familiarize him/herself with relevant literature and to acquire basic understanding of explored phenomena and of experimental methods.
The MITACS Student will gain experiences with experimental techniques (optical spectroscopy and microscopy, some chemistry), equipment and data analysis / software that will be useful for him/her in many areas of science, beyond biophysics. S/he may become a co-author of a publication.

Skills required:
The student should have some knowledge of optics and chemistry and desire to learn new things. Interest in and predisposition for experimental work is a must. Previous experience with experimental research projects is a plus. Applicants may note that some current and past undergraduate honours students and graduate students in our group have background in biochemistry or chemical engineering. Thus, although deeper knowledge of physics is a plus, it is not a requirement.

Research area: My expertise is in quantum computational science and technology with a focus on quantum chemistry and computational chemistry. My research aims to advance chemistry by the adoption and integration of machine learning and quantum computing. We work towards developing new computational approaches and tools that enable accelerated virtual workflows to bridge the gap between highly accurate but computationally expensive quantum mechanical methods and the need for efficient and reliable computations for large-scale molecular studies. The applications of interest to us include materials discovery for gas capture, catalyst search for various chemical processes, computer-aided synthesis planning, and others.

Student roles:
In this project, the student will primarily focus on developing and investigating efficient transcorrelated Hamiltonian representations for quantum simulation of molecular systems. Their main objective will be to explore strategies for reducing the computational complexity associated with constructing and manipulating transcorrelated Hamiltonians while maintaining their ability to accurately capture electron correlation effects. To accomplish this, students will work extensively with the Python programming language and utilize scientific computing, quantum chemistry, and quantum computing software libraries. They will also be responsible for implementing and evaluating new computational approaches for generating compact Hamiltonian representations suitable for large-scale simulations.

The student’s role will involve solution design, research code development, algorithm implementation, and execution of computational experiments on classical and quantum simulation platforms. A key aspect of their responsibilities will be constructing, analyzing, and benchmarking transcorrelated Hamiltonians using a variety of approximation, factorization, and compression techniques. The student will investigate approaches for reducing the computational and memory requirements associated with the construction of transcorrelated Hamiltonians, enabling their application to larger molecular systems and more efficient quantum simulations. They will also study how different approaches affect computational scaling, operator complexity, and simulation accuracy for chemically relevant systems. In addition, they will develop workflows for generating molecular Hamiltonians, performing numerical studies, and assessing the impact of reduced-complexity Hamiltonians on downstream quantum simulation algorithms.

The project will be supervised and mentored by me. Effective communication and guidance will play a crucial role in the student’s engagement. They will participate in regular one-on-one meetings to receive direction on method development, computational experimentation, data analysis, result interpretation, and effective research communication, including publishing articles and giving presentations. Through this research experience, students will gain valuable skills and training in quantum chemistry, quantum computing, scientific software development, and high-performance computational modeling.

Skills required:
Ideal candidates for this project are students interested in quantum computing, computational science, and machine learning, and who are eager to explore the intersection of these fields through the study of quantum algorithms and quantum-enhanced learning methods. They should be motivated to work in a highly interdisciplinary research environment, collaborating with researchers from diverse backgrounds in natural sciences, mathematics, computer science, and engineering. Preference will be given to students enrolled in natural sciences, mathematics, computer science, or related disciplines with strong computational and programming skills. Familiarity with linear algebra, quantum mechanics, or machine learning would be advantageous.

Research area: Our research involves the synthesis of supramolecular assemblies capable of photochemical reactions. It requires organic and inorganic synthesis of suitable building blocks, the self-assembly of the building blocks into larger arrays, and the use of light to activate molecules towards chemical reactions. We also incorporate quantum dots (QD) into our assemblies to increase the efficiency of the photochemical reactions.

Student roles:
The student will work in close association with a graduate student to synthesis novel heterocyclic ligands. These ligands will be used to coordinate transition metal ions. He or she will characterize the ligands and their metal complexes using a wide variety of techniques, including 1H and 13C NMR spectroscopy, mass spectrometry, electrochemistry, UV-visible and emission spectroscopies, and X-ray crystallography.
The metal complexes will then be used as photosensitizers for the catalytic reduction of water to hydrogen gas and CO2 to methanol in conjunction with Co and Fe-based catalysts. The photocatalytic reactions will be followed by careful analysis using gas and liquid chromatography. We will also synthesize CdSe based quantum dots as well as a new approach to synthesized perovskite quantum dots.
After completing this research internship, the candidate will be able to design and synthesize new organic and inorganic compounds. He or she will be able to characterize compounds using a variety of techniques, including 1H and 13C NMR spectroscopy, mass spectrometry, electrochemistry, absorption and emission spectroscopies, and will have experience collecting X-ray data from single crystals.
The student will present at group meetings every two weeks and will attend local conferences and symposia to present their results either by poster or by giving a talk. Time will be taken to learn how to present your results at a scientific meeting.

Skills required:
The student should have experience in organic and inorganic synthesis, and routine characterization of organic and inorganic compounds using 1H NMR, mass spectrometry and UV-visible spectroscopy. The student will have to purify compounds by column chromatography and follow reactions by TLC. Some prior experience with electrochemistry and luminescence spectroscopy would be an asset, but is not absolutely necessary. Experience in the synthesis and characterization of quantum dots would be a definite asset.

Research area: Research in the Newman group involves the design of new reactions, methods, and processes for the synthesis of important organic molecules. Transition metal catalysis, flow chemistry, and green chemistry strategies are heavily utilized towards this goal. To maximize the impact of our research program, an emphasis is made on practical, industrially relevant reactions that could be of direct use to the pharmaceutical, polymer, biomass, and bulk chemical industries. Students in the Newman lab will get trained in fundamental chemistry techniques for synthesis and analysis of important organic molecules.

Student roles:
Student will run chemical reactions in batch mode and determine the outcome by NMR and gas chromatography. Limitations of batch processing method will be evaluated, and key variables will be manipulated to enable the reactions to be run in continuous flow mode. Construction of a flow reactor and operation of the reaction in flow will be carried out, with further optimization to maximize efficiency.

Skills required:
Student should have a background in synthetic chemistry, green chemistry, or chemical reaction engineering. Familiarity with continuous processes would be advantageous but not required. Student must have taken undergraduate chemistry courses with both a classroom and practical (lab) component.

Research area: - Critical metals extraction with innovative processes including solvent based extraction, biological extraction processes, - Bioadsorption of critical minerals - Building a circular economy for the extraction and recovery of critical minerals from waste - Water treatment of mining impacted waters with innovative biologicla systems - Resource recovery

Student roles:
We are seeking outstanding, enthusiastic candidates holding a degree in biotechnology engineering, materials engineering, microbiology, bioprocess engineering, environmental sciences, or a related field with basic knowledge of chemistry. Candidates with experience in microbiology and enzymatic degradation of pollutants will be prioritized.
We are looking for highly motivated individuals who demonstrate passion and creativity and thrive in a collaborative environment. Candidates must show strong skills in research planning, experimental design, scientific writing and publishing, as well as rigour, perseverance, and excellent communication and writing

Skills required:
We are seeking outstanding, enthusiastic candidates holding a degree in biotechnology engineering, materials engineering, microbiology, bioprocess engineering, environmental sciences, or a related field with basic knowledge of chemistry. Candidates with experience in microbiology and enzymatic degradation of pollutants will be prioritized.
We are looking for highly motivated individuals who demonstrate passion and creativity and thrive in a collaborative environment. Candidates must show strong skills in research planning, experimental design, scientific writing and publishing, as well as rigour, perseverance, and excellent communication and writing

Research area: I am an Associate Professor in Biomaterials in the Faculty of Dentistry at University of Toronto. The unifying theme of my laboratory is the investigation of biological processes at play in tissue (re)generation by using functional and biomimetic materials that bear signaling moieties in precisely controlled patterns; in essence this is a pathway to extract biological information through synthetic chemistry. Our goal is to use synthetic DNA and protein scaffolds to generate a versatile platform for minimally invasive reparation approaches in nanomedicine.

Student roles:
The student will be working in a wet laboratory environment (Biosafety Level 2) with a graduate student and/or postdoc. Techniques the student will be performing are: DNA synthesis, and purification, varied biochemical and biophysical analyses, and microscopy.

Skills required:
The ideal candidate will have experience/interest in molecular biology, biochemistry and microscopy. The student should be organized, methodical and self-driven. Experience with computational modelling is an asset.

Research area: The laboratoire ArchéoSciences et sciences du patrimoine (LASP) specialises in the analysis, study and dating of heritage materials. It uses analytical methods borrowed from analytical chemistry, geology and geochemistry. Research projects are multidisciplinary, at the crossroads of the natural sciences, engineering and the humanities.

Student roles:
The student will be required to draw up an analytical protocol and carry out analyses on previously prepared samples and on references that they will have manufactured. They will be responsible for writing an analytical report. The project will be carried out under the supervision of the internship supervisor, and possibly a master's or doctoral student.

Skills required:
It would be appreciated if the student had some basic knowledge of geochronology (radiocarbon dating) and was comfortable carrying out manipulations in a chemistry laboratory. The student we are looking for should be autonomous, versatile and have an interest in multidisciplinary research.

Research area: Dr. Asgari joined the University of New Brunswick in 2023 after research positions at the University of Waterloo. His research focuses on metal additive manufacturing (3D Printing), particularly laser powder bed fusion, with emphasis on process optimization, alloy design, and advanced materials characterization. He has authored over 80 peer-reviewed publications in manufacturing and materials science. His work involves collaboration with major aerospace, marine, and energy partners such as Safran Landing Systems, J.D. Irving, and Burloak Technologies. His current research explores the development, processing, and performance of novel titanium and copper alloys for high-performance engineering applications across demanding industrial sectors.

Student roles:
The selected interns will play an active role in the experimental characterization of laser powder bed fused (LPBF) copper alloy samples. Their primary responsibilities will include assisting with sample preparation, such as sectioning, mounting, grinding, polishing, and etching, following established laboratory protocols. They will also perform surface roughness measurements and contribute to the preparation of specimens for microscopy.
Interns will be involved in microstructural characterization using techniques such as optical microscopy (OM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM), with opportunities to gain exposure to more advanced methods such as electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) and X-ray diffraction (XRD), depending on progress and interest. They will work closely with graduate students and research staff who are leading ongoing projects on copper alloys, contributing to data collection, organization, and preliminary analysis.
In addition to experimental work, interns will participate in regular group meetings, where they will be expected to present their progress, discuss observations, and engage in technical discussions. They will also assist in documenting experimental procedures and results, helping to maintain organized records of their work.
Where appropriate, interns may contribute to basic data analysis and interpretation, including identifying trends in microstructural features and relating them to processing conditions. They will be encouraged to develop problem-solving skills and to take initiative under supervision.
Overall, the role is designed to provide hands-on experience in materials characterization within a collaborative research environment, while building foundational skills in laboratory practice, data analysis, and scientific communication.

Skills required:
Applicants should be senior undergraduate students in materials science, mechanical engineering, or a related discipline. A basic understanding of materials science concepts, including microstructure and mechanical behavior, is expected. Prior exposure to laboratory work, such as sample preparation (cutting, polishing, etching) and microscopy (e.g., optical or scanning electron microscopy), is beneficial. Strong analytical thinking, attention to detail, and a willingness to learn are essential. Experience with data analysis and technical reporting is an asset, but not required. Students should be motivated to work in a collaborative research environment and eager to gain hands-on experience in advanced materials characterization

Research area: Our research focuses on understanding how oxidation and reduction processes influence the structure and electrocatalytic performance of transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDCs). It involves developing and optimizing inorganic materials through advanced synthesis techniques and characterizing their properties. A significant aspect of our work is investigating the electrochemical performance of these materials, particularly for applications like the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). This research aims to enhance the efficiency and functionality of catalysts, contributing to advancements in renewable energy technologies.

Student roles:
Sample preparation: Students will prepare freshly made MoS2 and reduced aged MoS2 samples. They will learn hydrothermal synthesis for freshly made MoS2 and thermal treatment methods under controlled atmospheres to induce phase transformation from MoO3 to MoO2.
Characterization: Students will perform detailed characterization of the all the MoS2 samples. This involves operating and analyzing data from Raman spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction (XRD). Students will learn to interpret the structural data to assess the quality and properties of the synthesized materials.
Electrochemical Properties Test: Students will carry out electrochemical testing to evaluate the HER catalytic performance of MoS2. They will conduct experiments using linear sweep voltammetry (LSV) and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and will analyze the resulting data to determine the efficiency and performance of the catalysts.
Data Analysis: Students will engage in comprehensive data analysis to correlate synthesis parameters with the structural properties and catalytic performance of MoS2. They will use statistical and computational tools to identify trends and understand how oxidation and reduction processes influence catalytic activity.
Reporting and Presentation: Students will document their experimental procedures, results, and analyses in a detailed lab report. They will also participate in group meetings and presentations to communicate their findings to the research team. This will develop their scientific writing and presentation skills.

Skills required:
Skills: Students should be proficient in standard laboratory techniques, including solution preparation, and sample handling. They should be the ability to organize experiments systematically and manage time effectively to complete experiments. Students should also have the skills in organizing and managing experimental data efficiently.
Background: Students should have a solid foundation in chemistry, particularly in inorganic chemistry and materials science. Students have basic knowledge of electrochemical principles and techniques, which is beneficial for understanding and performing HER catalytic tests.

Research area: My research vision is to enable the seamless integration of interactive computing devices into our daily environment. One theme of this research vision is to bring computing and interactivity closer to the user’s body. For this, I have designed and developed epidermal devices, i.e., interactive devices that reside on the human epidermis. These soft devices are ultra-slim, adapt themselves to the complex geometries of the body, and enable a wide range of expressive interactions. My research is interdisciplinary, and I blend diverse disciplines (e.g., Materials Science, Electrical Engineering, Digital Fabrication, Printed Electronics, and Human-Computer Interaction) to solve fundamental research problems.

Student roles:
The project requires up to 2 students with skills in one or more of the following disciplines: Computer Science, Electrical/Electronics Engineering, Mechanical/Mechatronics, and Materials Engineering.

Discipline-specific tasks for the students are as follows:

For students with CS background: Typical tasks will include designing and developing computational tools to create the sensor design. This involves programming tasks in Python/Unity/Web technologies depending on the student's expertise. Additionally, students will employ state-of-the-art machine learning techniques to train models for capturing gestural input.

For Students with Chemistry/ Materials Science Background: Students will be closely working with colleagues in the Department of Chemistry at University of Calgary to formulate and synthesize new materials and chemicals to capture electro-chemical signals in the body.

Students with Electrical/ Electronics/Mechatronics Background: Typical tasks will include designing the control circuitry (using Arduino or other microcontroller platforms) to test and evaluate physiological sensing principles and device architectures.

Experience developing miniaturized PCBs is desirable but is not a mandatory requirement. If students have experience using simulation tools (e.g. Comsol/Ansys), then tasks will include designing simulation experiments. Additionally, if students have experience in signal processing techniques, then tasks will include employing state-of-the-art filtering
mechanisms to get a high signal-to-noise ratio from the sensors.

Students with Mechanical/Mechatronics: If students have experience in FEM (Finite Element Methods) or have prior experience using simulation
tools (e.g. Comsol/Ansys), then tasks will include designing simulation experiments. Students will work with functional materials to fabricate device designs.

Some of the other common tasks irrespective of the discipline include: reading relevant literature, designing technical experiments to measure the performance of the sensor, and working closely with other team members to ensure the success of the project. This is a highly multi-disciplinary project and hence students will be working with peers from other disciplines.

Skills required:
This project requires 1-2 students with a background in any one of the disciplines: Computer Science, Electronics and Electrical Engineering, Chemistry, Materials Engineering, or Mechatronics. The following skills are desirable for students from non-CS disciplines: designing PCBs, designing/working with printed electronics, signal processing techniques, knowledge/experience of simulation engines such as COMSOL/Ansys, etc. For Students with a CS background, the following skills are desired: strong implementation skills in one or more of the following: Python, Unity, JAVA/C#.Net, Android, and ML tools (Pytorch/TensorFlow). Highly motivated students with a desire and aptitude to learn new technologies quickly are also encouraged to apply.

Research area: Prof. Selopal is interested in investigating the nanoengineering of multi-functional materials at the nanoscale. His research interests include advanced materials design and optimization, analysis of structural-properties relationship to understand unexplored phenomena and further advances in sustainable energy technologies. In particular, Dr. Selopal's research focuses on developing more reliable, economically viable and affordable net-zero energy technologies such as photovoltaic, clean fuel production (hydrogen generation from water splitting), and wastewater treatment. Research areas: Nanostructured Materials, Green Nanoelectronics, Environmental Remediation, Clean Energy Conversion & Storage Technologies and Biomedical Engineering. Research sub-fields: Quantum dots, Metal Oxide, Interface Engineering, Device Fabrication & Performance Evaluation.

Student roles:
The research plan of this project is highly multidisciplinary, allowing students to be integrated into different tasks and activities. This will offer new possible paths for their future career, according to their interests and study background, and provide a general overview of broadly focused projects.
The student will join a research group of three people, each in charge of a specific, i.e.: (1) materials preparation, including the design and synthesis of SACs; (2) materials characterization, including the structural, optical, textural, and electronic properties of SACs and QDs; (3) LSC device fabrication, integration of SACs with LSC device and evaluation of Ammonia production using colorimetric assays and Ion chromatography. Initially, the student will be supervised throughout all steps. In the second part, the student should be able to develop skills and competencies in one of the specific sub-areas previously described, according to his/her background and preferences. His/her role will be to begin learning the basic operations needed for a safe and fruitful stay in a research lab. Then, he or she will directly contribute to a specific task, developing their independence in the assigned task and making substantial contributions to the smooth progress of the research. A fundamental part of the stage will be devoted to training the student in the correct operation of the lab and the use of scientific equipment.

Skills required:
The required background of the student is in the field of Materials Science, Chemistry, Electronic Engineering, Physics, and Nanomaterials. Skills in materials preparation and/or characterization and basic courses on nanostructured materials and nanotechnology will help the student in a deep understanding all the steps of materials synthesis and characterization. Background in materials chemistry and device engineering will be more specific to the project related to the materials synthesis, catalysts engineering, and its performance evaluation.

Research area: We are an interdisciplinary research group with an overarching theme of multifunctional fibrous polymeric composites. Under this umbrella we focus on: - 3-Dimensional and 2-Dimensional braided composites for a broad range of applications ranging from polymeric rebars to dental arch-wires and sutures. - Additive manufacturing for 4-D additive manufacturing using shape memory polymers and conductive materials - Electrospinning and Melt electrospinning for formation, characterization and modeling of nano fibers and nano-composite fibers and their aligned and randomly distributed fiber mats.

Student roles:
The student will conduct the drawing of the machine using CAD.
Later will manufacture this using 3D printing.

Skills required:
Mechanical angineering or related disciplines background is needed.
Additive manufacturing and polymers knowledge are desired.

Research area: Our research covers both fundamental and applied work in the synthesis, fabrication, and characterisation of novel materials. We prepare custom nanoscale materials for their use in clean energy applications (e.g., fuel cells, water splitting reactions, novel battery materials) and environmental monitoring. These materials include electrocatalysts with enhanced electrochemical performance for enabling a hydrogen economy, to enhanced durability for long-term utilisation, to highly sensitive or inexpensive solutions to environmental testing. These materials are prepared through synthetic, self-assembly, and nanofabrication techniques.

Student roles:
The successful student to join this research project will gain hands-on skills in working with materials, such as synthesis and assembly of nanoscale to microscale materials. They will also gain hands-on experience in the use of advanced microscopy and spectroscopy techniques for assessing the materials and changes to these materials in the areas of application sought through this work. The student will work with a multidisciplinary team of scientists and be exposed to an environment that provides state-of-the-art tooling for patterning, characterizing and otherwise working with materials, which includes a Class 100 Clean Room, advanced scanning and transmission electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, and advanced X-ray spectroscopy for surface characterization (e.g., facilities within www.4dlabs.ca). The successful student will also join the research team for regular group meetings and discussions on the science and results we are pursuing, as well as discussing the data in weekly meetings. The student will be responsible for being current in the literature, maintaining detailed and accurate laboratory notes, openly discussing their research with the team, and being open minded to the input from other team members and to where their curiosity and science may take them.

Skills required:
I look for a student that is self-motivated to learn, curious about science, and aspiring for continual self-improvement. They will need to be willing to work on and lead their own project, while also managing their schedule to work collaboratively with other students in the research group. They will need to be patient with others as they will receive a lot of hands-on training that requires multiple steps, and willing to help others in return. I also look for a student that is safety conscious. Importantly, I also seek someone that is creative and a problem solver.

Research area: The Hanna group develops and applies quantum, mixed quantum-classical, and classical methods to understand and control dynamical processes in complex molecular systems. Our work spans method development—advancing quantum-classical and open quantum-system simulations—as well as applications to problems of technological and fundamental importance. Current research directions include quantum and thermal transport, excitonic quantum batteries, and computational design of functional materials such as phosphonate MOFs for gas separation and energy storage, and phosphonate HOFs for proton conduction and optoelectronics.

Student roles:
The student will play an active role in the computational investigation of excitonic quantum batteries based on covalent-organic frameworks (COFs) and metal-organic frameworks (MOFs). The project will involve the application of state-of-the-art electronic-structure methods to understand how molecular structure, symmetry, and electronic coupling influence exciton formation, transport, and energy storage in framework materials.

The student will perform time-dependent density functional theory (TD-DFT) calculations to determine key excitonic properties, including excitation energies, transition dipole moments, charge-transfer characteristics, and inter-site coupling strengths. These calculations will be carried out using established computational chemistry software packages such as Gaussian and ORCA. The student will also assist with benchmarking selected systems using advanced many-body perturbation theory methods, including GW and Bethe-Salpeter Equation (BSE) calculations, to obtain more accurate descriptions of excitonic states and validate the TD-DFT results.

Using the computed electronic structure data, the student will help construct and parameterize effective excitonic Hamiltonians that describe energy transfer and coherence dynamics within COFs and MOFs. Depending on the system under investigation, this may include Frenkel exciton, Holstein-Frenkel, or tight-binding models. The student will perform quantum dynamics simulations to explore how framework topology, molecular symmetry, exciton coupling, and environmental interactions affect the formation and stability of dark excitonic states.

A particular focus of the project will be the investigation of highly ordered framework architectures, including ring-like and hexagonal arrangements that may support symmetry-protected excitonic states capable of storing energy with minimal losses. Through these studies, the student will contribute to the development of design principles for next-generation quantum batteries. In addition to gaining experience with advanced computational chemistry and quantum materials modeling, the student will develop skills in scientific programming, data analysis, and the communication of research results through reports, presentations, and publications.

Skills required:
The ideal student will have a strong background in chemistry, physics, materials science, or a related discipline, with an interest in quantum phenomena and computational modeling. Coursework in quantum mechanics, physical chemistry, condensed matter physics, or materials characterization is highly desirable. Experience with scientific programming (e.g., Python, MATLAB, or similar languages) and basic knowledge of computational chemistry or physics methods will be beneficial. The student should possess strong analytical and problem-solving skills, an ability to work independently and collaboratively, and excellent written and verbal communication skills. Prior research experience is an asset but not required.

Research area: The overarching objective of the research occurring in the Wetmore lab is to use computer modeling to gain a fundamental understanding of the chemistry of modified nucleic acids. This information is being used to uncovering how nucleic acids are processed in our cells and exploit the properties of modified nucleic acids in novel applications in medicine and biotechnology.

Student roles:
During the project, the student will be responsible for building computer models of the modified DNA/RNA, organizing input and running all calculations. The required calculations are technical and therefore will require careful analysis by the student. The student will be responsible for searching the literature, writing reports and presenting at weekly group meetings.

Skills required:
Background courses in chemistry, biology, biochemistry and/or math/computer science will provide foundational knowledge for the student to be involved in this project. However, no previous experience in the discipline of computational chemistry will be required as in-depth training will be provided at each step of the project.

Research area: Prof. Matta Kaur is interested in investigating the computer-aided design of photosynthetic biomaterials that use light and water to generate oxygen. Her research interests include photosynthesis, computational biophysics, protein–environment interactions, molecular modelling, and soft biomaterials inspired by natural light-powered systems. In particular, Prof. Matta Kaur’s research focuses on understanding how Photosystem II behaves inside water-rich hydrogels to guide future oxygen-generating biomaterial studies. Research areas: Computational Biophysics, Photosynthesis, Biomaterials, Molecular Modelling, Oxygen-Generating Materials. Research sub-fields: Photosystem II, Hydrogels, Water networks, Protein–polymer contacts, Surface charge, Coarse-grained Modelling.

Student roles:
This project is multidisciplinary and offers the student an opportunity to engage in different tasks related to photosynthesis, biomaterials, molecular modelling, and computational analysis. It will provide broad exposure to how computer-based research can be used to understand soft materials that may generate oxygen using light, while allowing the student to explore future career paths in computational chemistry, biomaterials, biophysics, and sustainable materials research.

The student will be responsible for a series of tasks: (1) reviewing literature on photosynthetic hydrogels, oxygen-generating biomaterials, and Photosystem II; (2) analyzing published Photosystem II structures using molecular-visualization tools; (3) identifying protein surface regions important for water access, charge distribution, and stability; and (4) examining possible protein–water and protein–polymer contact regions relevant to hydrogel-like environments.

The student will join Prof. Matta Kaur’s computational research group and will receive close supervision during the initial stages of the project. Early training will focus on understanding the biological system, reading selected research papers, using molecular-visualization software, organizing structural information, and documenting computational workflows. As the project progresses, the student is expected to build expertise and contribute more independently in one focused area, depending on their background and interests, such as water-access analysis, surface-charge comparison, protein–polymer contact analysis, or preparation of molecular figures. By the end of the internship, the student will prepare figures, a short written report, and an oral presentation that may guide future sunlight-powered oxygen hydrogel studies.

Skills required:
The required background of the student is in the fields of Chemistry, Biochemistry, Biological Sciences, Materials Science, Biomaterials, or related areas. Skills in molecular visualization, literature review, protein-structure analysis, Python, and basic molecular modelling will help the student understand the steps of computational biomaterials analysis. Basic courses in photosynthesis, biochemistry, physical chemistry, biomaterials, or computational chemistry will be useful. Background in protein–material interactions and hydrogel systems will be more specific to the project related to water access, surface charge, protein stability, and photosynthetic hydrogel design.

Research area: Heavy metals including Mercury (Hg), Iron (Fe), Cadmium (Cd) in their elemental, organic or inorganic form, in trace amounts affect the functioning of neuronal, digestive, respiratory and immune systems. WHO estimated that upto 17/1000 children show cognitive impacts by consumption of Hg containing fish. Hence, detection of ultra-low concentrations of Hg(0.02-5ppm) is of prime importance. Noble-metal nanostructured devices with tailored properties enhance weak Raman signals and are employed to sense and absorb minute concentrations of toxic metals. These devices are functionalized with molecules that interact with metals to form metal complexes that can easily be removed from the toxic system.

Student roles:
The students will be performing the following activities for successful completion of the research project:
1. Review literature
The student will document different strategies for designing nanostructures either in solution or on a solid substrate to achieve surface enhanced Raman signals (SERS). They will additionally understand the role of functionalization of nanoparticles for developing a sensor.
2. Characterize nanostructured surfaces
Different techniques will be employed to characterize the nanoparticles for their physical, structural, optical and plasmonic properties. These techniques include SEM, TEM, AFM and UV-Visible spectroscopy.
3. Perform surface chemistry
Functionalization of the substrates will be done to enhance selectivity and specificity of the nanostructured devices to heavy metals. Appropriate molecules and their concentrations will have to be recognized and then functionalize on the surface. Protocols will have to be put in place at each step in order to be efficient with time and achieve significant results.
4. Implement SERS phenomena to test sensor performance
Varied concentrations of ionic mercury (Hg) will be prepared to test the functionalized nanostructured sensor. The device will be iteratively improved to make it sensitive and efficient to Hg detection. Additionally, the sensor will be tested for selectivity and specificity to only Hg by formulating solutions of other heavy metals as Cadmium, Thallium, Arsenic, Chromium and Lead.
5. Analysis of data and conclusion of results
All data from different measurements will have to be evaluated and analyzed. Results will be interpreted logically and discussed scientifically.
6. Documentation and presentation of research project
A report has to be written at the conclusion of the research project. This will be considered an official document for the student. Furthermore, the student will be encouraged to present their results to the scientific community as an oral presentation.

Skills required:
The project is best suited for undergraduate students in biochemistry, chemistry, materials engineering and physics seeking to enhance laboratory, analytical and interpersonal skills. The students should possess excellent scientific acumen and experimental skills. The student will work in highly collaborative environment. Thus, good communication abilities are desirable. The nature of research stretches across multiple disciplines and hence strong background in the following areas are required:
-Basics of atomic, molecular and optical physics (undergraduate physics)
-Basics of inorganic and functional chemistry (undergraduate chemistry)
-Basics of materials science and vibrational spectroscopy (undergraduate materials engineering)
-General mathematics and biology knowledge (high school science)

Research area: • Advanced membrane materials and separation technologies for water treatment and resource recovery • Nanofiltration, reverse osmosis, membrane distillation, and electroactive membranes • Membrane fouling mitigation and membrane surface modification • Application of nanomaterials (MXenes, graphene, carbon-based materials) in membrane systems • Lithium extraction from brines and critical mineral recovery • Industrial wastewater treatment, desalination, and water reuse • Integration of membrane processes with electrochemical and advanced oxidation technologies

Student roles:
The student will support the development and optimization of lithium-selective nanofiltration membranes for the treatment of high-magnesium brines. Responsibilities include membrane fabrication and modification, preparation and incorporation of nanomaterials, membrane characterization, and filtration testing using synthetic and real brines. The student will assist with evaluating membrane performance, including lithium transport, magnesium rejection, permeability, fouling resistance, and long-term stability. Additional duties include data analysis, benchmarking against commercial membranes, maintaining laboratory records, contributing to technical reports and publications, and participating in regular research meetings. The student will work closely with graduate students and researchers in a multidisciplinary membrane research environment.

Skills required:
The ideal candidate should have a background in Chemical Engineering, Materials Science, Chemistry, Environmental Engineering, or a related discipline. Experience in membrane science, water treatment, desalination, nanomaterials, or separation processes is desirable. Familiarity with membrane fabrication, thin-film composite (TFC) membranes, nanomaterial modification, and membrane characterization techniques such as SEM, permeability testing, and surface analysis would be an asset. Knowledge of lithium extraction, ion separations, or critical mineral recovery is beneficial. The candidate should possess strong laboratory, analytical, and problem-solving skills, with the ability to conduct independent research, analyze experimental data, and work effectively in a multidisciplinary team environment.

Research area: At the UNB Advanced Renewables and Catalysis Lab, we specialize in developing technologies for producing biofuels and hydrogen, and chemically recycling materials such as waste aluminum and plastics. In our biofuels/hydrogen research stream, we focus on the development of catalyst materials that can upgrade biomass and waste materials into clean fuels.

Student roles:
The successful candidate will be responsible for:
1. Performing a literature review to determine viable catalysts and preparation techniques
2. Preparing/reviewing experimental methodologies and standard operating procedures
3. Preparing catalysts
4. Conducting hydrotreatment experiments
5. Analyzing results, making comparisons to the literature
6. Prepare a report to discuss the results

Skills required:
- Safety-oriented mindset
- Strong analytical problem-solving skills
- Self-motivated with the ability to work both independently and with a team
- Experience working in an analytical lab with basic chemistry lab skills
- Experience using software such as MS Word, Excel, Visio, PowerPoint
- An aptitude for working hands-on with equipment/mechanical devices
- A natural curiosity for chemical reactions, catalysis, and developing sustainable solutions
- Experience 3D modeling and printing is not required but an advantage

Research area: The Ritch group is exploring the main group chemistry of heavy chalcogens (selenium and tellurium) in several contexts: (i) Developing new chalcogen-centred ligands and discovering their coordination chemistry, and (ii) Developing the materials chemistry of selenium and tellurium. We use inert-atmosphere Schlenk and glovebox techniques to work with air-sensitive materials, and characterize products using nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy and X-ray crystallography.

Student roles:
The student working on this project will read relevant background information from the scientific literature, design an experimental plan in collaboration with the supervisor, and conduct laboratory experiments according to the plan. The majority of the project will consist of performing chemical reactions, conducting work-up procedures, and characterizing the products by powder X-ray diffraction. Experimental parameters will be varied iteratively to maximize product yield and purity. Pure phases will be analyzed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM).

The student will have regular (weekly) meetings with the supervisor to assess progress and make plans for future experiments.

All laboratory safety and experimental training will be given by the supervisor.

Skills required:
The student should have completed first-year general chemistry course(s). Completion of second-year inorganic chemistry course(s) is desirable, but not required. The student should be highly motivated, have an interest in and aptitude for laboratory work and inorganic materials chemistry, and possess good problem-solving and observational skills.

Research area: There has been a growing interest in the application of nanotechnology for enhanced oil recovery (EOR). The nanoparticle surface coating can be easily tailored for a particular EOR application. The proposed research will develop surfactant-coated nanoparticles as an additive. These nanoparticles will increase the recovery of residual oil in unconventional reservoirs by decreasing the interfacial tension at oil-water interfaces, stabilizing microemulsions, altering reservoir wettability from oil-wet to water-wet, increasing the viscosity of the injected fluid, and improving mobility control. Our group has expertise in synthesis, nanofabrication techniques, analytical methods, photophysical methods, and colloidal chemistry.

Student roles:
A student will have a choice in the sub-project they undertake. The available research projects include the following: (1) prepare and characterize zwitterionic surfactant–silica nanoparticle systems, or (2) characterize the stability of oil-in-water microemulsions with zwitterionic surfactant–silica nanoparticle systems.

Sub-project (1): The student will be trained to prepare zwitterionic surfactants using modern synthetic organic techniques and characterize their structure using modern organic spectroscopy methods, such as nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy, infrared (IR) spectroscopy, high-resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS), and high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Further, the student will be trained to prepare zwitterionic surfactant–silica nanoparticle systems using modern nanofabrication methods, and to characterize their fundamental properties (e.g., stability, size) using zeta potential measurements and dynamic light scattering.

Sub-project (2): The student will be trained to examine the stability of the oil-in-water microemulsions using a variety of established surfactant screening techniques. These techniques will be used to assess phase behavior, interfacial tension, wettability, size distribution, compatibility, density, and viscosity.

These studies will provide students with an advanced set of hard skills, equally integrating components of synthesis, nanoparticle formulation, surfactant screening techniques. Moreover, this skill set will be used to develop nanoparticle systems to increase the recovery of residual oil in unconventional reservoirs . In addition, these studies will foster the development of important soft skills as the student will work with other group members and potentially with interested parties in the oil industry.

Skills required:
A student interested in this research project should have laboratory experience in organic chemistry, colloidal chemistry, analytical chemistry, physical chemistry, or related areas in engineering. For a student performing synthesis, a class in organic chemistry would be required. Additional experience in synthetic techniques would be considered an asset. For a student characterizing the fundamental properties of zwitterionic surfactant–silica nanoparticle systems, and examining microemulsion stability, a class in colloidal chemistry, analytical chemistry, physical chemistry, or related areas in engineering would be required. Additional experience with surfactant screening techniques (discussed below) would be considered an asset.

Research area: My expertise is in quantum computational science and technology with a focus on quantum chemistry and computational chemistry. My research aims to advance chemistry by the adoption and integration of machine learning and quantum computing. We work towards developing new computational approaches and tools that enable accelerated virtual workflows to bridge the gap between highly accurate but computationally expensive quantum mechanical methods and the need for efficient and reliable computations for large-scale molecular studies. The applications of interest to us include materials discovery for gas capture, catalyst search for various chemical processes, computer-aided synthesis planning, and others.

Student roles:
In this project, the intern will primarily focus on developing machine learning frameworks to generate effective quantum circuits for quantum chemistry and quantum machine learning applications. The interns will be required to work extensively with Python programming language. All implementations pertaining to quantum computing applications and quantum circuits will be carried out using IBM’s Qiskit package. The intern will also work with classical machine learning libraries such as Scikit-Learn and PyTorch to develop generative models. They will also be responsible for extending algorithmic implementations to enable experimentation on high-performance computing clusters as well as real quantum processing devices.

The intern’s role will involve designing implementation workflows, development and management of research code and executing experiments on quantum simulators and devices. They will also learn to use quantum chemistry packages to generate relevant quantum chemical data. This project will be mentored by me and one PhD student. Effective communication and guidance will play a crucial role in the student’s engagement. They will participate in one-on-one communication with me to receive direction on interdisciplinary method development, chemical intuition, data analysis, result interpretation, and effective research communication, including publishing articles and giving presentations. Through this research experience, students will gain new skills in applying computational tools and techniques to interdisciplinary applications such as those valued in the pharmaceutical industry and materials science, which will be highly relevant in their future careers.

Skills required:
Ideal candidates for this project are students interested in quantum computing, computational science, and machine learning, and who are eager to explore the intersection of these fields through the study of quantum algorithms and quantum-enhanced learning methods. They should be motivated to work in a highly interdisciplinary research environment, collaborating with researchers from diverse backgrounds in natural sciences, mathematics, computer science, and engineering. Preference will be given to students enrolled in natural sciences, mathematics, computer science, or related disciplines with strong computational and programming skills. Familiarity with linear algebra, quantum mechanics, or machine learning would be advantageous.

Research area: My expertise is in quantum computational science and technology with a focus on quantum chemistry and computational chemistry. My research aims to advance chemistry by the adoption and integration of machine learning and quantum computing. We work towards developing new computational approaches and tools that enable accelerated virtual workflows to bridge the gap between highly accurate but computationally expensive quantum mechanical methods and the need for efficient and reliable computations for large-scale molecular studies. The applications of interest to us include materials discovery for gas capture, catalyst search for various chemical processes, computer-aided synthesis planning, and others.

Student roles:
In this project, the student will primarily focus on developing and investigating Hamiltonian simulation-based quantum kernels for machine learning applications. Their main objective will be to explore whether quantum dynamics generated by physically motivated Hamiltonians can produce feature representations and kernel functions that offer advantages over classical approaches. To accomplish this, students will work extensively with the Python programming language and utilize quantum computing software frameworks such as IBM's Qiskit and other scientific computing libraries. They will also be responsible for extending and implementing simulation workflows to enable experimentation on both quantum simulators and available quantum hardware.

The student’s role will involve solution design, research code development, implementation of Hamiltonian simulation techniques, and execution of numerical experiments to evaluate kernel performance and computational complexity. A key aspect of their responsibilities will be constructing and benchmarking quantum feature maps based on Hamiltonian evolution, studying the resulting quantum state distributions, and investigating conditions under which the generated kernels become difficult to simulate classically. The student will work with chemical and quantum chemical datasets and will develop workflows for data encoding, kernel evaluation, and predictive modeling using hybrid classical-quantum approaches.

The project will be supervised and mentored by me. Effective communication and guidance will play a crucial role in the student’s engagement. They will participate in regular one-on-one meetings to receive direction on quantum algorithm development, computational experimentation, data analysis, result interpretation, and effective research communication, including publishing articles and giving presentations. Through this research experience, students will gain valuable skills in quantum computing, scientific software development, computational modeling, and interdisciplinary research, providing training relevant to emerging applications of quantum technologies in chemistry, materials science, and data-driven scientific discovery.

Skills required:
Ideal candidates for this project are students interested in quantum computing, computational science, and machine learning, and who are eager to explore the intersection of these fields through the study of quantum algorithms and quantum-enhanced learning methods. They should be motivated to work in a highly interdisciplinary research environment, collaborating with researchers from diverse backgrounds in natural sciences, mathematics, computer science, and engineering. Preference will be given to students enrolled in natural sciences, mathematics, computer science, or related disciplines with strong computational and programming skills. Familiarity with linear algebra, quantum mechanics, or machine learning would be advantageous.

Research area: The work will be carried out within the Group of research on technologies and processes (GRTP) where research is focused on the development of technologies and process intensification. The expertise revolves around three main themes: thermocatalytic conversion, pharmaceutical production, and plasma application. The primary focus is on the use of renewable resources for the production of energy and technoeconomically sustainable materials. The process engineering knowledge derived from this research is applicable more broadly across the field of process engineering.

Student roles:
The student will :
- Participate in the setup, and operation of microwave-generated non-thermal plasma experiments.
- Perform plasma characterization and analyze experimental results using appropriate analytical techniques.
- Contribute to the optimization of process parameters for targeted applications.
- Conduct literature reviews and assist in identifying relevant scientific and technological developments.
- Prepare technical reports and present research findings to the team.
- Contribute to the preparation of scientific publications and conference presentations when appropriate.

Skills required:
Currently enrolled in a Bachelor's, Master's, or Engineering program in Chemical Engineering, Chemistry, Materials Science, Pharmaceutical Sciences, or a related field. Strong interest in plasma technologies, advanced processes, catalysis, sterilization, or pharmaceutical applications. Basic knowledge of physicochemical characterization techniques and laboratory practices. Ability to conduct experimental work independently while maintaining accurate records and following laboratory safety procedures. Strong analytical and problem-solving skills for interpreting experimental data and optimizing process parameters. Experience with data analysis software (e.g., Excel, Origin, MATLAB, Python, or similar tools) is considered an asset. Excellent communication and teamwork skills in a multidisciplinary environment.

Research area: Dr. Yunyun Wu’s research focuses on the development of advanced biomaterials and fabrication strategies for soft and skin-interfaced/implantable devices. Her work integrates wearable biosensors, microfluidic platforms, and bioresorbable electronics to enable next-generation healthcare technologies.

Student roles:
The student will be responsible for fabricating and functionalizing bioresorbable threads using electroless deposition and electrodeposition techniques. This includes optimizing process parameters, characterizing the physical, chemical, and electrical properties of the threads, and evaluating their performance in prototype bioresorbable electronic devices. The student will also contribute to experimental design, data analysis, and documentation, as well as present findings through reports, presentations, and, where appropriate, co-authored publications.

Skills required:
The ideal candidate should have a background in materials science, chemistry, chemical engineering, biomedical engineering, or a related field. Experience with materials processing techniques such as electroless deposition, electrodeposition, or thin-film fabrication is highly desirable. Familiarity with characterization methods (e.g., SEM, conductivity testing, tensile testing) and an interest in bioresorbable materials, flexible electronics, biomedical devices or energy-storage devices are strong assets. The student should be self-motivated, detail-oriented, and comfortable with both experimental work and data analysis.

Research area: Prof. Selopal is interested in investigating the nanoengineering of multi-functional materials at the nanoscale. His research interests include advanced materials design and optimization, analysis of structural-properties relationship to understand unexplored phenomena and further advances in sustainable energy technologies. In particular, Dr. Selopal's research focuses on developing more reliable, economically viable and affordable net-zero energy technologies such as photovoltaic, clean fuel production (hydrogen generation from water splitting), and wastewater treatment. Research areas: Nanostructured Materials, Green Nanoelectronics, Environmental Remediation, Clean Energy Conversion & Storage Technologies and Biomedical Engineering. Research sub-fields: Quantum dots, Metal Oxide, Interface Engineering, Device Fabrication & Performance Evaluation.

Student roles:
The research plan of this project is highly multidisciplinary, which allows the students to be integrated in different tasks and activities. This will offer new possible paths for his/her future career according to his/her interest and study background and having a general overview on quite broadly focused projects.
The student will join a research group of three people, each in charge of a specific, i.e.: (1) materials extraction and processing, including the design and fabrication of TENGs (2) materials characterization, including the structural properties and TENG electrical characterizations (3) Utilization of TENG for the agricultural applications. In the beginning, the student will be supervised during all the steps. In the second part, the student should be able to develop skills and competencies in one of the specific sub-areas previously described, according to his/her background and preferences. His/her role will be beginning to learn the basic operation needed for a safe and fruitful stay in a research lab, and then he/she will directly contribute to a specific task, developing his/her independence on the assigned task and contributing substantially to the smooth progress of the research. A fundamental part of the stage will be devoted to the training of the student on the correct operation in the lab and the use of scientific equipment.

Skills required:
The required background of the student is in the field of Materials Science, Chemistry, Electronic Engineering, Physics, and Nanomaterials. Skills in materials preparation and/or characterization and basic courses on nanostructured materials and nanotechnology will help the student in a deep understanding of all the steps of materials processing and characterization. A background in materials chemistry and device engineering will be more specific to the project related to the materials extraction and processing, fabrication of TENGs and for converting the Agri-waste into useful materials for clean and green energy harvesting.

Research area: Our group research focuses on the synthesis and characterization of phthalocyanine materials for a range of applications. Phthalocyanines are highly industrial relevant macrocyclic dye materials with uses from colourants to memory-storage materials to photodynamic therapy drugs. The Leznoff lab concentrates on introducing metals to the central core of the macrocycle that are not traditionally utilized, particularly early transition-metal and f-block elements, since these metals have a wide range of catalytic activity that can be mediated by the phthalocyanine ligand and also often generate unusual colours.

Student roles:
The proposed research will provide a platform for student training in organic, inorganic and analytical chemistry and materials science. The intern will receive training in organic synthesis, inorganic/materials chemistry synthetic methodology and crystal growth, characterization techniques including elemental analysis, UV-visible spectroscopy, MALDI-Mass spectrometry, FT-IR, UV-vis fluorescence spectroscopy, and single-crystal X-ray diffraction structure solution as appropriate.

With these skills, the student will personally synthesize a range of new phthalocyanine materials incorporating a wide breadth of metal centres in the core. The student will personally be trained both to synthesize the compounds and to characterize it using modern spectroscopic and structural techniques, with a particular interest on the visible spectroscopies (i.e., the colour).
The student will also help to screen the materials for several catalytic targets, including electroreduction of CO2 and nitrates. The student will personally conduct these experiments, in partnership with a senior graduate student.

Skills required:
The student should have a substantial inorganic and organic chemistry background: completed at least 3rd year inorganic chemistry lectures and laboratory and ideally some laboratory research experience as well would be preferred. Any experience that the student has with organic and inorganic chemistry synthetic methodology and characterization techniques including elemental analysis, UV-visible spectroscopies, FT-IR, MALDI-MS and fluorescence spectroscopy, and single-crystal X-ray diffraction structure solution is useful but the student intern will be trained in these areas over the course of the summer as appropriate and thus is not a prerequisite for the internship.

Research area: • Advanced membrane materials and separation technologies for water treatment and resource recovery • Nanofiltration, reverse osmosis, membrane distillation, and electroactive membranes • Membrane fouling mitigation and membrane surface modification • Application of nanomaterials (MXenes, graphene, carbon-based materials) in membrane systems • Lithium extraction from brines and critical mineral recovery • Industrial wastewater treatment, desalination, and water reuse • Integration of membrane processes with electrochemical and advanced oxidation technologies

Student roles:
Onboarding (Week 1)
Safety training (lab, chemical handling, electrical systems)
Introduction to membrane fabrication and electrochemical systems
Literature review on electroconductive membranes (carbon black, MXene, graphene)
Training on coating techniques (dip-coating, spray, vacuum filtration) and basic characterization tools
Core Research Tasks

Phase 1: Material Preparation & Coating Optimization (Weeks 2–5)
Preparation of conductive materials (carbon black dispersions, MXene suspensions, graphene inks)
Development and optimization of coating protocols on polymeric membranes
Control of coating thickness, uniformity, and adhesion
Preliminary characterization (conductivity, contact angle, SEM surface imaging)

Phase 2: Membrane Characterization (Weeks 6–8)
Electrical conductivity measurements
Structural and morphological analysis (SEM, possibly TEM cross-section if needed)
Permeability and baseline filtration performance
Stability testing under aqueous and electrochemical conditions

Phase 3: Electrochemical Filtration Experiments (Weeks 9–12)
Integration of membranes into an electrochemical filtration setup
Evaluation of simultaneous separation and degradation of model organic contaminants
Investigation of operating parameters (voltage, flow rate, pH)
Fouling and antifouling performance assessment

Phase 4: Data Analysis & Optimization (Weeks 13–15)
Correlation of membrane structure, conductivity, and performance
Identification of optimal material and operating conditions
Comparison between different conductive materials (carbon black vs MXene vs graphene)

Offboarding (Week 16)
Preparation of final report and presentation
Documentation of experimental protocols and datasets
Knowledge transfer to the research team
Identification of follow-up research directions and publication potential

Skills required:
The ideal candidate should have a background in Chemical Engineering, Materials Science, Chemistry, Environmental Engineering, or a related discipline. Prior experience with membrane fabrication, nanomaterials, electrochemistry, water treatment, or surface modification techniques is highly desirable. Familiarity with laboratory practices, chemical handling, and characterization methods such as SEM, contact angle measurements, or conductivity testing would be an asset. The student should possess strong analytical and problem-solving skills, attention to detail, and the ability to work both independently and within a team. Experience in data analysis, scientific writing, and experimental design is beneficial. Strong communication and organizational skills are expected.

Research area: Our group investigates the behavior of polymers under confinement and the effect of polymer confinement on the formation of polymers and nanoparticles hybrid functional materials. We are developing strategies to build complex functional systems finding applications in drug delivery, sensing, coating, membranes, and other smart materials. One key to producing hybrid materials is to control the interaction between nanoparticles and their environment, which can be achieved with polymers. However, when polymers are immobilized in, on, or around NPs, their properties change, and predicting the final behavior of such systems is difficult, impeding the design of new functional materials.

Student roles:
The candidate will participate in the synthesis, characterization, and processing of sulfur-rich polymer nanoparticles, latexes, and porous polymer materials. They will learn to prepare and analyze nanoparticle suspensions, optimize coating formulations, and evaluate film formation on metal substrates. The candidate will also contribute to the fabrication of nanoporous sulfur-rich polymer sponges and assess their performance for the removal of heavy metals from water.

Using a variety of characterization techniques, the candidate will study nanoparticle properties, coating performance, porosity, and adsorption behavior. They will investigate the corrosion resistance and fouling behavior of coated metal surfaces, as well as the efficiency of sulfur-rich materials for capturing contaminants such as mercury and cadmium. The candidate will analyze experimental data, contribute to the optimization of material properties, and participate in the communication of research results. This project will provide hands-on training in polymer and colloid chemistry, nanomaterials characterization, coatings science, porous materials, and environmental remediation technologies.

Skills required:
The selected candidate should have a strong background in chemistry or in material sciences.

Research area: My research focuses on the processing, characterization, and performance optimization of engineering materials, particularly aluminum alloys and advanced composites. I investigate microstructure–property relationships and heat treatment effects to improve the mechanical behavior of cast and wrought alloys for automotive and structural applications. My work also includes sustainable materials, such as seaweed-derived biodegradable bioplastics for packaging applications. I apply artificial intelligence and data-driven approaches for the prediction and inverse design of material properties. In addition, I conduct research on deep cryogenic treatment of steels and reliability enhancement of engineering components.

Student roles:
The student will help prepare and fabricate seaweed-based bioplastic films and carry out laboratory tests. The student will collect and analyze data, review research papers, and help prepare reports and presentations. The student will work with the research team and industrial partner and may contribute to conference papers and journal publications.

Skills required:
The student should have a background in Mechanical Engineering, Materials Engineering, Chemical Engineering, or a related field. Veery basic knowledge of materials, laboratory work, and data analysis is helpful. Experience with basic use of Microsoft Excel. The student should be willing to learn and able to work both independently and as part of a team.

Research area: Arsenic is a highly toxic element and its contamination in water is a global environmental problem, particularly at legacy mining sites and the surrounding groundwater. This poses a serious threat to communities living in those areas as exposure to arsenic in drinking water at unsafe levels (>10 μg/L) is associated with numerous adverse health effects, such as skin lesions, neurological, cardiovascular, and respiratory diseases, and increased risk of cancer and mortality. As such, there is a need for continuous monitoring of arsenic levels and remediation of the water bodies, particularly at active mining sites.

Student roles:
Support in materials preparation characterization and testing. Primarily laboratory based, with an important communication component as well.

Skills required:
Chemistry laboratory experience, and an interest in solving complex interdisciplinary problems.

Research area: Our group research focuses on the general synthesis and characterization of coordination polymers for a range of applications. Coordination polymers are metal-containing solid-state materials that self-assemble from appropriately chosen building blocks and can be designed to show useful magnetic, optical, electronic properties or porosity (for example). The Leznoff lab concentrates on using metal-cyanides as building blocks for coordination polymers, particularly the unusual linear d10-metal M(CN)2- (M=Au,Ag) units, to take advantage of metallophilic interactions as supramolecular glue, and actively are designing useful functional materials that act as sensors, optical components, emissive materials etc.

Student roles:
The proposed research will provide a platform for student training in inorganic and analytical chemistry and materials science. The intern will receive training in inorganic/materials chemistry synthetic methodology and crystal growth, characterization techniques including elemental analysis, FT-IR, UV-vis fluorescence spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (single crystal and powder) structure solution as appropriate.
With these skills, the student will personally synthesize a range of materials, some new (such as targeting new metal-gold cyanide coordination polymers) and some already prepared in our laboratory in order to target new toxic gas sensors. The student will personally be trained both to synthesize the compounds and, when the material is new, to characterize it using modern spectroscopic and structural techniques.

Skills required:
The student should have a substantial inorganic chemistry background: completed at least 3rd year inorganic chemistry lectures and laboratory and ideally some laboratory research experience as well would be preferred. Any experience that the student has with inorganic/materials chemistry synthetic methodology and crystal growth, characterization techniques including elemental analysis, FT-IR and Raman spectroscopies, UV-vis fluorescence spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (single crystal and powder) structure solution is useful but the student intern will be trained in these areas over the course of the summer as appropriate and thus is not a prerequisite for the internship.

Research area: My research area is in nanoparticle plasmonics, spectroscopy, and electrochemistry. We are specialized in surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) as well as EC-SERS. We also have expertise in the area of multidimensional chromatography, such as 2D-LC.

Student roles:
The student will be responsible for designing and planning their experimental work, along with important feedback, and will conduct their experimental work independently, with the support of our research team members. They will attend weekly group meetings and will present their findings to the team on a rotating schedule. They will also assist with manuscript preparation at the conclusion of their project, depending on how the project progresses.

Skills required:
The student will ideally be working on an undergraduate degree in chemistry / biochemistry, and will have some basic training in analytical chemistry (qualitative and quantitative analysis). They will have a keen attitude and a willingness to learn new techniques.

Research area: My group is working on development and characterization of scaffolds for bone tissue growth, polymer and composite processing and characterization, production of nano fibers, production of flexible sensors, and volumetric additive manufacturing. The primary focus is on industrially relevant applied research

Student roles:
This project can accommodate one student, who will be engaged to carry out the experimental work as well as make modifications to the system setup under the guidance of senior researchers. The student work will include the following responsibilities
• Carry out literature search for related journal papers
• Prepare various resin formulations for VAM process
• Design and fabricate different shapes to study the VAM parameters.
• Carry out system modifications under the supervision of a PhD candidate to improve the process.
• Help in development of Schlieren photography system to detect the start of the gelation point.
• Analyze the results and prepare PowerPoint presentations

Skills required:
Students should have second year level basic engineering knowledge. Should be motivated, and dedicated to work and have the capability to learn how to operate new equipment and characterize the samples.

Research area: Nguyen’s Lab at Concordia University is focused on the synthesis, design, and characterization of nanostructured photocatalysts for renewable energy and environmental remediation. The research primarily investigates visible-light-active photocatalysts for H2 production, CO2 reduction, N2 fixation and pollutant degradation. The group specializes in semiconductor heterojunctions, rare-earth-based materials, layered double hydroxides, transition metal oxides, and nanocomposites with enhanced charge separation and photocatalytic efficiency. Various synthesis techniques including hydrothermal, sol-gel, and rapid ambient mixing methods, are employed to develop high-performance photocatalytic systems.

Student roles:
In this internship, the student will:
• Receive training on general laboratory procedures, including material preparation, synthesis, and characterization.
• Get training in using gas chromatography, TGA, and fluorometer.
• Conduct a literature review of the research topic.
• Collaborate in optimizing the experiment conditions to obtain efficient hydrogen production.
• Characterize the synthesized materials using X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, and N2 physisorption.
• Evaluate the solids' final chemical composition and the metal ions' stability in their structure.
• Collect and interpret research data and summarize them through reports and oral presentations.

Skills required:
We are looking for an enthusiastic and self-motivated student specializing in chemistry, biochemistry, chemical engineering, or related fields interested in catalysis and materials science, with good knowledge of surface chemistry, catalyst synthesis and/or reactor operation. Good communication skills in English, proficiency in reporting, and delivering good technical presentations are highly recommended. Good team player and willing to cooperate with others. Prior laboratory experience is a valuable asset.

Research area: At Mount Saint Vincent University, my research program focuses on electrochemical sensing and bioelectrochemistry, integrating materials science, analytical chemistry, and biological systems. We develop novel electrochemical sensors and biosensors for the detection of environmental contaminants, industrial chemicals, and biologically relevant molecules. Our research also employs electrochemical methods to investigate how exogenous molecules interact with living systems by monitoring biologically relevant biomarkers and redox processes. A central aspect of our work is understanding how (nano)materials, molecular recognition elements, and sensor architectures influence analyte recognition and signal transduction, generating fundamental insights that guide the design of high-performance sensing platforms.

Student roles:
The student will participate in all stages of the research project, including literature review, experimental design, laboratory work, data analysis, figure preparation, and interpretation of results. Under the supervision of the principal investigator and, where appropriate, senior research trainees, the student will be trained in the synthesis and characterization of conductive hydrogel materials, fabrication of electrochemical interfaces, and electrochemical characterization using techniques such as cyclic voltammetry and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. The student will maintain detailed laboratory records, contribute to regular discussions regarding experimental planning and troubleshooting, and progressively assume greater responsibility for project activities as their skills develop. The student will meet regularly with the principal investigator to discuss project progress, evaluate results, and identify solutions to experimental challenges. Through these interactions, they will develop critical thinking, problem-solving, project management, and scientific communication skills while gaining experience in interdisciplinary research at the interface of chemistry and materials science. The student will also have opportunities to present their research findings during group meetings, departmental seminars, and scientific conferences. Where appropriate, they may contribute to the preparation of conference abstracts, posters, presentations, and manuscripts arising from the project.

Skills required:
To successfully undertake this project, the student (undergraduate or graduate) should possess basic laboratory skills, including solution preparation, safe handling of chemicals, and operation of standard laboratory equipment. Prior experience in electrochemistry, materials chemistry, or related research areas would be considered an asset but is not required. The student should demonstrate strong organizational skills, attention to detail, and maintain accurate experimental records. They should be capable of following established protocols, performing data analysis, and communicating scientific results effectively. A willingness to learn new experimental techniques, work independently and collaboratively, and engage in problem-solving are important for completion of the project.

Research area: My research interfaces Synthetic Organic Chemistry with Microbiology. My research program is focused on trying to discover novel antibiotics with new modes of action, particularly leveraging electrophilic warheads to develop covalent inhibitors.

Student roles:
The applicant is expected to learn the basics in setting up, running, and working up reactions with the ability to troubleshoot column chromatography issues within the first two weeks. From this point, the applicant will be able to work independently (with graduate student or PI supervision). This is to develop independence and sufficiency in a laboratory environment.
The applicant will also provide weekly presentations during group meeting wherein they provide sufficient background to the project and relevance in the scope of current literature canon using accessible language for non-experts sufficient to understand the project, describe experiments performed with interpretations of data (accuracy expected to improve over the course of the internship), with plans for the following week. This is to develop strong scientific communication skills - this is of critical importance.
The applicant will also provide a document at the end of the internship summarizing the project with background, data, interpretation, and future directions. This is to develop strong scientific writing skills.

Skills required:
The applicant should have some experience in organic synthesis. Skills would include liquid-liquid extractions, column chromatography, mass spectrometry, and NMR spectroscopy.

Research area: Our group investigates the behavior of polymers under confinement and the effect of polymer confinement on the formation of polymers and nanoparticles hybrid functional materials. We are developing strategies to build complex functional systems, finding applications in drug delivery, sensing, coating, membranes, and other smart materials. One key to producing hybrid materials is to control the interaction between nanoparticles and their environment, which can be achieved with polymers. However, when polymers are immobilized in, on, or around NPs, their properties change, and predicting the final behavior of such systems is difficult, impeding the design of new functional materials.

Student roles:
The candidate will participate in the synthesis of functional pH-responsive polymers and the formulation of these materials into nanoparticles. They will learn how to encapsulate model payloads and evaluate nanoparticle performance under a variety of conditions.
The candidate will characterize the nanoparticles using techniques to determine their size, morphology, stability, and physicochemical properties. They will also perform release studies to investigate how the nanoparticles respond to changes in pH and how efficiently they deliver their cargo. Experimental data will be analyzed to identify relationships between polymer composition, nanoparticle structure, and release behavior.
Throughout the project, the candidate will develop hands-on experience in polymer synthesis, nanoparticle formulation, colloid characterization, and controlled-release technologies. This work will provide valuable training in materials chemistry and nanomedicine while contributing to the development of innovative delivery systems for future therapeutic and vaccine applications.

Skills required:
The selected candidate should have a strong background in chemistry or in materials science.

Research area: Nguyen Lab at Concordia University is focused on the synthesis, design, and characterization of nanostructured photocatalysts for renewable energy and environmental remediation. The research primarily investigates visible-light-active photocatalysts for H2 production, CO2 reduction, N2 fixation and pollutant degradation. The group specializes in semiconductor heterojunctions, rare-earth-based materials, layered double hydroxides, transition metal oxides, and nanocomposites with enhanced charge separation and photocatalytic efficiency. Various synthesis techniques including hydrothermal, sol-gel, and rapid ambient mixing methods are employed to develop high-performance photocatalytic systems.

Student roles:
• Conduct literature review related to photocatalytic H2 and CO2 photoreduction.
• Assist in the synthesize and characterization of rare-earth-based photocatalysts.
• Perform photocatalytic experiments under solar-light irradiation.
• Receive training in using gas chromatography, TGA, and fluorometer.
• Analyze, interpret, and summarize experimental data through technical reports and oral presentations.

Skills required:
We are looking for an enthusiastic and self-motivated student specializing in chemistry, materials science, chemical engineering, physics, or related fields with a strong interest in photocatalysis and nanomaterials research. Knowledge of semiconductor materials, catalyst synthesis, surface chemistry, and materials characterization techniques is highly desirable. Good communication skills in English, scientific writing ability, and teamwork are highly recommended.

Research area: The Pensini lab focuses on soft matter and interfacial phenomena, with applications in water purification, contaminant transport, and functional mechanoelectric materials. Our research examines how molecular interactions, self-assembly, phase behaviour, and material structure control macroscopic properties, including contaminant sorption, partitioning, mechanical response, and electrical signal generation. In the environmental area, we investigate interactions among contaminants, water, minerals, and natural organic matter to improve water treatment and pollutant transport prediction. In the materials area, we develop hydrated and solvent-stabilized soft materials that generate electrical signals when mechanically deformed, with applications in energy harvesting, sensing, wearable devices, and biomedical materials.

Student roles:
The student will be responsible for conducting laboratory experiments, maintaining organized records of experimental procedures and results, analyzing data, and compiling a final report. Depending on the outcomes of the project, the student may also contribute to the preparation of manuscripts for submission to peer-reviewed journals. Typical working hours are Monday to Friday, from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

The student will receive training on relevant experimental methods, equipment operation, data analysis, and interpretation of results. They will work in close collaboration with the supervisor and research team. The student will be expected to generate reliable experimental data, assess the quality and reproducibility of their results, and promptly report any issues that may affect data reliability. They will be coached in data interpretation, scientific communication, and manuscript preparation. While substantial guidance and mentorship will be provided, the student is expected to communicate clearly with the supervisor and team members, work responsibly in the laboratory, and take an active role in the successful completion of the project.

Skills required:
A strong background in chemistry, physical chemistry, physics, materials science, chemical engineering, or materials engineering is preferred. Previous laboratory experience is required. Experience with soft materials, electrochemical measurements, spectroscopy, microscopy, rheology, or data analysis would be an asset, but training will be provided for project-specific methods.

Research area: Plants produce complex natural products, many of which are invaluable as nutrients, commodity products, and therapeutics. Alkaloids constitute a diverse class of nitrogen-containing natural products, many of which are essential medicines such as morphine (pain killer), vinblastine (anticancer), and quinine (antimalarial). Despite their immense benefits, a large number of these structures are impossible or prohibitively expensive to obtain via chemical synthesis while their biosynthesis remains elusive. The Plant Bioactive Compounds Research (PlantBioCoRe) Laboratory integrates biochemistry, chemistry, bioinformatics, and molecular genetics to elucidate and engineer the biosynthesis of high-value phytochemicals and thereby improve their accessibility for human needs.

Student roles:
The student will gain a unique training in interdisciplinary research at the interface of chemistry and biology, and therefore is required to be open-minded and creative about their work. The candidate is expected to carry out all the experiments and analysis with the supervision and supports of the principal investigator and other lab members. The student is also expected to communicate their research in regular group and one on one meetings with the PI and scientific poster/publication.

Skills required:
Candidates from all genders and cultural backgrounds are encouraged to apply. They should have a good background in organic/synthesis chemistry and/or biochemistry. Candidates should possess keen enthusiasm for scientific research, and excellent interpersonal skills. Basic knowledge of either genes, proteins and their properties is essential, as is knowledge of biochemical and chemical reactions and techniques. Candidates who have a background in bioinformatics or computer science are also welcome. Good understanding of health and safety in a laboratory setting is also an important requirement.

Research area: Our group is interested in how transition metals such as Ni, Pd, Rh, and Ru can be used as catalysts to enable new chemical reactions that enable the synthesis is valuable products from simple starting materials. We utilize modern high throughput techniques to thoroughly screen and analyze a large amount of chemical reaction parameters, speeding up the discovery process.

Student roles:
Student will carry out small scale chemical reactions in search of new reactivity. Experiments will initially be conducted on the bench in a 'one at a time' fashion to gain familiarity and expertise with the chemistry. Once comfortable, the student will utilize uOttawa's high throughput experimentation facility to perform a large number of parallel chemical reactions to test the influence of key variables on the outcome (%yield, selectivity, etc). Analysis by proton NMR and/or gas chromatography will be necessary to streamline the process. Purification of materials by silica gel chromatography will be carried out towards the synthesis of starting materials and for detailed characterization of reaction products.

Skills required:
Student should have some background in synthetic organic chemistry, including both classroom knowledge and practical lab skills at the undergraduate level. Must be familiar with traditional lab techniques such as liquid/liquid extraction by separatory funnel, thin layer chromatography, and crystallization. Must be familiar proton NMR and its application in structural determination. Use of gas chrom

Research area: Our research group works on projects involving the design of nanoscale catalysts for sustainable applications. In particular, group members synthesize metallic and bimetallic cluster catalysts, characterize them using a variety of methods including X-ray absorption spectroscopy and high energy scattering at the nearby Canadian Light Source (on campus), and test their catalytic activity for reactions. We use chemical synthesis to create well-controlled catalyst structures, and can follow the evolution of the structure during catalysis at the Light Source.

Student roles:
The student will be involved in learning how to synthesize the catalysts using established chemistry, fully characterize the catalysts via UV-Vis, XPS, and TEM, and methods at the Canadian Light Source (particularly EXAFS and PDF) and then evaluate the resulting particles as catalysts. The student will work closely with both a PhD student in the Scott group who is working on dynamic single-atom catalyst systems, and will meet regularly with me as the project progresses. They will participate in regular group meetings and be expected to write up and summarize their work at the end of the project.

Skills required:
Students should have a chemistry background, ideally with research experience. They must have strong English communication skills and work well as a team member. Familiarity with analytical characterization techniques such as NMR spectroscopy and gas chromatography is desired. Must be open to learning novel characterization techniques at the Canadian Light Source.

Research area: This research focuses on the development and optimization of bio-based UV-curable coatings derived from lignin. It integrates green chemistry, polymer science, and materials engineering to improve lignin valorization in high-performance coatings. The project addresses key limitations such as poor dispersion, low reactivity, and reduced mechanical properties. Advanced strategies including lignin depolymerization and chemical modification will be explored to create sustainable, efficient, and environmentally friendly coatings for wood protection and related applications.

Student roles:
The student will participate in experimental research focused on improving lignin-based UV-curable coatings. Tasks will include lignin modification (including possible depolymerization), formulation development, and UV curing processes.
The student will conduct experiments to evaluate the effect of lignin structure on coating performance, including viscosity, curing behavior, and mechanical properties. They will also perform material characterization using techniques such as FTIR, thermal analysis, and adhesion tests.
The student will analyze data, compare different formulations, and contribute to optimizing processing parameters. They will contribute in literature review and scientific reporting. The student will participate in individual and group meetings to ensure adequate supervision.

Skills required:
The ideal candidate should have a background in chemistry, polymer chemistry, chemical engineering, materials science, or a related field, with hands-on laboratory experience. Assets include knowledge of lignin modification, acrylate chemistry, UV curing, coatings, or bio-based polymers. The student should be comfortable with formulation work, safe handling of chemicals and UV equipment, spectroscopic and thermal characterization, viscosity or rheology measurements, adhesion/mechanical testing, data analysis, and literature review. Careful experimental documentation, autonomy, teamwork, problem-solving ability, and interest in sustainable wood materials are essential.

Research area: Our group focusses on the preparation of green catalysts by Pulsed Laser Ablation in Liquids (PLAL) for the elimination of pollutants. PLAL is new technique to prepare metal nanoparticles, either monometallic, bimetallic or alloys. We have prepared silver, bismuth, zinc, copper, nickel and nickel-iron nanoparticles, to give a few examples. These nanoparticles are then used for the elimination of various pollutants, either by oxidation or by reduction. Over the years, we have worked on CO2 electroreduction as well as urea, phenol and sulfamethazine oxidation, amongst others.

Student roles:
The student will have two main objectives, although the scope of the second will depend on the results of the first. The first objective will be to assess the efficiency of common water filters, purchased in a local grocery store, in removing PFAS from a spiked water sample. At this stage, the goal will be to determine if PFAS should be handled once trapped in the filter, or in the drinking water directly. The second objective will therefore be to break down PFAS, either adsorbed on the filter material, or directly in drinking water. In the first scenario, we will be attempting to break the C-F bound using pulsed nanosecond laser focussed on the filter material, hopefully breaking the PFAS pollutants.
The second scenario will be significantly more complex. If PFAS aren't retained by common filters, they will need to be broken down in water. To reduce the energy cost, a catalyst must be selected. This catalyst will be selected amongst the promising ones identified in the literature, synthesize by pulsed laser ablation by the student. The student will then prepare an electrode with this catalyst and test its performance by chronoamperometry. The process will be repeated for 3-4 potential catalysts.
In all cases, the student will receive training on modern chemistry equipment, including an ion chromatograph (2020) and a nanosecond pulsed laser (2020). As needed, they would also be trained on an automated spray coater (2025) and a potentiostat (2020).
Finally, before completing their internship, the student will prepare a scientific report on their progress to learn how to communicate scientific results in a meaningful manner and to allow the eventual continuation of the project.

Skills required:
To positively contribute to the project, the student should have completed courses equivalent to a 2nd year chemistry student at St Francis Xavier University, with particular emphasis on analytical chemistry and physical chemistry. The student should have basic experience in accurately preparing aqueous solutions using standard glassware (volumetric, micropipettes) as well as an understanding of Beer-Lambert law. The student should also have an introductory knowledge of redox equations and the concept of potential and current. Finally, knowledge of the global harmonized system (GHS) for classification and labelling of chemicals is required. Further specialized training will be provided at St FX.

Research area: My main research focuses on the physical or chemical interactions of chemical compounds with particulate matter in the environment (sediments, clays, minerals, rocks, soil, etc.), with the aim of better understanding their behavior and sequestration in the various environmental compartments. My research interest in this field consists in studying the capacities of natural and bio-based materials and their composites to adsorb and trap contaminants with different physico-chemical properties, with the aim of better protecting the environment. I am also interested in the (bio)availability, fate and effects of persistent contaminants in the aquatic environment, as well as the impacts of pollutants.

Student roles:
Under my supervision, the intern will perform laboratory work in collaboration with a Ph.D. student. The intern will conduct clay pillaring experiments and prepare composite materials. They will also carry out sorption kinetics and isotherm studies, as well as analyze contaminants in solution using MP-AES and GC-MS.
In addition, the intern will process and interpret the data using sorption models and characterize the prepared materials using a range of analytical techniques, including TGA-FTIR-GC/MS and FTIR. The specific tasks assigned will be adjusted according to the duration of the internship.

Skills required:
Good analytical and physical chemistry skills.
Knowledge of atomic adsorption (AAS) is an asset.
Good instrument operation skills.
Good autonomy.
Excellent writing skills.

Research area: Prof. Selopal is interested in investigating the nanoengineering of multi-functional materials at the nanoscale. His research interests include advanced materials design and optimization, analysis of structural-properties relationship to understand unexplored phenomena and further advances in sustainable energy technologies. In particular, Dr. Selopal's research focuses on developing more reliable, economically viable and affordable net-zero energy technologies such as photovoltaic, clean fuel production (hydrogen generation from water splitting), and wastewater treatment. Research areas: Nanostructured Materials, Green Nanoelectronics, Environmental Remediation, Clean Energy Conversion & Storage Technologies and Biomedical Engineering. Research sub-fields: Quantum dots, Metal Oxide, Interface Engineering, Device Fabrication & Performance Evaluation.

Student roles:
The research plan of this project is highly multidisciplinary, which allows the students to be integrated in different tasks and activities. This will offer new possible paths for his/her future career according to his/her interest and study background and having a general overview on quite broadly focused projects.

The student will join a research group of three people, each in charge of a specific, i.e.: (1) materials preparation, including the design and synthesis of semiconductor nanocrystals; (2) materials characterization, including the structural, optical and electronic properties; (3) Ink preparation, logo/pattern design and testing. In the beginning, the student will be supervised during all the steps. In the second part, the student should be able to develop skills and competencies in one of the specific sub-areas previously described, according to his/her background and preferences. His/her role will be beginning to learn the basic operation needed for a safe and fruitful stay in a research lab, and then he/she will directly contribute to a specific task, developing his/her independence on the assigned task and contributing substantially to the smooth progress of the research. A fundamental part of the stage will be devoted to the training of the student on the correct operation in the lab and the use of scientific equipment.

Skills required:
The required background of the student is in the field of Materials Science, Chemistry, Electronic Engineering, Physics, and Nanomaterials. Skills in materials preparation and/or characterization and basic courses on nanostructured materials and nanotechnology will help the student in deep understanding of all the steps of materials synthesis and characterization. Background in materials design and data collection will be more specific to the project related to the ink preparation, logo designs and stability testing.

Research area: Prof. Selopal is interested in investigating the nanoengineering of multi-functional materials at the nanoscale. His research interests include advanced materials design and optimization, analysis of structural-properties relationship to understand unexplored phenomena and further advances in sustainable energy technologies. In particular, Dr. Selopal's research focuses on developing more reliable, economically viable and affordable net-zero energy technologies such as photovoltaic, clean fuel production (hydrogen generation from water splitting), and wastewater treatment. Research areas: Nanostructured Materials, Green Nanoelectronics, Environmental Remediation, Clean Energy Conversion & Storage Technologies and Biomedical Engineering. Research sub-fields: Quantum dots, Metal Oxide, Interface Engineering, Device Fabrication & Performance Evaluation.

Student roles:
This project is multidisciplinary and offers students the opportunity to engage in diverse tasks, providing broad exposure and enabling them to explore potential career paths aligned with their interests and academic background.
The student will be responsible for a series of tasks: (1) synthesis of semiconductor nanocrystals tailored for sensing applications; (2) characterization of nanomaterials, including structural, optical, and electronic properties; and (3) sensor fabrication and performance testing in real lettuce samples treated with pesticides. The student will be joining a team with diverse expertise. Initially, the student will receive close supervision across all stages of the research. As the project progresses, the student is expected to build expertise and contribute independently in one of the key areas, depending on their background and interests. Early training will focus on laboratory safety, proper handling of chemicals and nanomaterials, and operation of relevant scientific equipment. Over time, the student will assume a more active role, contributing meaningfully to the experimental work and the overall progress of the project.

Skills required:
The ideal candidate should have a background in Materials Science, Chemistry, and Nanotechnology. A solid foundation in the synthesis and characterization of nanomaterials will be essential for understanding the fabrication and functionalization of sensor probes. Familiarity with techniques such as spectroscopy, microscopy, and electrochemical analysis will facilitate the evaluation of sensor performance. A background in materials chemistry and fundamental device engineering will be beneficial for successfully integrating the sensor into practical detection systems and accurately analyzing real-time crop samples.

Research area: In our group we work on solving problems and developing applications related to nanoscale materials and devices. Along with using a variety of fabrication tools/methods to control and integrate structures as desired at the nanoscale, our research seeks to develop novel applications and study the properties of nanoscale materials and devices. Currently our research projects involve 3 main areas: Sensors, Neuromorphic Materials, Nanoelectronic Networks. (see https://nano.uvic.ca for more information)

Student roles:
Student will be involved in materials synthesis and electrical/optical characterization of nanostructured thin film materials and devices. On the synthesis side, this will include solution processing of nanostructures, e.g., semiconductor nanoparticles. The characterization work will involve using precision source-measure units to determine the electrical properties of the nanostructures in combination with microscopy and optical characterization. Applications include thin film sensors, electronic devices, flexible/transparent conductors and nanostructured surface coatings.

Skills required:
Experimental skills are an asset. Some experience with materials processing (solution-based, chemical), electronic characterization (current-voltage measurements), microscopy and optical characterization will be beneficial. General computing skills.

Research area: Membrane Technology Electrochemical Process Water and Wastewater Treatment Membrane Fouling and Scaling Control Industrial Waste Recovery

Student roles:
(1) Collaborating with the PhD or master students in the group for project design,
literature review, experimental conduction, report writing, and project presentation.

(2) Attending the weekly individual meeting and group meeting, attending the group social activities, and taking certain tasks in the lab (e.g., lab cleaning) as a formal member.

Skills required:
One of the following background:
(1) Environmental Engineering
(2) Chemical Engineering
(3) Chemistry
(4) Materials or Material Engineering
(5) Civil Engineering

Research area: The overarching goal of my research group is to fundamentally understand how materials fail across multiple length and time scales under extreme conditions, and to practically design reliable materials and devices for energy and sustainability applications. My current research interests include: 1). Solid-state batteries under extreme environments, 2). Nanomechanics of low-dimensional materials and interfaces, 3). Multi-scale and multi-physics characterization techniques.

Student roles:
The student will participate in a research project focused on the electro-chemo-mechanics of solid-state batteries. Responsibilities may include designing and developing experimental setups to characterize battery materials, conducting mechanical and electrochemical experiments related to battery materials and interfaces, and analyzing experimental results. The student will also assist in data interpretation, literature review, technical reporting, and presentation of research findings.

Skills required:
The ideal candidate should have a strong background in engineering, physics, materials science, or a related discipline. Experience in one or more of the following areas is desirable: solid mechanics, electrochemistry, finite element analysis, battery materials, or materials characterization. The student is expected to demonstrate effective written and oral communication abilities, and the capacity to work independently as well as collaboratively within a multidisciplinary research team.

Research area: Our research group develops technologies for conversion of carbon dioxide, air and water into valuable chemicals and fuels using renewable energy. Our goal is to provide solutions for fossil-fuel-free energy and chemical industry. Currently, we are working on developing high performance electrochemical devices for the conversion of carbon dioxide into valuable chemicals such as ethylene, ethanol and urea. To achieve these goals, we focus on two major areas: (i) electrode design, and (ii) reactor design and system integration.

Student roles:
Task 1: Fabrication membrane electrode assembly.
- To form a membrane electrode assembly, the cathode (gas diffusion electrode) and an anode are pressed against a membrane to form a cathode/membrane/anode lamellar structure with zero gaps between the layers.
- To fabricate the cathode, commercial Cu nanoparticles will be mixed with an ionomers to form an ink which will be deposited on a gas diffusion electrode using airbrush or blade-coating. The preparation conditions i.e. catalyst thickness, Cu: ionomer ration will be optimized.
- To form the anode, commercial IrO2 nanoparticles will be coated on a porous Ti substrate.
- Commercially available membranes will be used.
- The cathode, membrane, and anode will be hot-pressed to form a membrane electrode assembly.
Task 2: Electrocatalytic performance testing.
- Students will perform all electrochemical CO2 conversion testing using a customized testing system developed in our lab at Queen’s University. The system includes mass flows, temperature, and pressure controllers to control operational parameters at the inlet and outlet of the electrochemical cell. Those controllers will allow students to apply different testing conditions to the system. Students will analyze the concentration of reactants and products using gas chromatography and high-performance liquid chromatography. Based on these measurements, students will calculate the mass and energy balance of the system and evaluate system efficiency.

Skills required:
- Basic background on electrochemistry
- Basic background on chemical analysis (such as gas chromatography)
- Basic knowledge on nanomaterials (i.e. metal and metal oxide nanoparticles)
- Basic knowledge about the chemical conversion process i.e. understanding the mass and energy balance

Research area: My expertise are in the organic chemistry, biochemistry and analytical chemistry. We focus on the chemical modifications of biomolecules, in solution and on surfaces, and structural and functional characterization of biomolecules by analytical methods: spectroscopy, microscopy, electrochemistry and mass spectrometry. Our research goals are to design and develop novel tools for understanding structure and function of molecules with applications in health sciences, biosensing and biomaterials development, and forensic sciences among others. Our core expertise are in electrochemistry, and its use for analysis of small and large molecules as well as its use in synthesis.

Student roles:
Student involved in this project will carry out the following duties: 1) conduct electrosynthesis, 2) conduct organic synthesis, 3) carry out reaction monitoring using spectroscopic and GC-MS method, 4) characterize products formed, and 5) read pertinent literature, data analysis, report writing and presentations in a group meeting setting. Additional student’s roles may include preparation of figures for poster presentation at the scientific conference and contributions (data, figures, writing, literature search, supporting information section) to the manuscript for publication. Student is also expected to participate in weekly group meetings and take turns to present their research or discuss literature. Student will also meet with the supervisor in a one-on-one weekly meetings to discuss the project progress, challenges and alternatives, as well as short- and long-term objectives. In a laboratory setting, student will also work with other students in the research group at various levels.

Skills required:
The student should ideally have background in organic synthesis, and/or analytical chemistry. Experience in electrochemistry is beneficial but not required.

Research area: Our research team employs a comprehensive analytical technique known as solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy to investigate energy-related materials. As a group specializing in physical and materials chemistry, we synthesize various semiconductors, ionic conductors, and nanomaterials, including those based on lithium, sodium, and cesium, with the objective of elucidating their structure-property relationships using a range of advanced characterization methods.

Student roles:
The research assistant will synthesize energy-related materials employing conventional methodologies. The composition and crystalline structure of these materials shall be verified using various techniques, including EDX, SEM, XRD, among others. The student is required to acquire fundamental knowledge in chemical synthesis and characterization. This may entail theoretical computations utilizing various software applications (e.g., CASTEP, ADF, Wien2k). The student will be responsible for data analysis, conducting simulations, and delivering presentations to the group. Additionally, the student must demonstrate strong teamwork skills, as projects often involve collaboration between a senior PhD student and the intern.

Skills required:
Candidates are expected to have a background in the physical sciences, such as Chemistry or Physics, or in Chemical Engineering. Solid-state NMR spectroscopy is extensively employed within our research group; consequently, an urge to learn state-of-the-art techniques is an advantage in this position. The applicant should also have a passion and understanding of inorganic solids. This is not an organic chemistry or pharmaceutical position.

Research area: Our group focuses on the design, synthesis, and characterization of advanced functional nanomaterials, particularly refractory plasmonic materials with high thermal, chemical, and mechanical stability. We investigate synthetic routes to make family of plasmonic metal nitrides and carbides. Light-matter interactions are investigated at the nanoscale to enable efficient photothermal energy. This research integrates materials science, nanotechnology, and optical engineering to develop durable materials for applications in plastic upcycling, solar-driven mining, and water treatment. The work emphasizes scalable synthesis methods, performance evaluation, and fundamental understanding of structure–property relationships in advanced materials.

Student roles:
The student will support the synthesis of mixed metal plasmonic carbide nanoparticles composed of Group 4 and Group 5 transition metals using mechanochemical methods. Their role will include preparing precursor mixtures inside a glovebox, operating milling equipment, and working them up using standard synthetic protocols. The student will assist with materials characterization using powder X-ray diffraction, electron microscopy, zeta potential, dynamic light scattering, and absorbance spectroscopy. They will also help evaluate photothermal properties by conducting solar irradiation experiments, recording temperature data, and analyzing results. The student will contribute to data interpretation, troubleshooting experiments, and preparing a final report and presentation summarizing the project outcomes while adhering to laboratory safety procedures.

Skills required:
Students should have a background in chemistry, materials science, chemical engineering, or a related engineering or science discipline. Basic laboratory experience and familiarity with fundamental concepts in materials synthesis and nanomaterials are desirable. Students should be comfortable working in a laboratory environment, following safety procedures, and recording experimental data accurately. Experience with characterization techniques or data analysis software (e.g., Excel or MATLAB) is considered an asset but not required. Strong problem-solving skills, attention to detail, and the ability to work both independently and collaboratively in a research team are essential for successful participation in the project.

Research area: The Lambert W and Polylogarithm functions and their generalizations have been found useful in various problems related to thermoelectric and metamaterials and the electronic properties of graphene nanoribbons (GN). In case of thermoelectric (TE) materials it is shown that solutions to the equations governing their optimal values are closely related to the Lambert W and the Polylogarithm Functions. In such examples doping of thermoelectric materials is necessary. Quantum Statistics has played a leading role in providing optimal conditions for conversion efficiency. Machine Learning techniques will be useful to find TE materials which can enhance the Figure of Merit.

Student roles:
The student will be doing numerical simulations of the solutions for the electrical, thermal conductivities, and the Seebeck Coefficient using symbolic computation, as well as solving transcendental equations using analytic and numerical methods. The simulation will provide insight to the thermoelectric (TE) properties of metamaterials. A working knowledge of the Lambert W and Polylogarithm Functions will be useful and the student will learn their properties, and use it to numerically evaluate the equations related to the TE Figure of Merit .
Once the mathematics of the Lambert W and Polylog functions is understood, the student will learn to use symbolic computation software, such as Maple, Matlab or Mathematica to facilitate further computation. The student will be introduced to experts within the university to gain further experience. The student will collaborate with other students working on the solutions of the transcendental equations that are needed to study the properties of thermoelectric materials. The student will have an ample opportunity to learn from other students and researchers in the group.
The timeline is as follows:
Month 1: Understanding numerical simulations of the solutions, getting introduced to the Lambert W and Polylog equations for some physics and engineering problems. Also familiarizing with the Lambert W and Polylog Functions, which are multi-valued functions in the complex plane.
Month 2: Learning how to solve the differential equations and getting expressions for the physical variables involving thermoelectric materials. Starting the simulations.
Month 3: Finishing simulations of the analytic solutions and trying to use machine learning to find thermoelectric materials and find suitable doped TE materials.Try to get optimal values for the physical variables involved to get an enhanced TE Figure of Merit.

Skills required:
This project is intended for students with a mathematical,engineering, materials sciences and/or physics background. The student should have an enthusiasm and interest in applied math, engineering applications, machine learning and applied physics. In particular, some knowledge of ordinary differential equations, basic complex function analysis and linear algebra will be essential in this project. Knowledge and skill in Fortran, C++computer programming, Matlab, Python, or Mathematica as well as symbolic computation will be an asset. The student will collaborate with other students working on the applications of the Lambert W function that are needed to study Thermoelectric and/or Metamaterials.

Research area: Research in the Katz Group explores how pore architecture, defects, and chemical functionality influence molecular adsorption and reactivity in metal–organic frameworks (MOFs). We investigate how these materials form, how gases and other molecules interact with their porous structures, and how these properties can be translated into practical field applications. Our research addresses challenges including carbon dioxide capture, toxic chemical remediation, selective gas separations, chemical sensing, and heterogeneous catalysis. A central goal is to develop predictive structure–property relationships that enable the rational design of MOFs with targeted adsorption and catalytic performance, bridging fundamental materials chemistry with practical environmental and industrial applications.

Student roles:
The student will undertake an independent research project focused on the synthesis, characterization, and adsorption properties of metal–organic frameworks (MOFs). Working closely with a graduate student mentor and under the supervision of the principal investigator, the student will be responsible for preparing new or existing MOF materials using straightforward solvothermal synthesis techniques commonly employed in the field.

Following synthesis, the student will characterize the materials using a variety of analytical methods. A major component of the project will involve gas adsorption measurements to evaluate porosity and adsorption performance. Additional characterization techniques may include powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD), nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), in situ infrared (IR) spectroscopy, and other methods as appropriate for the project. Students will be adequately trained on any instrument needed for the success of the project.

Once promising materials have been identified, the student will investigate their adsorption behavior in greater detail. Depending on the aspect of the project, this may involve static adsorption measurements, dynamic breakthrough experiments, or other approaches used to understand gas uptake, selectivity, and adsorption mechanisms. Through these studies, the student will gain experience connecting material structure and properties to practical applications in areas such as gas separations, environmental remediation, or chemical sensing.

The student will be expected to maintain detailed laboratory records using our digital lab notebook platform, analyze experimental data, participate in group meetings, and communicate research findings. By the end of the project, the student will have developed hands-on experience in synthetic chemistry, materials characterization, adsorption science, and scientific communication while contributing to an active research program in advanced porous materials.

The Katz Group fosters a collaborative, welcoming, and enjoyable research environment where students are encouraged to ask questions, explore new ideas, and develop independence as researchers. Beyond the research goals, a central objective of the

Skills required:
The ideal student will have a strong interest in chemistry, materials science, or chemical engineering and be eager to learn new experimental techniques. A background in chemistry or chemical engineering is required, while prior research experience is beneficial but not essential, as training will be provided in the laboratory. Coursework or experience in inorganic chemistry, physical chemistry, materials characterization, or related areas is advantageous. Successful students should be motivated, curious, and willing to work both independently and collaboratively as part of a research team focused on the synthesis, characterization, and application of advanced porous materials.

Research area: Our research focuses on the development and characterization of sustainable wood-based materials for different applications (indoor and outdoor). Particular emphasis is placed on wood modification, bio-adhesives, durability enhancement, and the valorization of industrial by-products within a circular economy context. We investigate the relationship between material composition, modification strategy, environmental exposure, and long-term performance through laboratory and field studies. The research combines wood science polymer chemistry, and durability assessment to validate environmentally friendly alternatives to conventional wood protection and bonding technologies.

Student roles:
During the internship, the student will participate in the sample collection after 12 months of exposure at the Montmorency Forest. She/he will contribute to the collection and organization of meteorological data. The student will perform laboratory measurements related to material performance, including color changes, moisture-related properties, dimensional stability, surface characteristics, mass loss, chemistry of the surface, Internal bonding strength, and bending performance. She/he will participate in data processing, statistical analyses, literature review, and interpretation of results. Throughout the internship, the student will be trained in wood characterization techniques and all the equipments she/he will use, and laboratory safety procedures. She/he will attend regular research meetings and interact with graduate students, research professionals, technicians, and professors in our research Center. At the end of the internship, the student will prepare a technical report and deliver an oral presentation summarizing the project objectives, methodology, results, and recommendations for the future work.

Skills required:
Applicants should have a background in wood science, materials science, chemical engineering, forest engineering, or a related discipline. Experience in laboratory work, material characterization, and data analysis are required. Familiarity with basic statistical tools and scientific literature review is desirable. The candidate should be motivated, detail-oriented, and capable of working both independently and within a multidisciplinary research team. Strong communication and writing skills are required.

Research area: This research focuses on biomaterials and advanced polymeric systems for biomedical applications. Particular emphasis is placed on the design, fabrication, and characterization of functional biomaterials, including electrospun nanofibers and conductive polymers that can be useful for future studies in the field of wound dressings and bioactive scaffolds for regenerative medicine and healthcare technologies. technologies.

Student roles:
The student will assist in the fabrication of PHBV/PANI membranes, perform material characterization experiments, analyze experimental data, and contribute to the interpretation and presentation of results. The intern will gain hands-on experience in electrospinning, materials testing, and biomaterials research. Finally the intern will prepare a comprehensive report

Skills required:
The ideal candidate should hold a degree in Materials Science, Chemical Engineering, Biomedical Engineering, Chemistry, or a closely related field. Candidates should possess strong analytical and problem-solving skills, meticulous attention to detail, and some experience working in a laboratory environment. Familiarity with polymer processing, biomaterials, microscopy, or electrospinning would be considered an asset, although prior experience in these areas is not required.

Research area: My research area is in nanoparticle plasmonics, spectroscopy, and electrochemistry. We are specialized in surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) as well as EC-SERS. We also have expertise in the area of multidimensional chromatography, such as 2D-LC.

Student roles:
The student will be involved in the design and planning of their experimental work, and the execution of their experimental work. They will work up the data and provide an analysis of this data. They will attend weekly research group meetings and will be required to present their findings at these meetings on a rotating basis. They will also help prepare a manuscript for publication, depending on how their research project goes.

Skills required:
The student should ideally be undertaking an undergraduate degree in chemistry, and should have completed their introductory training in analytical chemistry.

Research area: Research within the Clapson Group explores emerging methods in green chemistry to meet sustainable development goals (SDGs) including affordable and clean energy (7), responsible consumption and production (12), climate action (13), quality education (4), and reduced inequalities (10). Our research focuses on the development of base metal (Mn, Fe, Co, Ni) catalysts for the transformation of small molecules and waste materials to value added products, providing less expensive, safer, and more efficient alternatives to current industrial processes. We leverage methods such as systems thinking, two-eyed seeing, and life cycle analysis to assess green metrics within each project.

Student roles:
The student will synthesize and characterize target base metal complexes. Following full characterization, the complexes will be explored as polymerization catalysts using model substrates. This work includes preparing, setting-up, and carrying out experiments and critically analyzing results in relationship to current literature. Following demonstration of capabilities, the student will work to isolate bio-oil from PEI tunicate waste and explore the ability for polymerization. The student will participate in group meetings – research updates, problem-sets, literature review. The student will prepare supporting information documents, internal reports, and manuscripts where appropriate. The student is expected to uphold commitments to equity, diversity, inclusivity, accessibility, and reconciliation (EDI-AR).

Each student, in addition to their chemistry project is also provided with the opportunity to engage with a chemical education research project. This may include, but is not limited to, developing gamified teaching materials for inorganic chemistry or green chemistry, development of workshops and seminars, development of inorganic/green chemistry laboratories, teaching and mentoring. The goal of these projects are to provide students with a well rounded experience in chemistry research and communication.

Skills required:
Applicants must have a minimum average of 80% in CHEM2720 Inorganic I and CHEM3740 – Inorganic II (or equivalent). Students should be familiar with ligand design methods, hard-soft acid base theory, the Dewar-Chatt-Duncanson model of bonding, cross coupling catalysis, and polymerization.
Applicants require experience with organic and inorganic synthesis as well as common characterization methods including multinuclear NMR, FT-IR, UV-Vis, and HRMS. Previous experience with air-free synthetic methods (Glovebox or Schlenk) is considered an asset. Applicant must demonstrate an ability to work in teams and uphold principles of EDI-AR.

Research area: The Ritch group is exploring the main group chemistry of heavy chalcogens (selenium and tellurium) in several contexts: (i) Developing new chalcogen-centred ligands and discovering their coordination chemistry, and (ii) Developing the materials chemistry of selenium and tellurium. We use inert-atmosphere Schlenk and glovebox techniques to work with air-sensitive materials, and characterize products using nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy and X-ray crystallography.

Student roles:
The student working on this project will read relevant background information from the scientific literature, design an experimental plan in collaboration with the supervisor, and conduct laboratory experiments according to the plan. The majority of the project will consist of performing chemical reactions, conducting work-up procedures, and characterizing the products by NMR spectroscopy. Experimental parameters will be varied iteratively to maximize product yield and purity. Pure compounds will be analyzed by in-house single crystal X-ray diffraction.

The student will have regular (weekly) meetings with the supervisor to assess progress and make plans for future experiments.

All laboratory safety and experimental training will be given by the supervisor.

Skills required:
The student should have completed first-year general chemistry course(s). Completion of second-year inorganic chemistry course(s) is desirable, but not required. The student should be highly motivated, have an interest in and aptitude for laboratory work and inorganic chemistry, and possess good problem-solving and observational skills.

Research area: My specialized research areas include geochemistry and contaminant hydrogeology. My current geochemistry research focuses on how long-term water-rock interactions on Earth drive the natural formation and transformation of geochemical species such as H2, CH4, and simple organic compounds. This research is important for understanding early Earth habitability, natural H2 formation as a potential green energy source, and pathways for greenhouse gas transformation

Student roles:
The student will play an important role in exploring a novel theoretical approach to greenhouse gas utilization. They will review scientific literature, summarize key findings, gather information from chemistry databases, and help identify possible radiolytic products and reaction mechanisms. This position is well suited for a student interested in chemistry, geochemistry, and emerging energy-related research.

Skills required:
We are looking for a motivated student with training in chemistry, geochemistry, radiation chemistry, or organic chemistry. The student should be comfortable with literature review, scientific summarization, and Excel. This is a great opportunity to contribute to an innovative theoretical project on greenhouse gas utilization.

Research area: I specialize in developing analytical methods for the comprehensive detection of contaminants in food, environmental matrices, and biological fluids by using HRMS. My goal is to characterize the mixtures of contaminants to which environments and people are exposed. I perform extensive data analysis (classical and multivariate statistics) and modeling (AI and machine learning). My research project focuses on the exposome and aims to better understand the origins of chronic diseases.

Student roles:
Their role will be to collect data, format it, ensure it is usable, and select the statistical methods to be used to answer the scientific question. They must be able to process and interpret the data, at least in broad terms. They must also be able to write a report or, better yet, a draft for publication.

Skills required:
Training in analytical chemistry, statistical analysis, and programming (R and/or Python). Experience in toxicology (CAG, AOP) is preferred

Research area: Professor Monique Lacroix, Ph.D. My research works in food science and nanotechnologies promotes the development of agri-food industry through new processing technologies to ensure food safety and quality, including the development new, value-added products. The development and application of new, non-thermal technologies (X-ray, gamma irradiation, UV-C) or hurdle technologies (combinations of treatments with heat, bioactive packaging, modified atmosphere, ozone) reduces food losses while ensuring the preservation of nutritional value and safety of the product. New processes are monitored by various spheres of activity, such as food and polymer chemistry, nanostructures, physicochemical/rheological properties of advanced materials, microbiological/sensory analyses, and genomics.

Student roles:
The student will participate in all steps of the methodology mentioned above, and will be mainly involved in extraction/purification and chemical/microbiological analyses:
- Solvent extraction, drying process.
- Chemical analyses (HPLC, GC, FTIR).
- Preparation of pathogen strains and culture media.
- Microplate readings (MIC and FIC measurements).
- Food processing by using non-thermal treatments (ultrasound, irradiation).
- Statistical analysis.
- Interpretation of results, report writing, oral and written communication.

Skills required:
University degree in related fields: chemistry of natural extracts, extraction-evaporation-drying, analytical chemistry, structure analysis, food sciences, microbiological analysis. Notions in extraction-purification-identification of organic compounds, functional properties of natural extracts, emulsions and encapsulation theoretical concepts.

Essential: The student can work under a chemical hood, a biological safety cabinet and has received WHMIS and Biosafety trainings.

Research area: I am trained as chemist and environmental engineer. I am leading the research group on the Bioprocessing and Nano-Enzyme Formulation Facility (BANEFF) at York University as Research Chair in Environmental Engineering. My research interests lie in the development of finished products (formulations) of residuals, such as agricultural, agro-industry, wastewater and wastewater sludge based value-added bioproducts, such as enzymes, organic acids, platform chemicals, biocontrol agents, biopesticides, butanol and biohydrogen. I am also interested in the fate of endocrine disrupter compounds, pharmaceuticals, nanoparticles and other toxic organic compounds during value-addition of wastewater and wastewater sludge in turn finding suitable biological detoxification technologies.

Student roles:
The student will be responsible for following tasks in the present project:
1. Sampling of different wastewater treatment plant unit operations for analysis of presence of different pharmaceutical compounds.
2. Optimization of analysis method of a model pharmaceutical compound in coordination with an analytical laboratory and working in close coordination with the staff.
3. Mass balance of the presence of the organic contaminant in different liquid and solid portions of the unit operation.
4. Analysis of the results to identify the most polluted stream.
5. Correlation of data with background data.
6. Compilation of results.
7. Report preparation.

Skills required:
The student will be required to have a general chemistry background as the research project involves environmental samples analysis and sampling. In addition, the student must be good in statistical analysis to verify the reproducibility of concentrations obtained with chromatography and mass spectrophotometry techniques.

Research area: We are a synthetic bioorganic/materials group focused on applying the tools of synthetic organic chemistry to the challenges of biology, medicine and materials science. Our chemistry involves developing new unnatural amino acids and carbohydrates and making more stable artificial oligosaccharides and peptides for immunological and anti-cancer applications, and using these biomaterials as the basis for new classes of sustainable materials for a variety of applications including smart drug-delivery, environmentally benign plastics, and for use as nano-probes for medical diagnostics.

Student roles:
The candidate will be working as part of a multi-disciplinary team comprising post-doctoral, doctoral, masters and undergraduate students. After a short period of getting comfortable with the lab and the project, they will be provided a self-contained subproject to manage and develop. They will be working very closely with the other members of the polymer team (3 graduate students, 2 PDFs, 4 undergraduate students) and the rest of the group as a whole. As this work is progressing very quickly in our group, the exact project will be decided upon arrival of the student and upon agreement on a subject of mutual interest.

Skills required:
Ideally we are looking for a synthetic chemist with broad interests in multidiciplinary science. The candidate will have the opportunity to meet and work with our network of local collaborators and experience a variety of different research environments while developing expertise in functional monomer and polymer synthesis.

Research area: I am an environmental engineer/Earth system scientist and work on the environmental impacts of metals and trace elements in large water systems. The main goal of my research is to explain the occurrence, transport and transformation of metal pollutants in natural and industrial context so that appropriate prevention and remediation measures can be developed. For this, my group uses an interdisciplinary combination of concepts from environmental (bio)geochemistry, hydrology, analytical chemistry, and civil and environmental engineering, et cetera. One of our key recent focus areas is the North American Great Lakes basin.

Student roles:
In this project, you will investigate past and current environmental transport of select trace metals through the Great Lakes basin. Using existing hydrometric data, you will establish a rough hydraulic (mass-balance) budget that is combined with new analyses of trace metal concentrations in a selection of ground- and river water samples. All samples have been - or will be - collected through existing partnerships with non-academic project partners. You will subsequently use this data to perform mass-balance calculations to identify loading rates, seasonal variability (concentration-discharge dynamics) as well as major input sources, which will be further investigated using GIS mapping as time permits. You will have the opportunity to work in our department's state-of-the-art laboratory facilities, join other group members in field activities and sampling, and communicate your results to project partners.

Skills required:
My group currently has students with diverse backgrounds in chemistry, hydrogeology and civil engineering. This project would be suitable for students pursuing degrees in any of these or related disciplines (e.g., environmental sciences, geography). Interest and some experience with the analysis of large environmental (water quality) datasets would be helpful, and excellent oral and written communication skills in English are required. Quantitative problem-solving skills (an 'engineering mindset') and some experience with GIS software is preferred.

Research area: Our research is focused on tackling synthetic challenges posed in the context of conjugated organic materials. These materials are poised to make significant technological breakthroughs that will enable the advancement of flexible, lightweight, low-cost electronic devices such as photovoltaics, light emitting diodes and field-effect transistors. Our ability to design and construct new materials is limited by the synthetic tools available to us. Innovative new synthetic capabilities will allow the design of novel molecular architectures and enable the ability to answer fundamental questions about structure/function relationships. Ultimately, this will lead to enhanced properties for these materials and, therefore, improved device performances.

Student roles:
The student will be carrying out a several steps synthetic sequence. This will include reaction setup (under oxygen and moisture free conditions), reaction purification (TLC, flash chromatography, crystallization) and product characterization (NMR, IR, X-Ray crystallography). They will work alongside a senior student who will teach them these techniques. The students can work independently if they demonstrate enough proficiency. The students would also be welcome to troubleshoot any problems that arise during the synthesis and contribute to the project with their own ideas.

Skills required:
The students should have some synthetic chemistry background. This may include synthetic organic or inorganic chemistry. Experience working under air and moisture free conditions, TLC, flash chromatography, NMR characterization, and crystallization would be an asset.

Research area: Over 90% of the small molecule drugs on the market possess at least one nitrogen atom in their structure. Our program is centered on the development of new reactions and catalysts for the synthesis of nitrogen-containing structural subunits of demonstrated importance in medicinal chemistry and agrochemistry. Thus our work provides quicker access to bioactive molecules and enables the formation of new compounds. Beyond synthetic organic chemistry, we collaborate as part of projects of interest in bioorganic and medicinal chemistry.

Student roles:
The student will synthesize hydrazones from ketones and O-phenylcarbazate. These hydrazones will be the starting materials for cyclizations to form pyridazinone products. The student will systematically explore, and if needed, improve, reactions with bimetallic reagents and/or carbenoids. The work on this project will be a collaboration with a PhD student; both students will share a common goal, but will work on related but distinct objectives. The goals are to examine in detail two possible approaches to pyridazinones and publish a new synthesis based on these findings.

This will include performing reactions, optimization of the reaction conditions as needed, purification and analysis of the reaction products using standard techniques. Careful documentation of the experimental work is needed, as this will be required for publication. Using search engines to mine the literature, and reading the key publications and review articles related to this project is also expected. The student will have a PhD student as a mentor and will be expected to present their results in informal group meetings. The student will participate in problem solving group meetings and in weekly research meetings.

Overall, this constitutes the excellent training for a student interested in organic chemistry and in medicinal chemistry. The lab environment and supervisor is bilingual (English and French). The environment is supportive, please visit our website!

Skills required:
The student should have solid knowledge of basic organic chemistry & spectroscopy of organic molecules. Knowledge of intermediate organic chemistry (or other topics such as synthetic, organometallic, or medicinal chemistry) would be an asset. Laboratory experience in an organic chemistry laboratory is a must, ideally with exposure to running organic reactions (monitoring progress by TLC), performing product isolation/purification (chromatography), and reaction analysis (using spectroscopy). Experience in research would be useful, especially if in a chemistry research lab. The student must be a quick learner, motivated, communicate effectively and have the ability to work as part of a small team.

Research area: Membrane Science and Nanotechnology

Student roles:
1. Student will be part of positive, productive, and creative research team, as well as attend group meeting, collaboratively learn from other group members, and share ideas.
2. Student will be trained how to use the coaxial electrospinner with the help of several approaches and collectors at my lab with the aim of controlling the membrane’s morphology. Students will be provided with sufficient guidance, research directions, and all the required task overviews for each week.
3. Student will test the influences of several parameters and their influences on controlling membrane morphology.
4. Student will analyze results and data in order to create the necessary models.
5. Student will comprehensively test the membranes biocompatibility.
6. Student will have a weekly meeting to discuss the collected results and will be provided with a memo for the following week.
7. Student will be responsible for writing a manuscript about research findings under my guidance.
8. Once the research data is collected and analyzed, student will present findings at a conference.

Skills required:
This project requires a background in Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, as well as a background experimental design, and modeling experience. Students will be provided with the necessary safety training for handling of nanomaterials and biosafety.

Research area: Our group's research work is in the areas of nuclear engineering and materials chemistry, with a focus on corrosion, high-temperature coolant chemistry, radioactivity transport, and code development for mass and heat transfer modelling in nuclear power plant systems. The research work is multidisciplinary and includes projects that are purely experimental work, purely computational (code development), or some intersection of the two fields. Experiments range from bench-scale to using high-temperature and high-pressure flow through loop equipment to simulate nuclear primary-side conditions.

Student roles:
The following tasks are expected:
- Perform high-temperature, high-pressure experiments in a closed system to determine the precipitation kinetics of a metal oxide system as a function of temperature. These experiments provide valuable kinetic data for a computer code that predicts corrosion rate on carbon steel surfaces in nuclear power plants.
- Calculate precipitation constants for magnetite using the collected data and visualizing temperature dependence of precipitation constant, kp
- Compare the obtained results to those from station data, and based on the deviation from the plant data, devise addition tests to be conducted by future students.
- Finish final data analysis, procedure write-up, and contribute to writing a conference paper.
- Prepare and deliver a small presentation (15 min) to research team.

Skills required:
Basic lab skills including, situational awareness, being able to read a safety data sheet, adhering to laboratory protocols onsite, and some experience with wet analytical chemistry (proper weighing techniques, calibration of instruments, etc.) are all strongly recommended. All training for working with specialized equipment (e.g., high-temperature systems) will be provided onsite once the internship commences. Radiation safety training and review of standard operating procedures for radiation of work with a staff member will be part of the pre job activities for this project.

Research area: The Hoare Lab works at the interface of chemistry and biomedical engineering, focused on the development of new biomaterials that can address existing and emerging challenges in the clinic. In particular, our lab has specific expertise in developing: (1) "injectable" or "in situ-gelling" hydrogels that convert from low viscosity liquids outside the body to hydrogels inside the body and (2) "smart" environmentally responsive biomaterials that can sense changes in their environment and/or respond to external signals like magnetic fields, ultrasound, or light to deliver drugs and/or cellular signals for on demand or disease-responsive therapies.

Student roles:
The student would be paired with a PhD student in my lab (a former Globalink student) who is driving this project. The PhD student would provide hands-on mentorship and direction for the student on a day-to-day basis, initially via co-run experiments and then by being available for help on an as-needed basis. The student would perform several experimental tasks: (1) to synthesize and characterize the reactive precursor polymers (molecular weight, degree of functionalization, type of functionalization) and the hydrogels formed from those polymers (gelation time, mechanics); (2) to develop the methods to electrospin the precursor polymers into hydrogel films with high reproducibility and effective gradient porosity control; (3) to characterize the hydrogel films for structure (electron microscopy) and mechanics; and (4) to assess the biological compatibility of the films via cytocompatibility testing as well as tracking the viability of co-electrospun cells within the scaffolds via live/dead assays and confocal microscopy. The student will be responsible for co-planning experiments with their mentor, collecting/organizing/analyzing the resulting data, and preparing short reports summarizing their data aiming for a future publication and/or patent application. In addition to these research tasks, the student would be expected to participate in all lab activities (including social events, seminars/local conferences, and our weekly lab group meetings), including the presentation of a short (10-15 minute) talk at the end of the placement on their research results. The student will also help with routine lab tasks (e.g. safety inspections, chemical inventories, waste disposal) and will have the opportunity to participate in either or both of ongoing entrepreneurship training initiatives in my lab on the topic of translating our technologies to an industry partner and/or a professional development CREATE program aiming to build job-ready skills depending on their personal interests.

Skills required:
The project covers a broad range of disciplines (e.g. polymer chemistry, manufacturing engineering, biomaterials engineering, tissue engineering, biology). As such, any student with an academic background in at least one of those key areas will be considered for this position, although students with expertise in chemistry, chemical engineering, or biomedical engineering would be preferred. An aptitude for working in a multidisciplinary research environment is also essential, as the student would be working in collaboration with at least one and perhaps two different research groups at McMaster to execute this project.

Research area: We develop new reactions employing hypervalent iodine reagents. We do chlorination, fluorination and trifluoromethylation reactions for creating new compounds from alkenes, hydrazones and ylides. We use blue LEDs to develop new reactivity of ylides, and we also use iodobenzenes as alternatives to transition metal catalysts. Interns will work in a synthetic organic chemistry laboratory, being trained on-site by Dr. Murphy and his team to work in any one of these areas, depending on their level of previous experience and abilities. Projects of varying levels of difficulty are available, and can be suited to any skill level. Prior synthetic experience unnecessary.

Student roles:
The student will work in a synthetic organic chemistry lab, joining my existing research team. They will be provided with a short-term project (of their choosing) that is part of our larger efforts, and will be trained to work by senior members of that research theme. They will learn to effectively conduct experiments in synthetic chemistry, including proper setup and conduct of reactions, reaction monitoring (TLC, NMR, etc), product purification and identification. This will require the candidate to be trained (as necessary) on NMR, HPLC, TLC and mass spectrometry instrumentation, in addition to the specific techniques required of their project. Most importantly, the student will learn to work safely and effectively in an organic laboratory, and will be properly trained to work safely with a variety of chemicals.

Most of the candidate’s work will be under my direct supervision, with their day-to-day activities bring monitored by senior doctoral students or postdocs. However, the student will be trained to work independently, so that they can work at their own pace and skill level. The student will report directly to me, and the progress they make on their project will be communicated in our regularly-scheduled group meetings.

Students departing from this comprehensive training environment will possess a solid, well-rounded experimental skill set in organic synthesis, which will be coupled with extensive instrumental experience. The training they receive will make them excellent problem solvers, and provide them with skills that will serve them well in the remainder of their studies. This internship will be a valuable complement to their existing training.

Skills required:
The student should have taken at least one introductory organic chemistry course, and might have experience working in undergraduate chemistry laboratories. All other training will be provided on-site during their stay, by my research team and I, or by departmental facilities managers. Training will include the use of thin layer, column and radial chromatography, as well as learning to use IR and NMR spectroscopy and mass spectrometry instruments themselves. Safety training will be mandatory, and will occur at the start of the internship.

Research area: Our research program focuses on the engineering of model biomembranes for structure-function studies of peptides and investigations of the inhalation toxicity of nanoparticles and pollutants.

Student roles:
The student will be involved in all aspects of the research, from measurements of the effects of vaping chemicals on the structure, surface tension lowering capacity, and mechanical properties of the lung surfactant membrane to the compilation and analysis of the results obtained.

Skills required:
Background in chemistry or materials engineering. Knowledge of the Langmuir film balance and Langmuir monolayers is a plus but not essential. Good experimental laboratory, analytical, and organizational skills.

Research area: Mon programme de recherche vise à développer des matériaux biodégradables ayant des applications dans le domaine médical et notamment pour l'ingénierie tissulaire. Nous nous intéressons aux matériaux pouvant être utilisés dans le traitement de dommages aux tissus osseux. Ces matériaux offrent une alternative avantageuse aux traitements plus traditionnels comme la greffe de tissus ou l’utilisation de prothèses. Ce programme de recherche s'intéresse aussi à la fabrication de matériaux composites de verres biologiques/polymères ayant une macroporosité interconnectée.

Student roles:
Lors de son stage, l'étudiant(e) fera partie intégrante du groupe de recherche et sera responsable de mener, sous ma supervision, un projet de recherche. Pour se faire, l'étudiant(e) fera principalement du travail en laboratoire, c'est-à-dire la synthèse et la caractérisation. L'étudiant(e) sera invité(e) à participer aux rencontres de groupes hebdomadaires et aura la chance de présenter sa recherche à une ou deux reprises durant son stage. La rédaction d'un rapport de stage par l'étudiant(e) sera aussi demandée à la fin du stage.

Skills required:
Ce projet utilise des notions de synthèse chimique alors une formation en chimie et une connaissance des techniques de base du travail en laboratoire sont essentielles. Une expérience dans la caractérisation des composés organiques (RMN, FT-IR) serait un grand atout. Une connaissance des techniques de synthèse en atmosphère inerte (ligne de Schlenks et boîte à gants) serait très utile.

Research area: My research program focuses on the design and development of main-group ligands and transition metal complexes to access new reactivity and functional materials. I am particularly interested in leveraging redox-active pnictogen frameworks to explore ligand cooperativity, bimetallic interactions, and small molecule activation. This work spans fundamental synthetic inorganic and organometallic chemistry, with applications in catalysis and materials development. By establishing structure-function relationships, my research aims to guide the rational design of new compounds with tailored electronic and steric properties.

Student roles:
The student will lead an independent research project, focused on the synthesis of novel ligands containing phosphorus within the molecular backbone. Following successful ligand synthesis, the student will conduct coordination reactions to generate new metal or main-group complexes. Additional studies will involve probing the reactivity of the phosphorus backbone as a secondary coordination environment, enabling the investigation of bimetallic interactions and ligand cooperativity.

The student will design and carry out experiments using air-free techniques, including glovebox and Schlenk line methods. Reactions will be monitored using 31P NMR spectroscopy, and all isolated compounds will be characterized using multinuclear NMR, IR spectroscopy, and single-crystal X-ray diffraction.

The student will also contribute to the general operation of the lab, including routine equipment maintenance and ensuring a safe and organized working environment. The student will have regular interactions with the supervisor, and will also have dedicated one-on-one meetings to discuss their project, results, and other professional development goals.

This project is not a supporting role under a senior student’s project; rather, the successful applicant will take ownership of a well-defined, independent research project, but will work alongside other (under)graduate students. Success in this role will be defined by the development of a new ligand and demonstration of its preliminary coordination reactivity.

Skills required:
The student should have a good understanding of multinuclear NMR (31P, 1H, 13C) and IR spectroscopy, and fundamental undergraduate inorganic chemistry. The student should also be comfortable working in a synthetic chemistry lab and must follow all required safety protocols. Knowledge and experience with the manipulation of air-sensitive compounds, such as using a glove box and Schlenk line, would be an asset, but prior experience is not required. Any additional skills the student is lacking will be taught to the student during their internship.

Research area: My research program lies at the interface of organic synthesis, peptide chemistry, and medicinal chemistry. It focuses on the design and construction of structurally modified peptides that incorporate non-canonical elements to improve pharmacological properties. In particular, we develop synthetic strategies to introduce heterocyclic motifs into peptide frameworks, enabling modulation of conformation, stability, and target engagement. This work supports the development of next-generation peptide therapeutics and diagnostics with enhanced bioavailability, metabolic stability, and functional selectivity.

Student roles:
The student will play an active role in the design, execution, and analysis of experiments aimed at developing new peptide modification methodologies. Under supervision, they will carry out organic and peptide synthesis using established and emerging techniques. This includes performing reactions, monitoring progress, and purifying products using chromatographic methods. The student will be responsible for characterizing synthesized compounds using analytical tools such as NMR, HPLC, and mass spectrometry, and for maintaining accurate and detailed laboratory records. They will participate in troubleshooting experimental challenges and contribute to the optimization of reaction conditions.

In addition to laboratory work, the student will engage with relevant literature to inform experimental design and contextualize their findings. Regular meetings with the supervisor and research group will provide opportunities to present progress, discuss results, and refine research directions. The student will also contribute to the preparation of reports or presentations summarizing their work. Through this experience, they will develop technical proficiency in synthetic chemistry, gain exposure to interdisciplinary research, and build skills in critical analysis and scientific communication.

Skills required:
The ideal student will have a strong background in organic chemistry or a closely related field. Prior laboratory experience with synthetic techniques is expected, and familiarity with peptide synthesis, chromatography, or spectroscopic characterization is an asset. The student should demonstrate attention to detail, strong problem-solving abilities, and effective written and verbal communication skills. Experience maintaining laboratory records and working in a research environment will be beneficial.

Research area: My research focuses on computational materials design for electrochemical energy and environmental systems, using density functional theory (DFT), multiscale modeling, and machine learning. I investigate reaction mechanisms at catalyst surfaces to understand the kinetics and thermodynamics of electrochemical processes such as oxygen reduction and evolution reactions, CO2 reduction, nitrogen conversion, and energy storage reactions. By integrating chemistry and physics-based simulations with data-driven approaches, my work aims to accelerate the discovery and optimization of efficient, selective, and stable catalysts. This research supports the development of sustainable technologies for clean energy conversion, chemical production, and environmental remediation.

Student roles:
The student will play a key role in developing and applying computational models to study electrochemical nitrate reduction systems. Their primary responsibilities will include performing DFT simulations to investigate reaction mechanisms at catalyst surfaces and evaluate the influence of solvent and electrolyte effects on reaction energetics and kinetics. The student will also contribute to the development and testing of multiscale modeling approaches that balance accuracy and computational efficiency.
In addition, the student will integrate machine learning tools to analyze simulation outputs, identify structure–activity relationships, and accelerate the screening of catalyst and environmental parameter spaces. They will be expected to collaborate closely with the research team, contribute to scientific discussions, and communicate results through presentations and publications. Overall, the role is centered on advancing predictive, data-driven approaches for the design of improved catalysts for sustainable nitrate conversion and ammonia production.

Skills required:
The ideal student should have a strong background in chemistry, chemical engineering, materials science, or a related field, with a solid foundation in thermodynamics, kinetics, and electrochemistry. Experience with computational methods, particularly DFT or atomistic modeling is highly desirable, along with familiarity with programming (e.g., Python) and data analysis. Exposure to machine learning techniques or a willingness to learn AI-based tools for scientific applications would be an asset. The student should also possess strong problem-solving skills, the ability to work independently and collaboratively in an interdisciplinary environment, and effective written and verbal communication skills.

Research area: Dr. Asif specializes in environmental multimedia modelling, focusing on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, air and water pollution from diverse sources, including the industrial and agricultural sectors. Her research includes life cycle assessment, environmental impact assessment, and GHG flux, with a strong emphasis on the fate and transport mechanisms of pollutants in multimedia environments. She applies advanced modelling tools to evaluate environmental risks and supports decision-making for sustainable management. Her work addresses key challenges related to pollution and climate change, aiming to reduce environmental impacts and promote ecosystem health and resilience.

Student roles:
Intern Work Plan and Timeline
1. Role Overview: The intern will actively contribute to a research project focused on developing and validating advanced environmental models to predict the carbon dioxide adsorption efficiency of sustainable materials. This role offers a balanced, interdisciplinary research experience combining physical laboratory analysis, fixed-bed column testing, and computational data modelling.
2. Literature Review and Background (Weeks 1–2): The intern will review academic literature concerning sustainable adsorbents, including biochar derived from agricultural waste, gas separation kinetics within fixed-bed columns, and the application of predictive algorithms in clean-tech materials science. This phase establishes a strong conceptual and scientific foundation for subsequent laboratory and modelling tasks.
3. Laboratory Synthesis and Fixed-Bed Testing (Weeks 3–5): The intern will work within a state-of-the-art laboratory environment to assist in the removal analysis of carbon by using sustainable adsorbent materials. Following rigorous safety protocols and supervised procedures, including the mandatory use of protective laboratory gear, the intern will unpack, prep, and operate laboratory-scale fixed-bed columns.
4. Data Processing and Model Development (Weeks 6–9): The intern will clean, organize, and compile experimental datasets derived from the fixed-bed column breakthrough runs to drive environmental modelling and predictive algorithm development.
5. Empirical Validation and Model Refinement (Weeks 9–10): The intern will utilize newly generated empirical data from ongoing fixed-bed column gas stream experiments to validate the predictive capabilities of the computational models. By comparing algorithmic forecasts against real-world column breakthrough laboratory results, the intern will iteratively refine the model's accuracy, stability, and reliability.
6. Reporting and Collaboration (Week 11): The intern will focus on interpreting multi-variable data structures, drafting a comprehensive progress report, and presenting insights to the research team. This final stage emphasizes collaborative analysis to refine the data-driven framework for clean-tech material optimization.

Skills required:
The following is a list of preferred skills and background for the student applicant:
-Background in environmental engineering, environmental science, chemistry, chemical engineering, or a related field.
-Interest in environmental sustainability and clean technologies.
-Some experience with data analysis and environmental sampling would be beneficial.
-Comfortable working with datasets, reviewing scientific literature, and supporting lab or field-based sampling.
-Strong attention to detail and analytical thinking.
-Open to learning new tools and concepts across disciplines.

Research area: The Chiang research group specializes in the design, synthesis and characterization of novel synthetic inorganic catalysts inspired by the enzymatic sites. In comparison to their enzymatic counterparts, synthetic inorganic catalysts are highly tunable (via appropriate ligand design and synthesis), with many showing promise for the efficient and sustainable functionalization of small molecules like their enzymatic inspiration. For example, the homobimetallic diiron [FeFe]-hydrogenase catalyzes the 2-e- reduction of protons (H+) to produce dihydrogen (H2).

Student roles:
The successful applicant will acquire interdisciplinary training ranging from inorganic compound design, modern organic and inorganic synthetic techniques, spectroscopic and theoretical characterization and reactivity screening. At the initial stages of the project, the student will focus on developing a modular synthetic methodology for the target ligand and metal complex. This will be important moving forward as subsequent, more reactive compounds can be generated based on the synthetic protocols established in this work. Spectroscopic characterization will ensue, where students will use an array of spectroscopic characterization techniques outlined above to establish the structure of their products. These techniques are available to students via established regional, national or international collaborations. Where possible, I will personally accompany students for data collection at these local institutes rather than sending our target compounds to collaborators: students’ will be able to observe and participate in data collection. Samples are only shipped to international collaborators when travel cost are exorbitant. Students will also learn to complement this wealth of experimental results with computational studies, a valuable tool that will provide critical insight on our complexes and their potential reactive intermediates. Reactivity studies will ensue, followed by manuscript preparation.

Skills required:
Background: Chemistry Major, completion of Introductory (2nd year and/or above) Inorganic Chemistry course is preferred but not required.

Lab skills: Preliminary lab skills, ability to work safely in a lab, preliminary data processing skills in Microsoft Excel.

Interpersonal skills: Ability to work well with others in a team environment.

Research area: The Chiang research group specializes in the design, synthesis and characterization of novel synthetic inorganic catalysts inspired by the enzymatic sites. In comparison to their enzymatic counterparts, synthetic inorganic catalysts are highly tunable (via appropriate ligand design and synthesis), with many showing promise for the efficient and sustainable functionalization of small molecules like their enzymatic inspiration. For example, the iron-containing enzyme cytochrome P450 is capable of reacting with inert C-H bonds in organic biomolecules via a high valent Fe(IV)-oxo intermediate.

Student roles:
he successful applicant will acquire interdisciplinary training ranging from inorganic compound design, modern organic and inorganic synthetic techniques, spectroscopic and theoretical characterization and reactivity screening. At the initial stages of the project, the student will focus on developing a modular synthetic methodology for the target ligand and metal complex. This will be important moving forward as subsequent, more reactive compounds can be generated based on the synthetic protocols established in this work. Spectroscopic characterization will ensue, where students will use an array of spectroscopic characterization techniques outlined above to establish the structure of their products. These techniques are available to students via established regional, national or international collaborations. Where possible, I will personally accompany students for data collection at these local institutes rather than sending our target compounds to collaborators: students’ will be able to observe and participate in data collection. Samples are only shipped to international collaborators when travel cost are exorbitant. Students will also learn to complement this wealth of experimental results with computational studies, a valuable tool that will provide critical insight on our complexes and their potential reactive intermediates. Reactivity studies will ensue, followed by manuscript preparation.

Skills required:
ackground: Chemistry Major, completion of Introductory (2nd year and/or above) Inorganic Chemistry course is preferred but not required.

Lab skills: Preliminary lab skills, ability to work safely in a lab, preliminary data processing skills in Microsoft Excel.

Interpersonal skills: Ability to work well with others in a team environment.

Research area: My research focuses on electrochemistry for sustainable energy conversion, with an emphasis on water electrolysis and green hydrogen production. Specifically, we investigate suspension electrode (SE) systems—three-dimensional conductive carbon particle networks dispersed in electrolyte—as a strategy to overcome energy efficiency limitations of conventional two-dimensional electrodes. The lab uses electrochemical characterization techniques (cyclic voltammetry, chronopotentiometry, chronoamperometry) alongside gas analysis (GC–MS) to quantify performance metrics including conductivity, overpotential, double-layer capacitance, and Faradaic efficiency. Our broader goal is to develop cost-effective, high-efficiency hydrogen production technologies that support decarbonization of the energy sector.

Student roles:
The intern will work as a hands-on researcher in the Kurimoto Lab, contributing to all stages of the suspension electrode optimization project over 12 weeks.
Weeks 1–2: Conduct a literature review on suspension electrodes, carbon corrosion in anodic environments, and oxidation-resistant electrode materials; review lab protocols; learn electrode and electrolyte preparation; plan experimental parameters.
Weeks 3–4: Set up electrochemical cells and perform baseline chronopotentiometry (CP) and cyclic voltammetry (CV) measurements to characterize conductivity, double-layer capacitance, and overpotential of carbon black and titanium nitride suspensions.
Weeks 5–8: Execute variable SE loading experiments using CP, CV, and chronoamperometry (CA) across both anode materials; systematically record and compare electrochemical data.
Weeks 9–10: Conduct CA coupled with gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS) to quantify hydrogen production and calculate Faradaic efficiency as a function of applied current density and anode material.
Weeks 11–12: Analyze correlations among conductivity, overpotential, and energy efficiency across materials and loading conditions; prepare data visualizations and summary slides; present findings at a group meeting.
Throughout the internship, the student will be mentored by a graduate student and will participate in weekly lab meetings, present progress updates, and engage in scientific discussions with graduate students and the supervising professor. By project end, the intern will have independently conducted electrochemical experiments, compared suspension anode materials, and contributed preliminary results guiding future electrode optimization in the lab.

Skills required:
Applicants should have a background in chemistry, chemical engineering, materials science, or a closely related field. A solid foundation in inorganic and physical chemistry is essential. Prior experience with electrochemistry concepts (e.g., redox reactions, electrode kinetics, solution conductivity) or electrochemical instrumentation (e.g., potentiostats) is a strong asset. Familiarity with gas analysis methods (e.g., GC–MS) or materials characterization techniques is also beneficial, though training will be provided for all techniques. A genuine enthusiasm for renewable energy and sustainable hydrogen production, combined with strong quantitative reasoning, attention to detail, and motivation to contribute to a collaborative research environment, are equally important.

Research area: Plants produce complex natural products including numerous invaluable nutrients, commodity products, and therapeutics. Alkaloids constitute a diverse class of nitrogen-containing natural products, many of which are essential medicines such as morphine (pain killer), vinblastine (anticancer), and quinine (antimalarial). Despite their immense benefits, a large number of these structures are impossible or prohibitively expensive to obtain via purification or chemical synthesis while their biosynthesis remains elusive. The Plant Bioactive Compounds Research (PlantBioCoRe) Laboratory integrates biochemistry, chemistry, bioinformatics, and molecular genetics to elucidate and engineer the biosynthesis of high-value phytochemicals and thereby improve their accessibility for human needs.

Student roles:
The student will gain a unique training in interdisciplinary research at the interface of chemistry and biology, and therefore is required to be open-minded and creative about their work. The candidate is expected to carry out all the experiments and analysis with the supervision and supports of the principal investigator and other lab members. The student is also expected to communicate their research in regular group and one on one meetings with the PI and scientific poster/publication.

Skills required:
Candidates from all genders and cultural backgrounds are encouraged to apply. They should have a good background in solid and liquid chromatography, analytical chemistry, organic/synthesis chemistry. Candidates should possess keen enthusiasm for scientific research, and excellent interpersonal skills. Basic knowledge of liquid-liquid extraction, HPLC, mass spectrometry, as is knowledge of biochemical and chemical reactions and techniques. Good understanding of health and safety in a laboratory setting is also an important requirement.

Research area: We develop theoretical frameworks for understanding quantum systems. Our research bridges fundamental quantum mechanics with practical applications in chemistry and materials science. We study quantum statistics of many-body quantum systems, chemical reaction kinetics, and quantum dynamics in open system settings.

Student roles:
The student will contribute to the development and implementation of ring polymer molecular dynamics (RPMD) rate theory calculations to compute kinetic isotope effects (KIEs) for hydrocarbon-forming and hydrocarbon-maturation reactions relevant to geochemistry. Specifically, the student will: write and optimize computational code to perform RPMD rate calculations using high-precision potential energy surfaces; compute KIEs for key bond-breaking and bond-forming reactions; analyze and validate the results against available experimental data; and help interpret the findings in the context of the geological carbon cycle, hydrocarbon sources and sinks, and thermal maturation mechanisms. The student will work closely with the supervisor and the research group, participate in regular meetings, read relevant scientific literature, and contribute to writing a research report summarizing the findings.

Skills required:
Theoretical and/or computational chemistry OR background in physics/engeneering/chemistry/materials with ability and experience in programming in any language. Experience performing chemistry-relevant calculations is preferred.

Research area: We live in a world rich in carbonaceous materials. My research focuses on producing functional materials, such as porous graphene, from carbon-rich sources for applications in sensing, energy storage, and wastewater treatment. Functional materials in the graphene family are highly sought after, yet their production remains costly. Within the Jian Research Group at York University, we develop green approaches using computer-controlled manufacturing to convert carbon-rich materials, such as polymers and industrial residues, into porous graphene. My group further develops prototype devices that demonstrate their potential as electrodes, membranes, and sensing platforms.

Student roles:
The students will play an active role in developing novel sensing devices for environmental monitoring and sustainability applications. The project will begin with a literature review of current sensing technologies, sensing mechanisms, and material requirements. Working closely with graduate students and other team members, the students will identify suitable sensing mechanisms, optimize material synthesis conditions, and characterize the resulting materials. They will also contribute to the design and fabrication of sensor components, including encapsulation and packaging, and will assemble, integrate, and evaluate complete sensor prototypes using synthesized materials and commercially available components.

Throughout the project, the students will gain hands-on experience in advanced manufacturing, laser-based fabrication, materials characterization, system integration, sensor calibration, signal processing, and data analysis. They will be responsible for maintaining research records, analyzing experimental results, troubleshooting device performance, and contributing to the continuous improvement of sensor designs. Students will also have opportunities to present their research findings at conferences and contribute to the preparation of manuscripts and technical reports.

To support their development, students will receive close mentorship through weekly one-on-one meetings focused on research progress, experimental design, technical challenges, and professional growth. They will also participate in regular group meetings to present results, receive feedback, and engage with fellow researchers in a collaborative and interdisciplinary research environment.

Skills required:
Applications are welcome from students with diverse academic backgrounds and a strong interest in sustainability, environmental monitoring, and advanced materials research. While all qualified candidates are encouraged to apply, preference will be given to students with backgrounds in physics, engineering, materials science, chemistry, or related disciplines, as these fields provide a solid foundation for the experimental, analytical, and device-development aspects of the research. Successful applicants should be highly motivated, eager to learn new skills, and interested in interdisciplinary projects involving carbon materials, laser-based manufacturing, prototype development, signal processing, and sensing technologies.

Research area: Research within the Clapson Group explores emerging methods in green chemistry to meet sustainable development goals (SDGs) including affordable and clean energy (7), responsible consumption and production (12), climate action (13), quality education (4), and reduced inequalities (10). Our research focuses on the development of base metal (Mn, Fe, Co, Ni) catalysts for the transformation of small molecules and waste materials to value added products, providing less expensive, safer, and more efficient alternatives to current industrial processes. We leverage methods such as systems thinking, two-eyed seeing, and life cycle analysis to assess green metrics within each project

Student roles:
The student will synthesize and characterize target base metal complexes. Following full characterization, the complexes will be explored in applications of small molecule activation including nitriles, carboxylic acids, and carbon dioxide. Promising activation pathways will be further explored in applicable catalytic mechanisms such a hydroboration, esterification, and CO2 reduction. This work includes preparing, setting-up, and carrying out experiments and critically analyzing results in relationship to current literature. The student will participate in group meetings – research updates, problem-sets, literature review. The student will prepare supporting information documents, internal reports, and manuscripts where appropriate. The student is expected to uphold commitments to equity, diversity, inclusivity, accessibility, and reconciliation (EDI-AR).

Skills required:
Applicants must have a minimum average of 80% in CHEM2720 Inorganic I and CHEM3740 – Inorganic II (or equivalent). Students should be familiar with ligand design methods, hard-soft acid base theory, the Dewar-Chatt-Duncanson model of bonding, Lewis acid and base chemistry, cross coupling catalysis, and metal-ligand cooperation.
Applicants require experience with organic and inorganic synthesis as well as common characterization methods including multinuclear NMR, FT-IR, UV-Vis, and HRMS. Previous experience with air-free synthetic methods (Glovebox or Schlenk) is considered an asset. Applicant must demonstrate an ability to work in teams and uphold principles of EDI-AR

Research area: Organic molecules are ubiquitously found in modern medicine, materials and agriculture. Each molecule's function is dictated by the precise spatial arrangement of atoms. Despite advances in organic synthesis, chemists do not have robust tools to selectively "edit" molecules , and current methods to do so remain circuitous and inefficient. Our lab is especially interested in leveraging high-energy radical intermediates, "taming" them to realize a broad portfolio of simple, selective and sustainable catalytic transformations. We aspire to apply these new methods, especially in the context of "editing" complex molecules, to expedite the ongoing development of new medicines and materials.

Student roles:
The researcher will play a pivotal role in a discovery-driven project aimed at developing a new catalytic reaction with potential applications in complex molecule synthesis. They will i) design and synthesize a targeted library of substrates, ii) explore and optimize catalytic reactivity, and iii) use structure-guided reasoning to troubleshoot and optimize the transformation.

The researcher will actively design a library of cycloalkenyl substrates, engage in reaction optimization campaigns, and apply optimized conditions to evaluate efficacy of catalytic reaction on their library of substrates. If time permits, the researcher will apply these methods in pharmaceutically relevant molecules. Mechanistic understanding is a central tenet in the laboratory. The researcher will frequently engage in thoughtful discussions towards achieving greater mechanistic insight through thoughtful experimental design and analysis (e.g. designing experiments to uncover reaction pathway, intermediates, and rate-determining steps). The student will integrate analytical data with theoretical reasoning to understand and improve the process. As an young, dynamic and agile laboratory, the researcher can expect direct mentorship from Dr. Lam, from project strategy to day-to-day project execution; as such we value researchers who are independent, intellectually curious and excited to tackle ambitious challenges.

This project is ideal for a student who thrives on intellectual challenge, enjoys creative problem-solving, and is motivated by real scientific impact. In addition to technical work, the student will be immersed in the group’s active research culture, contributing to group meetings, literature discussions, problem sessions, and collaborative brainstorming sessions. Our research group takes pride in a dynamic, inclusive and social environment—regular group outings in the Greater Victoria Region will take place over the summer, and we are excited to welcome a researcher who will actively participate and champion the research group's culture (which can be found in detail on lam-lab.ca/ethos)

Skills required:
We are seeking an exceptional undergraduate candidate who is intellectually curious, highly analytical, and self-motivated, with a strong academic record/foundation in organic chemistry.

Prior lab experience (e.g., synthesis, purification, or spectroscopic analysis) is an asset, but a willingness to learn is most important. We seek a collaborative individual who enjoys problem-solving and is comfortable working both independently and as part of a team. Strong communication skills and a genuine enthusiasm for discovery are essential. This role is well suited to a student eager to contribute ideas and grow as a researcher in a dynamic and supportive environment.

Research area: My research focuses on photoresponsive molecular crystals. These are solid materials made from small molecules that can change their structure when exposed to light. In some cases, these crystals move, crack, bend, or change colour during a light-driven chemical reaction. We are especially interested in crystals that appear to self-heal, where light first causes visible damage or fragmentation and then the material partially recovers its optical clarity and/or structural order over time.

Student roles:
The student will play an active role in preparing and characterizing photoresponsive crystal samples. They will irradiate crystals under controlled conditions, monitor their response using microscopy, and collect data to determine how the crystals change before, during, and after light exposure. The student will be responsible for preparing crystalline samples for analysis, carrying out controlled UV irradiation experiments, recording changes in crystal appearance, cracking, and healing over time, collecting and analyzing microscopy, spectroscopic, and diffraction data, comparing how different experimental conditions affect the self-healing response, helping interpret the results and prepare figures, reports, and presentations. Overall, the student will help determine whether the observed self-healing is caused by true repair of physical damage, internal structural reorganization, or relaxation of strain within the crystal.

Skills required:
The ideal student should have a background in chemistry and/or materials science. Experience with crystallography, microscopy, spectroscopy, or photochemistry would be an asset, but is not required. The student should be comfortable working carefully with small samples, collecting experimental data, keeping detailed records, and learning new characterization techniques. Useful skills include laboratory experience, interest in solid-state chemistry or materials chemistry, careful sample handling and observation skills, ability to analyze and organize experimental data, willingness to learn techniques such as microscopy, Raman/IR spectroscopy, powder X-ray diffraction, and single-crystal X-ray diffraction.

Research area: My research focuses on light-responsive molecular crystals, which are solid materials that can undergo chemical or physical changes when exposed to light. In this project, we are especially interested in metal paddlewheel complexes. These complexes are metal-containing molecules with distinctive structural features that can be organized into crystals. By changing the metal, ligands, and crystal packing, we can tune how these materials respond to light.

Student roles:
The student will help prepare and study metal paddlewheel complexes that are designed to respond to light. They will grow crystals, expose them to controlled light conditions, and monitor how the materials change over time. The student will be responsible for synthesizing metal paddlewheel complexes, growing and selecting crystals for analysis, carrying out controlled UV or visible-light irradiation experiments, monitoring changes in crystal appearance, colour, cracking, movement, or photoreactivity, collecting and analyzing crystallographic, microscopic, and spectroscopic data, comparing how different metals and ligands affect the light response, and helping prepare figures, reports, presentations, and potentially manuscripts. Overall, the student will help identify the design features that make metal paddlewheel crystals light-responsive, with the broader goal of developing new solid-state materials whose properties can be controlled using light.

Skills required:
The ideal student should have a background in chemistry and/or materials science. Experience with crystallography, microscopy, spectroscopy, or photochemistry would be an asset, but is not required. The student should be comfortable working carefully with small samples, collecting experimental data, keeping detailed records, and learning new characterization techniques. Useful skills include laboratory experience, interest in solid-state chemistry or materials chemistry, careful sample handling and observation skills, ability to analyze and organize experimental data, willingness to learn techniques such as microscopy, Raman/IR spectroscopy, powder X-ray diffraction, and single-crystal X-ray diffraction.

Research area: organometallic chemistry and homogeneous catalysis, with particular interests in low valent main-group compounds, transition metal hydride chemistry, nonclassical interligand interactions, and main-group element substituted complexes

Student roles:
The student will be engaged in synthetic chemistry, involving preparation of new families of organic ligands, their use in the preparation of new Al(I), Ge(II) and P(I) compounds, and testing of these compounds in activation of small moleculers (H2, CO, ethylene etc). The student will learn how to manipulate with air-sensitive compounds by using the conventional vacuum line/Schenk technique and inert atmosphere glove box and investigate these compounds by Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) and Infrared (IR) spectroscopy.

Skills required:
A major in chemistry or biochemistry, three-years complete, basic knowledge of synthetic organic and/or inorganic chemistry. Previous lab experience is an advantage.

Research area: Our group uses computer modelling tools to study biophysical chemistry. We integrate techniques such as Neural Network Potentials (NNPs), QM/MM methods, ab initio molecular dynamics, GPU computing, polarizable force fields, and enhanced conformational sampling methods.

Student roles:
Constructing molecular systems, training machine learning interatomic potentials, performing QM calculations, analyzing simulation outputs.

Skills required:
Physical chemistry, computational chemistry, data analysis, python programming, high performance computing, data analysis and visualization

Research area: We are a synthetic bioorganic/materials group focused on applying the tools of synthetic organic chemistry to the challenges of biology, medicine and materials science. Our chemistry involves developing new unnatural amino acids and carbohydrates and making more stable artificial oligosaccharides and peptides for immunological and anti-cancer applications, and using these biomaterials as the basis for new classes of sustainable materials for a variety of applications including smart drug-delivery, environmentally benign plastics, and for use as nano-probes for medical diagnostics.

Student roles:
The candidate will be working as part of a multi-disciplinary team comprising post-doctoral, doctoral, masters and undergraduate students. After a short period of getting comfortable with the lab and the project, they will be provided a self-contained subproject to manage and develop. They will be working very closely with the other members of the supramolecular team (2 PhD students, 2 PDFs, and 7 undergraduates) and the rest of the group as a whole. As this work is progressing very quickly in our group, the exact project will be decided upon arrival of the student and upon agreement on a subject of mutual interest.

Skills required:
Ideally we are looking for a synthetic chemist with broad interests in multidiciplinary science. The candidate will have the opportunity to meet and work with our network of local collaborators and experience a variety of different research environments while developing expertise in total synthesis.

Research area: My research group works on surfaces and interfacial or layered materials, and we develop new tools (particularly scanning probe microscopy approaches) for studying these fascinating materials. We work on fundamental scientific questions (how do magnetic fields impact plasmonics? how do macroscale physical effects impact nanoparticle nucleation and growth?) and applications (developing artificial tissue, creating environmental sensors), and group members have gone on to a range of careers, from academic to policy to founding scientific companies. Researchers in my lab come from a range of cultural, religious, educational and socio-economic backgrounds, with diverse races, genders, and sexual orientations.

Student roles:
The student will create different magnetic patterns to identify correlations between pattern metrics and SERS activity. The student will receive training in a range of experimental techniques associated with nanoscience and will receive training in coding/scripting as appropriate. We also provide professional development to our students in areas of entrepreneurship, scientific writing, and teaching skills. The student will work with a collaborative and dynamic group of researchers in a very scenic part of Canada.

Skills required:
The main requirement is an interest and openness to learning new things! Most of what we do is quite specialized, so we do not expect any prior expertise in our methodology. For this position, we are interested in attracting applicants with a strong understanding of magnetism, most likely but not exclusively a physicist.

Research area: This research focuses on the chemical modification of trembling aspen (Populus tremuloides Michx.) veneers using citric acid (CA) and whey ultrafiltration permeate (permeate), and their use in manufacturing of laminated veneer lumber (LVL) with improved dimensional stability and biological durability. The project simultaneously valorizes an underutilized Canadian hardwood species and a dairy industry by-product, within a circular bioeconomy.

Student roles:
The student will participate in the development and characterization of LVL produced from chemically modified trembling aspen veneers. The work will involve the preparation of permeate-CA impregnation formulation, vacuum-pressure impregnation of aspen veneers, and manufacturing of LVL using a bio-bonding formaldehyde-free approach. The student will also participate in the physical and mechanical characterization of the produced LVL, including the wight percent gain of veneers, the thickness swelling, water absorption, bending strength, shear strength, internal bonding strength of the LVL. All these characterizations will be performed according to required standards. Fourier Transform infrared spectroscopy will be performed to confirm the in situ esterification reactions. In addition, the student will contribute to literature review, experimental planning, data analysis, interpretation of results, and preparation of technical reports and scientific presentations. Throughout the internship, the student will be trained in wood characterization techniques and on all the equipments she/he will use, and laboratory safety procedures. She/he will attend regular research meetings and interact with graduate students, research professionals, technicians, and professors in our research Center. At the end of the internship, the student will prepare a technical report and deliver an oral presentation summarizing the project objectives, methodology, results, and recommendations for future works.

Skills required:
The ideal candidate should have a background in materials science, polymer chemistry, or related disciplines. Experience in laboratory work, wood-based materials, or mechanical engineering. Knowledge of analytical techniques such as Fourier Transform infrared spectroscopy, basic mechanical testing, or wood characterization would be beneficial. The student must demonstrate scientific curiosity, autonomy, attention to detail, and strong motivation for experimental research in sustainable and bio-based materials.

Research area: My research focuses on how collective molecular vibrations govern the structure, dynamics, and chemical function of advanced materials. In my laboratory, we combine experimental terahertz and low-frequency Raman spectroscopy with molecular simulations to uncover the microscopic origins of phase transformations and intermolecular interactions. By tracking these low-frequency vibrational dynamics, my work explores the fundamental physical chemistry, solid-state structures, and non-equilibrium thermodynamics governing molecular solids, framework materials, and orientationally disordered crystals.

Student roles:
The selected undergraduate student will play a hands-on, central role in this interdisciplinary project, gaining valuable, balanced training in both experimental physical chemistry and computational materials design. Working directly within a terahertz laboratory, the student’s responsibilities will bridge laboratory experimentation, advanced instrumentation control, and quantum-chemical modeling.

On the experimental side, the student will be responsible for sample preparation, which involves handling and loading benchmark plastic crystal materials into optical sample holders or pellets. They will operate the Terahertz Time-Domain Spectroscopy (THz-TDS) setup and manage a variable-temperature liquid nitrogen cryostat to collect data across the material's phase transitions. The student will process the raw time-domain waveforms using standard data analysis workflows (e.g., Python or MATLAB script packages) to extract the material’s frequency-dependent complex dielectric properties and monitor the spectral changes during molecular jamming.

Depending on the student's interest and computational background, there is an option to complement the laboratory work with quantum-chemical modeling. If pursued, the student will learn to configure and launch electronic structure calculations. They will use density functional theory (DFT) engines on high-performance computing clusters to perform geometry optimizations or analyze ab initio molecular dynamics trajectories to help visualize the molecular motions observed in the lab.

Ultimately, the student will integrate these two disciplines by overlaying the experimental terahertz absorption peaks with the computationally simulated molecular vibrations to assign specific molecular motions to the data.

Skills required:
The ideal candidate is an undergraduate student in chemistry, physics, materials sceince, or related fields. They should possess a solid foundation in physical chemistry or thermodynamics, alongside prior experience working safely in a university teaching laboratory. The student should be comfortable operating instrumentation software and performing basic data analysis using tools like Python, MATLAB, or Excel. While not mandatory, an interest in learning computational modeling or Linux environments is a strong asset.

Research area: We are part of the interdisciplinary Green Chemistry and Catalysis Group at Memorial University. Green Chemistry is used to "design products and processes that minimize the use and generation of hazardous substances". Research areas currently under investigation by our team include: Catalysis using earth abundant elements (homogeneous) and modified biochar (heterogeneous); Carbon dioxide utilisation; Degradable polymers; Circular Economy related to ocean-sourced biomass (e.g. shells, fish bones, seaweed). Dr. Kerton received the Canadian Green Chemistry & Engineering Award in 2019, the SCI Kalev Pugi Award in 2023, 3 M Top 25 Women in Science in 2024.

Student roles:
Tasks will depend on the achievements in our group during the next year before the Globalink students arrive, and also on the exact nature of the project that the student chooses to tackle (e.g. polymers or biomaterials).
In previous years, tasks to be performed by the research assistant (intern/student) included:
(1) Prepare and characterise new catalysts or materials or polymers. This might involve using a glovebox and NMR spectrometers.
(2) Grow crystals, for X-ray diffraction analysis, of any new catalysts.
(3) Screen new catalysts in catalytic reactions involving carbon dioxide activation. Quantitative data will be obtained via GC-MS and/or proton NMR analysis.
(4) Use a scientific approach to optimise the reaction conditions (concentrations, time, temp. etc.). Obtain kinetic data on reactions. A range of techniques (NMR, IR and/or GC) will be used. We sometimes use statistical methods (experimental design) to optimize conditions.
(5) Find and read relevant papers from scientific journals.
(6) Participate in group activities (e.g. whale-watching trip and picnics) and tasks (e.g. updating the chemical inventory and keeping the lab tidy).
(7) Organize and file your scientific findings e.g. spectra, journal articles.
(8) Write a short report concerning your findings.
These last two points will help Dr. Kerton in preparing your results for publication.

Skills required:
Students should be completing a chemistry degree program (or a closely related field). Students should have basic knowledge of inorganic, organic, analytical and physical chemistry. Students should have completed laboratory courses in organic chemistry and be able to perform standard lab tasks e.g. suction/Buechner filtrations. Knowledge of organic spectroscopic techniques, e.g. NMR and IR spectroscopy, would also be desirable.

Research area: Computational modelling became a staple research approach in understanding atomic-scale processes in physical sciences. Our research program operates in the most exciting chemical space one can imagine: intersection of chemistry, biology, and geology by focusing on physisorption and chemical change at the surface of Fe-S nanoparticles, in between layers of clay nanoparticles, and at the open edges of porous carbon materials. We seek qualified candidates to join our team and discover new potentials for molecular maquettes that look like and behave like real chemical systems.

Student roles:
After initial hand holding and one-one-one training for about 2-3 weeks, the student will be given the access to a breath of chemical space and time to explore, discover, break and fix things. Micromanagement is a luxury for a productive research group; however, the research group leader and senior lab members are always available for one-on-one tutoring and personal guidance. The candidate is invited to express their interests for the degree of engagement. The research group will do their best to accommodate. However, the students will also be held accountable for their use of the precious computational resources from UBC Advanced Research Computing, Digital Research Alliance of Canada/Compute Canada, as well as our local resources. We thrive to give an opportunity for a student to see him/her/themselves as future leaders in atomic-scale, structure controlled molecule/material design experts. Based on past visiting scholars, it is expected that the 120-week projects will result in peer-reviewed publications and/or local, regional, national conference presentations.

Skills required:
The most important skill/background is a strong drive to scientific discovery that is coupled with honesty.
In computational modelling - given the nature of the research approach/tools/possibilities - finding problems and issues are the way to go forward and not something you can put on the backburner. We can address/attack/eliminate any challenges with time, computational resources, and chemical intelligence.
The participants are expected to have a good work ethic (80% is already perfect!), commitment, and dedication to the cause.

Research area: I am a theoretical chemist, working at the interface of mathematics, physics, chemistry, computer science, and biology. My goal is to build mathematical models and computational software for describing chemical and physical phenomena in molecules and materials. To do this, we use mathematical tools from information theory and machine learning, physical insights from quantum mechanics, and modern computer programming tools and high performance computing resources, coupled with chemical intuition. Our goal is to elucidate technologically relevant molecules and materials, as well as to develop new tools for pharmaceutical design.

Student roles:
In the first stage of the project, the student will select a database of chemical reactions for testing.

Then the student will scrutinize these reactions, focusing either on computational performance or chemical relevance/interpretability. For example, one might wish to derive a reaction "fingerprint" which would allow one to group/characterize similar reactions based on their properties/mechanism, potentially identifying reactions that might be catalyzed by similar reagents/conditions. Alternatively, one might wish to explore more efficient ways to model reactions computationally, perhaps by developing more efficient algorithms for finding molecular geometries or reactions pathways. Or one might wish to examine a specific family of reactions---perhaps possible substrates of a specific enzyme---and gain chemical insight into the processes involved. These are just a few examples of potential topics, which will be guided by the interests and aptitudes of the student.

Skills required:
The student should have knowledge and familiarity with statistics, calculus, and linear algebra. It will be very helpful if the student also knows about scientific/mathematical programming and computer scripting, but any student with interests and skills in mathematics and/or computational modeling, however, could be productive.

Research area: Research in the Auvray group seeks to capitalize on the versatility of synthetic inorganic chemistry to prepare new efficient materials for applications related to energy and sustainability. By targeting the development of advanced functional materials, our research develops new systems to tackle key challenges for the sustainable development of our society, in line with the United Nation Sustainable Goals. The research projects proposed here leverage the synergies of established synthetic procedures and emerging sustainable chemical methodologies to design new electro- and photo-active inorganic or hybrid materials.

Student roles:
The student recruited to work on this project will work closely with graduate students and the host faculty. Depending on their interest, their contribution to the project will be tailored to adress one or more of the following aspects:
- the synthesis of mixed-metal porous materials through different methodologies (microwave, solvothermal or mechanochemical)
- the characterization of the physical and chemical properties of the synthesised materials, in particular their crystalinity, porosity and electronic properties
- the evaluation of their performance for model waste water purification through systematic testing and validation of their photochemical response and selectivity.
The depth and level of the technical tasks assigned to the intern will vary based on their background and field of interest, in order to ensure a fruitful experience through this mobility program.

Skills required:
Ideal candidate should have a solid fundation in chemistry, especially coordination chemistry, and have already obtained several laboratory course credits to facilitate integration in the team and adaptation to the protocols used in the lab. We do not expect extensive previous laboratory experience and training will be provided and adapted to individual backgrounds.
While Trois-Rivieres is a french speaking city/university, there is no requirement related to knowledge of French for this internship.

Research area: Membrane Technology Electrochemical Process Water and Wastewater Treatment Membrane Fouling and Scaling Control Industrial Resource Recovery

Student roles:
Collaborating with the PhD or master students in the group for project design, literature
review, experimental conduction, report writing, and project presentation.

Attending the weekly individual meeting and group meeting, attending the group social
activities, and taking certain tasks in the lab (e.g., lab cleaning) as a formal member.

Skills required:
One of the following background:
(1) Environmental Engineering
(2) Chemical Engineering
(3) Chemistry Science
(4) Materials or Material Engineering
(5) Civil Engineering

Research area: My research area is at the interface of organic and inorganic chemistry. I study the fundamentals and the applications of the reactivity of molecules based on earth-abundant nonmetal elements of the main group, in order to develop metal-free catalysts for a variety of sustainability-related applications. My expertise combines computational and experimental chemistry for the development of novel reactions and new methodologies based on nonmetal elements.

Student roles:
Under my supervision and with my guidance, the student will design new catalysts based on the main group elements using computational tools (optional). Having identified promising molecular platforms, the student will synthesize the targets and evaluate their reactivity in catalysis. Reactivity studies will include the reactivity of the catalyst with small molecules and organic building blocks under stoichiometric and catalytic conditions and reaction optimization.

Skills required:
The student should have an Interest in molecular chemistry and skills in organic / inorganic synthesis. Experience with air-free synthesis are an asset, as well as an interest to learn simple computational modelling tools for reactivity prediction. The ability to work safely in laboratory environment is necessary.

Research area: Dr. Song's prior and current work has concentrated on development and characterization of heterogeneous catalyst systems for use in clean energy conversion and emissions control such as heavy oil upgrading, natural gas storage and utilization, CO2 capture and utilization, solid (coal and biomass) gasification/pyrolysis for liquid production, steam reforming of renewable resources, and hazardous pollutants removal in waste water and flue gas after fossil fuel combustion.

Student roles:
• Digesting literature published with related topics.
• Facilitating catalyst snythesis.
• Helping performing experiments in the lab.
• Collecting experimental data in an organized way.
• Carefully interpreting the collected data with a critical mind and
drawing convincing conclusions with clear experimental support.
• Presenting obtained results verbally in public.
• Taking assigned general lab duties.

Skills required:
• Majored in chemical engineering or chemistry.
• Self-motivated with strong desire in learning new things.
• Willing to spend time in lab performing hands-on experiments.
• Basic knowledge in the field of catalysis is preferred.

Research area: This research focuses on natural product discovery from microbes obtained from unique northern British Columbian ecological sources. The end goal is the discovery of bioactive natural products with agrochemical and forestry uses. We are particularly interested in finding bioactive molecules to provide the framework for more sustainable agrochemicals.

Student roles:
The work will be laboratory-based. With guidance, the student will develop isolation routes of natural products from target bacterial strains. In order to do so, the student will apply various extraction and chromatographic techniques at the bench and fume-hood. The opportunity will be there to apply simple organic synthesis steps for natural product derivatization, or complete a few organic syntheses if desired. With guidance, the student will apply nuclear magnetic resonance to assess natural product isolation routes as well as identify isolated natural products.

Skills required:
An organic chemistry and organic spectroscopy background is of great use.

Research area: My research aims to modify biosourced polysaccharides, particularly pullulan, to improve it's physico-chemical and mechanical properties for biomedical applications. I am specialized in nuclear magnetic resonance, and in synthesis (including anhydrous techniques).

Student roles:
The student is expected to:
- Synthesize all Click chemistry precursors
- small scale (100-500 mg)
- larger scale (1-5 g)
- Purification of modified pullulan by dialysis
- Characterize all compounds (NMR, IR, DSC, TGA)
- Evaluate the efficiency of reactions (yield, kinetics)
- Determine the degree of substitution on pullulan
- Troubleshoot challenges encountered during syntheses
- Responsible to keep an up-to-date lab book with complete protocol and analyses

Skills required:
The student should possess adequate knowledge in organic chemistry or in polymer synthesis. Additionally, the student must have minimal knowledge in spectroscopic analyses such as nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and infrared (IR). Laboratory experience in chemistry is preferred. If selected candidates with minimal experience will receive additional training.

Research area: This is a joint project between the groups of Prof. Karina Carneiro and Prof. Anuradha Prakki at the Faculty of Dentistry, University of Toronto. This project combines Carneiro's expertise in the area of polymer chemistry, with that of Prof. Prakki in restorative dentistry.

Student roles:
The student will be working in a wet laboratory environment (biosafety level 2) with a graduate student or PDF. Techniques the student may be performing depending on background are: synthesis, NMR, applying material to teeth, nanoindentation, atomic force microscopy and data analysis.

Skills required:
The ideal candidate will have experience in chemistry and/or dental materials. The student should be organized, methodical and self-driven. Experience with NMR characterization is an asset.

Research area: The group specializes in synthesis of nanomaterials and composited and their application in devices. We actively research synthesis and assembly of perovskites, nano-composites, chiral materials and catalysts for application in energy storage and photovoltaics, LED’s, the design of nanostructured materials for make multimodal sensors and enhancing the performance and properties of devices.

Student roles:
The student will work in the laboratory and will be a part of the group. It is expected that following the safety rules and presentation of the research work will be a regular feature. The student will conduct experiments for synthesis of nanomaterials and characterize them using techniques such as electron microscope, absorbance and emission spectroscopy. Assembly of devices and testing their photo-electrical response using a solar light source and a home build electrical characterization workstation will also be conducted. It is expected that the student will conduct these experiments and analyze the results based on the basic physics of a solar cell. Based on the results improvements and design of further experiments will be done by the student. Members of the group will provide continuous help in these efforts. The student will also get familiarized with properties of perovskite and their synthesis and quantum confinement effects. The student will also be trained on the in house method developed for synthesis and modulation of the film formation with LHPs.

Skills required:
Undergraduate student with background in engineering, physics or chemistry will be considered for this position. In particular academic courses in quantum mechanics, solid state/semiconductor physics, mathematics, engineering and physical chemistry will provide a foundation required for this project. Basic knowledge of electrical circuits will also be needed for the project. Laboratory courses in chemistry will also be helpful. Prior research experience in nanomaterials such as quantum dots, nanowires though not necessary but will be useful for the project.

Research area: I am a theoretical chemist, working at the interface of mathematics, physics, chemistry, computer science, and biology. My goal is to build mathematical models and computational software for describing chemical and physical phenomena in molecules and materials. To do this, we use mathematical tools from information theory and machine learning, physical insights from quantum mechanics, and modern computer programming tools and high performance computing resources, coupled with chemical intuition. Our goal is to elucidate technologically relevant molecules and materials, as well as to develop new tools for pharmaceutical design.

Student roles:
The student will focus on formulating mathematical models for chemical phenomena, implementing those models in ChemTools (or other appropriate packages in the QC-Devs ecosystem, www.qcdevs.org), and testing those models on the high performance computer (HPC) clusters administered by Compute Canada. Different facets of the project can be emphasized depending on participants' interests. Ultimately, the goal is to provide rules that allow researchers in materials science, chemistry, and chemical biology to choose the best method for their specific needs. Our emphasis this cycle is on bonding and reactivity, targeting problems like catalysis and drug design. However, students who are interested in other types of chemical problems (e.g., advanced materials) are also encouraged to apply.

Skills required:
The student should have at least one year of chemistry at the university or advanced high-school level. Familiarity with quantum mechanics and computer programming is advantageous, but inessential.

Research area: Membrane Science and Nanotechnology

Student roles:
1. Student will be trained how to use the software available at my lab and necessary for the molecular dynamic simulations, as well as provided with guidance on the project’s research directions and all of the tasks requested for each week.
2. Student will be a part of a positive, productive, and creative research team, and will be able to attend group meetings, learn from other group members, and share ideas.
3. After their full training is completed, the student will use the project’s software to simulate various membrane designs and their interactions with water and contaminations.
4. Student will be responsible for analyzing the results of the software and comparing the results of different designs, for optimum performance and optimum membrane design when it comes to specific applications.
5. Student will participate in a weekly meeting in order to discuss the weekly research results, and will be provided with a memo for the following week.
6. Student will complete a manuscript about the research findings under my guidance.
7. Once the research findings are analyzed, the student will successfully present findings at an appropriate conference.

Skills required:
This project requires a background in Organic Chemistry, basic knowledge about molecular simulations capabilities, and an interest in learning Molecular Dynamics Simulations.

Research area: Our research program focuses on several exciting and highly interconnected fronts. Working at the forefront of the molecular modeling of liquid and solutions, we are investigating probe microscopic behavior of liquids, solutions and their interfaces, to demonstrate how local molecular structure and dynamics relate to various properties and processes of condensed phase systems. We utilize extensive molecular simulations to identify and characterize molecular behaviour and driving forces, thereby improving our fundamental understanding of molecular origins for the stability and mobility of nanobubbles in bulk liquids. We continue to build on the leadership we have established in understanding these systems.

Student roles:
The molecular simulations that are part of this project will utilize standard models and some specialized MD simulation techniques, and will be performed on high performance computer clusters. The student will set up and run the simulations, will monitor the results generated from the simulations, for example the average pressure in a nanobubble or the motion of a nanobubble, and will perform analysis of the molecular structures within the system, particularly at the air/water interface. The analysis and visualization of the structures will allow the student to identify the key aspects in the molecular behaviour and how these might interrelate and contribute to nanobubble stability and/or mobility, as well as how these might be influence by factors such as bubble size and gas type or composition. A review of the recent literature will also be done during the project to ensure the most recent updates from experimental and theoretical work are available to support a better understanding of the results obtained. The student will be working closely with myself and a senior graduate student on this project and the results from this work should lead to a scientific publication. The student is also expected to participate in scientific discussions within the research group.

Skills required:
The student is expected to have the following skills/background:
- A strong background in Chemistry (or related fields), particularly physical chemistry (2nd year University level).
- Basic computer skills are a requirement, and experience with scientific computing and visualization (in a Linux environment) would be an asset.
- Good foundation in mathematics (1st year university level).
- Willingness to learn and a keen interest in the molecular world.

Research area: Our lab develops a combination of linear and nonlinear optical spectroscopic probes of interfacial structure, and computer simulations. We are particularly interested in how second-order techniques such as visible-infrared sum-frequency generation (SFG) may be used to characterize the conformation and orientation of molecules at surfaces.

Student roles:
The student will learn how to use an existing nonlinear vibrational spectroscopy setup in our lab. Tasks include the preparation of samples including polymer thin film coatings, and careful measurements and calibration. Various liquid solutions will be prepared, and different concentration and temperature regimes for the adsorption process will be explored. Much of the code required to process the resulting data has already been written, but minor modifications to the code for analysis are always welcome. We have signficant expertise in such coding in the lab. If the student is interested, there is an opportunity to explore this aspect in further detail.

Skills required:
No prior skills or background in any area is necessary. The ideal candidate will have an interest in optics, spectroscopy, and materials science. An interest in computers and programming would be beneficial, but not a strict requirement.

Research area: In my laboratory we synthesize new main-group and transition metal-based molecules using wet-chemical methods, evaluate their structure and bonding via experimental and computational analysis, and test their reactivity and catalytic activity towards small molecules of relevance to chemical industry. Our goals involve the development of efficient and sustainable catalysts based on earth-abundant elements to eliminate the reliance of chemical industry on systems based on rare or toxic metals. To achieve this we design and synthesize new molecular catalysts with the appropriate orbital arrangements to activate and functionalize inert bonds, with a particular focus on low-valent Group XIII based catalysts.

Student roles:
This is a very hands-on role where the successful students will synthesize, characterize, and evaluate new compounds on a daily basis. Conducting chemical reactions, developing new protocols, analyzing reactions mixtures, fully characterizing isolated products, and testing reactivity with substrates are all tasks that will form the bulk of the day-to-day lab-work of the students. Students will be trained to independently operate our NMR and X-ray diffractometer, which will be the most common methods of chemical characterization. Students will work with experts in our research group to develop computational models of their systems to study geometry, frontier molecular orbitals, and substrate binding of systems related to their project. The students will also be assigned a fraction of our communal lab shared responsibilities related to the maintenance of our lab equipment, the re-filling of our shared chemicals, and the collection and disposal of chemical wastes. The student will be responsible for preparing presentations and formal reports related to their project material, and may be asked to present them at group meetings or research conferences. The student will also be expected to stay up-to-date in the chemical literature related to their project and will occasionally be required to present new and interesting research at formal group meetings. All of this work will take place in my lab alongside other graduate and undergraduate students, so the ability to conduct work safely and maintain shared systems is essential.

Skills required:
Students should have a strong background in inorganic/organometallic chemistry. Familiarity with main-group chemistry is useful but is not strictly required. Students should be proficient in synthetic skills developed through upper-level undergraduate laboratory courses, and be familiar with spectroscopic analysis of organic and inorganic molecules by NMR, EPR, UV-Vis, IR, and MS. The ability to work both individually and in a team-setting are essential skills, as is the strict adherence to established safety protocols.

Research area: Biomolecules are fascinating and shape our own inner and outer worlds. Part of my group’s research is based on harnessing the programmability of DNA to make new, exotic organic material complexes. We accomplish this by using nanotechnology techniques to shape DNA into any configuration we can imagine – known as ‘DNA origami’. We will combine DNA with other molecules, such as fluorophores that emit light, to use in applications as diverse as solar-cells, synthetic leaves, metal nanoparticle-based sensors, and drug delivery systems. My research group is poised to make important discoveries leading to innovative solutions to worldwide problems.

Student roles:
This project is highly interdisciplinary and the student will learn to use a wide range of biochemistry, analytical chemistry, physical chemistry, and nanotechnology methods. The student will lead each facet of the project and can modify the research plan at any time based on personal preference/experience or depending on the outcomes of experiments conducted during the project. My graduate students and I will work closely with the student, while conducting measurements in the laboratory, and I will have weekly meetings to discuss research progress and ensure that any questions or concerns are voiced and considered.

The student will be expected to:
- perform an initial survey of the literature.
- use software packages to design DNA structures.
- use thermal annealing to shape synthetic DNA strands into the identified shapes and purify them using biochemical techniques.
- characterize the DNA using atomic force microscopy and transmission electron microscopy methods.
- based on the intended application, introduce dyes or nanoparticles with different binding modes into the DNA structures. The resulting DNA complex will be measured using a variety of spectroscopic interrogation methods, such as circular dichroism and linear dichroism, which use polarized light to probe the chirality and alignment of light-absorbing species.
- for drug-delivery systems, we will collaborate with other groups at the University to introduce our structures into cells.
- analyze all the experimental data and prepare a final report.
- present the project results to my research group to evaluate the project’s success and next steps.
- participate in the University’s Summer Undergraduate Research Experience Poster Symposium to highlight the goals, outcome, and impacts of the research for non-experts.
- prepare and co-author a research paper based on the project.

Skills required:
Preference will be given to students who have completed two years of a chemistry, physics, biology, or engineering program, or some combination thereof. The student should have completed some laboratory courses and be comfortable in a laboratory environment. No explicit DNA or laser knowledge is necessary, as I will work closely with the student until he/she is confident enough to run the experiments independently and interpret the results. All that is needed is a willingness to learn new things, an enthusiasm for unique experiences, and an eagerness to work with a great team of people!

Research area: We are developing molecules that respond to light by changing their structure and properties. These light-driven molecular switches (i.e., photoswitches) will be integrated with lipid-based self-assembled structures, such as lipid vesicles and micelles, to form photoresponsive nanoparticles. These biocompatible nanoparticles will have potential application in 'on-demand' ion transport or drug delivery where the delivered dose will be regulated with light. A delivery vehicle with light-triggered release provides a high level of spatial and temporal control that will afford a higher local concentration of therapeutics, reduce the overall injected dose, and minimize systemic toxicity.

Student roles:
Students will generally have a choice in the sub-project they undertake. The available research projects include the following: (1) the synthesis of new amphiphilic DASAs/SpOxs, (2) the photophysical characterization of newly synthesized DASAs/SpOxs, or (3) examining the integration of these DASAs/SpOxs with lipid vesicles and their photocontrol of permeability in lipid vesicles, or determining their critical micelle concentration and photocontrol of micelle destabilization.

(1) The student will be trained to prepare photochromic DASAs/SpOxs using modern synthetic organic techniques and characterize their structure using modern organic spectroscopy methods, such as nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy and liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS).

(2) The student will be trained to characterize the photophysical properties of the newly synthesized amphiphilic DASAs/SpOxs using modern optical spectroscopy methods, such as absorption spectroscopy and fluorescence spectroscopy.

(3) The student will be trained to examine the compounds’ photocontrol of ion/small molecule permeability by integrating the amphiphilic DASAs/SpOxs with lipid vesicles, or to determine their critical micelle concentration and photocontrol of micelle destabilization. The student will use modern optical spectroscopy methods, such as absorption spectroscopy and fluorescence spectroscopy.

These studies will provide students with an advanced set of hard skills, equally integrating components of organic synthesis, analytical methods, and photophysical methods. Moreover, this skill set will be used to develop protocols for the production of photoresponsive nanoparticles for ‘on-demand’ drug delivery. In addition, these studies will foster the development of important soft skills as these students work with each other and potentially with interested parties in the pharmaceutical industry.

Skills required:
A student interested in this research project should have laboratory experience in organic chemistry, analytical chemistry, physical chemistry, or related areas in engineering. For a student performing organic synthesis, a minimum of two classes in organic chemistry would be required. Additional experience from organic chemistry courses or in organic synthetic techniques would be considered an asset. For a student performing the photophysical characterization of the photochromic compounds, or the lipid vesicle/micelle studies, a minimum of two classes in analytical or physical chemistry would be required. Additional experience with analytical instrumentation or optical spectroscopic techniques would be considered an asset.

Research area: Prof. Matta Kaur is interested in investigating how nature’s light-powered proteins can inspire clean-hydrogen research. Her research interests include photosynthesis, computer-based molecular analysis, protein structure, light-driven electron transfer, and biohybrid solar-fuel systems. In particular, Prof. Matta Kaur’s research focuses on Photosystem I, a natural solar protein that can connect sunlight with fuel-making catalysts. Research areas: Computational Biophysics, Photosynthesis, Clean Hydrogen, Molecular Modelling, Biohybrid Solar Fuels. Research sub-fields: Photosystem I, protein–nanoparticle interfaces, electron-transfer cofactors, surface charge, water-accessible regions, and molecular visualization.

Student roles:
This project is multidisciplinary and offers the student an opportunity to engage in tasks related to photosynthesis, clean hydrogen, protein structure, and computer-based molecular analysis. This will provide broad exposure to future career paths in clean-energy research, computational chemistry, biophysics, materials science, and bioinspired catalyst studies.

The student will join Prof. Matta Kaur’s computational research group, where the project will be organized into specific activities: (1) literature review on Photosystem I, clean hydrogen, and photosynthetic biohybrid catalysts; (2) molecular visualization of published Photosystem I and Photosystem I–nanoparticle structures; (3) identification of electron-transfer components and possible catalyst-contact regions; and (4) preparation of annotated molecular figures, comparison tables, a short research report, and an oral presentation.

Initially, the student will receive close supervision while learning how to read selected papers, visualize protein structures, identify important molecular regions, and organize structural information. As the project progresses, the student is expected to build expertise and contribute more independently in one focused area, depending on their background and interests, such as protein surface analysis, water-accessible region identification, nanoparticle-contact comparison, or distance measurements between catalyst-contact sites and electron-transfer components. The student will contribute meaningfully to the overall progress of the project while gaining practical training in molecular visualization, computational analysis, research documentation, and scientific communication.

Skills required:
The required background of the student is in the fields of Chemistry, Biochemistry, Physics, Materials Science, Computational Chemistry, or related areas. Skills in literature review, molecular visualization, protein-structure analysis, basic chemistry, and data organization will help the student understand how Photosystem I can connect with catalytic nanoparticles for clean hydrogen production. Basic courses in photosynthesis, biochemistry, physical chemistry, materials chemistry, or molecular modelling will be useful. Background in protein structure, clean-energy chemistry, or computer-based molecular analysis will be more specific to the project related to biohybrid solar-fuel catalysts.

Research area: Prof. Steeve Rousselot is active in the field of battery materials and energy storage systems. His research focuses on strategic approaches that combine the smart selection of battery technologies with the development of processes across the entire value chain—from mineral extraction to active material synthesis—and the optimization of forming and shaping methods for energy storage systems. This integrated approach aims to move up and restructure the value chain to enhance performance, manufacturability, recyclability, and long term competitiveness in response to the major scientific and technological challenges of the energy transition.

Student roles:
Over the course of the internship, the intern will be responsible for the manufacture of composite electrodes for battery applications. The intern will characterize these electrodes using standard physico chemical and materials characterization techniques (microscopy, structural analysis, mechanical testing, electrical measurements) before integrating them into lab scale batteries and evaluating their electrochemical performance.
Regular meetings will be held with the supervisor, during which the intern will assess project progress, analyze experimental results, and define the next experimental steps.
The intern will work within a team of international students, comply with laboratory safety protocols, and contribute to the organization and maintenance of the laboratory environment.

Skills required:
The selected candidate should have a background in chemistry, materials chemistry, electrochemistry, or general engineering, with an interest in the field of batteries and energy storage. A background in physico chemical materials characterization is required.
The candidate should be motivated by laboratory work and experimental development, and demonstrate rigorous methodology, including an understanding of critical process parameters, process optimization, and safety considerations related to the handling of materials and chemicals.
The candidate should also be able to analyze experimental data, plan subsequent experiments based on results, and prepare clear and structured reports.

Research area: Porous materials (substances with substantial voids in their crystal structures) have multiple applications in areas as diverse as catalysis and storage of gases. In recent years "reticular synthesis" has successfully led to new classes of porous materials such as metal-organic frameworks and covalent organic frameworks. This project is intended to extend reticular synthesis using a type of supramolecular force that is receiving increasing attention: the attractive interaction of electrophilic sites on heavy non-metallic atoms with electron-rich centres. "Halogen bonding" is a prominent example recently highlighted by the International Union for Pure and Applied Chemistry with a formal definition.

Student roles:
The student is expected to:
Perform the synthesis of target compounds using inert atmosphere techniques, including Schlenk methods in a vacuum/inert-gas double manifold and manipulations in a glove box.
Purify the products of each reaction.
Characterize the products by spectroscopic methods, including mass spectrometry nuclear magnetic resonance, and infrared, Raman and UV-vis spectroscopies.
Assist in the structural characterization of new compounds using X-ray diffraction.
Ensure the safety of all persons working in the laboratory by enforcing all the established policies and procedures.
Provide weekly a progress report to the principal investigator.
Write a full report at the end of the internship period.

Appropriate training will be provided in the early stages of the appointment, this will include instruction in all safety regulations and procedures. The experience acquired by the trainee will be valuable in a number of industrial and academic settings where modern techniques of chemical synthesis are used.

Skills required:
This project is intended for a student who is completing a BSc. Honors in Chemistry and is willing to travel to McMaster in order to perform these investigations. Key to all the experiments is the synthesis and characterization of new molecules.
Necessary sills include:
Familiarity with the equipment and procedures of a modern laboratory for synthesis in chemistry, eg. recrystallization, filtration, distillation, TLC and bulk chromatography.
Basic understanding of properties such as the origin of the lines in the NMR spectrum of new compounds
Basic understanding of the quantum mechanical model of atoms and molecules.

Research area: I am a theoretical chemist, working at the interface of mathematics, physics, chemistry, computer science, and biology. My goal is to build mathematical models and computational software for describing chemical and physical phenomena in molecules and materials. To do this, we use mathematical tools from information theory and machine learning, physical insights from quantum mechanics, and modern computer programming tools and high performance computing resources, coupled with chemical intuition. Our goal is to elucidate technologically relevant molecules and materials, as well as to develop new tools for pharmaceutical design.

Student roles:
The student will explore new strategies for the quantum marginal problem, based on consideration of the bounding surfaces of the set of permissible (N-representable) marginals and/or the mapping of marginals to the full N-electron system.

The main task will be to implement new algorithms. Standard approaches for this problem exist, but combining them with an optimizer is difficult, as one needs to iteratively refine the characterization of the surface of the N-representable set. The main task is to explore algorithms (e.g., rank-revealing QR decomposition) that can do this more efficiently.

Skills required:
Knowledge of quantum mechanics and computer programming is essential. While the target of the work is molecular modelling, the problem setting is abstract, so the need for domain knowledge in chemistry and physics is limited.

Research area: Luminescent stable organic radicals are an emerging class of materials that combine unpaired electrons with efficient light emission. Unlike conventional fluorescent materials, these molecules possess unique spin-dependent electronic structures that enable direct access to quantum states, making them promising building blocks for next-generation quantum technologies, including molecular qubits, quantum sensing, spin-photon interfaces, etc. The synthetic modification of the structure of luminescent organic radicals enables tailoring of their optical and magnetic properties, improving their photostability (one of the main technological challenges in their application), and uncovering new photophysical and quantum phenomena for future quantum devices.

Student roles:
The primary role of the student is synthesis, purification and characterization of the luminescent diradicals (and the corresponding intermediates), under the mentorship of senior PhD students and post-doctoral fellows in Perepichka's lab. The student will also DFT computational tools, photoluminescence and EPR spectroscopy in studying the properties of their molecular targets

Skills required:
The project requires solid understanding of the basic organic chemistry (at least two organic chemistry courses) and at least some laboratory experience in organic synthesis. Experience in photoluminescence spectroscopy is a plus (but not required)

Research area: My research group works on developing functional materials, including environmental sensors. Beyond our fundamental materials design and testing, we are interested in moving our research beyond the lab. Group members have gone on to a range of careers, from academic to policy to founding scientific companies. Researchers in my lab come from a range of cultural, religious, educational and socio-economic backgrounds, with diverse races, genders, and sexual orientations.

Student roles:
The student will have the opportunity to create and lead their own project within the broader activities of the research group. In accordance with the student's interests, they can receive training and be involved in spectroscopy and data analysis (including computational/data science), but the main focus will be on making that link between the technology and the community. (Travel or work off-campus is not required but can be arranged if interested.) We also provide professional development to our students in areas of entrepreneurship, scientific writing, and teaching skills. The student will work with a collaborative and dynamic group of researchers, in a very scenic part of Canada.

Skills required:
The main requirement is an interest and openness to learning new things! For this position, we are interested in attracting applicants with a complementary understanding of environmental monitoring and/or community-based research. Depending on student interest, the student can delve into data analysis, developing methods that are accessible to the layperson, or identifying community concerns. Training will be provided for any laboratory work, so no prior spectroscopic or sample processing experience is required.

Research area: Research in the Ollevier Group is centered on the field of organic synthesis, catalysis, synthetic methodology. We are inspired by the pursuit of new concepts in synthetic organic chemistry involving metal-mediated catalysis, asymmetric synthesis, and flow techniques. Please visit our Publications page to see our latest work or scroll down to view highlights of the various areas of research we are currently engaged in. Over the years, our laboratory has assumed a strong leadership in green Lewis acid catalysts. We develop general applications for new classes of catalysts. New methods using photochemistry in flow are also in progress.

Student roles:
The first part of the project will involve the preparation of the fluorinated starting materials. The preparation will be done in a few steps from products available in our research group. Preliminary results from our group suggest that this project is very well suited for an intern student. In the second part of the project, the student will develop conditions to test the efficiency of the flow technique on the model reaction by varying the different parameters. Several substrates will be chosen. Since this reaction is part of a set of reactions which were already studied in our research group with other catalysts, the identification of the reaction products will be facilitated. The methodology consists of optimizing reaction conditions with the aim of getting the best efficiency for obtaining the reaction products.

Skills required:
Research abilities for laboratory experimental work.

Research area: The Byers research group focuses on the discovery of new materials for energy conversion and storage through the development of scanning electrochemical microscopy techniques to study (photo)electrocatalytic reactions. His research group specializes in the electrodeposition of functional thin film materials and materials characterization techniques through the NanoQAM research centre.

Student roles:
Interested students will work full-time in a chemistry research laboratory. Students will be exposed to materials synthesis, structural characterization, and evaluation of material performance. As participants in the project, students will have access to state-of-the-art research facilities and instrumentation at the NanoQAM Research Center on Nanomaterials and Energy (https://nanoqam.ca/wp/en/). They will receive hands-on training from research professionals on the necessary equipment, with the goal of becoming independent and competent users.

Students will be expected to complete all required laboratory safety training and adhere to established safety protocols. While students are expected to work autonomously in their laboratory activities, they will be supported and mentored by graduate students and Prof. Byers. Strong organizational skills, attention to detail, and accurate record keeping are essential. Students will also be expected to analyze and interpret experimental data, engage with relevant scientific literature, and communicate their findings through written reports and presentations at group meetings.

Successful participants will demonstrate reliability, initiative, scientific curiosity, and the ability to work effectively both independently and as part of a collaborative research team.

Skills required:
Students with experience in chemistry and materials science and a keen interest to make important contributions to the development of new technologies for clean energy generation and storage are encouraged to apply. The project will be carried out in an electrochemistry lab with a suite of electrochemical instrumentation including two electrochemical microscopes. In addition, the project will benefit from the materials synthesis and characterization facility NanoQAM where Pr Byers is a member.

Research area: Interface engineering in batteries, sensors, electrocatalytic water splitting and optoelectronic devices; focus on interfacial degradation, electronic stucture and work function tuning, functionalization, and morphology control. Solution deposition of nanoparticles

Student roles:
The student will, under supervision, perform solution chemistry experiments, focussing on the solubility and reactivity of reagents in a variety of solvents to produce nano particles using the reverse micelle technique. The chemical and physical characteristics of the produced nanostructures will be determined by x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, x-ray diffraction, atomic force microscopy, and photoluminescence spectroscopy.

Skills required:
The ideal student will have a background in chemistry, materials science, physics, or engineering, with an interest in nanomaterials and electrochemistry. Experience with solution synthesis, nanoparticle characterization, or battery testing is beneficial but not required. Strong laboratory skills, attention to detail, and enthusiasm for interdisciplinary research are essential.

Research area: The foundation of our research has mainly centered on exploiting conglomerate crystallization, where non-centrosymmetric space groups lead to the formation of individually chiral crystals. Chiral resolution remains a cornerstone technique for obtaining enantiomerically pure compounds, with crystallization being the most practical method for large-scale production due to its simplicity. Our research aims to better understand chiral resolution and chirogenesis (i.e., origin of chirality) under non-equilibrium conditions. Specifically, we are beginning to explore the role of reaction-diffusion frameworks (RDF) in controlling chirality and crystal growth.

Student roles:
The student will investigate two-component racemic conglomerates (e.g., ionic cocrystals, salts and two-component conglomerates from achiral building blocks, cocrystals, or metal complexes. Real-time optical microscopy will be employed to monitor crystal nucleation and growth. By controlling the formation of conglomerate crystals from racemic or achiral compounds within the gel matrix, distinct chiral domains can emerge, facilitating the spatiotemporal separation of enantiomers. Students will acquire advanced skills in crystallization, microscopy, spectroscopy, and crystallography.

Skills required:
The selected student should have fundamental background in Chemistry (Organic, Physical and Analytical). The required skills and techniques for the success of the described project will be taught to the student during the 12-week internship, but having some laboratory experience is an asset. The student will explore the resolution of The influence of diffusion and reaction fronts on possible spatiotemporal resolution into homochiral domains will be studied. The main requirements are to have: an inquisitive mind, the ability to work hard and enthusiasm.

Research area: Dr. Song's prior and current work has concentrated on development and characterization of heterogeneous catalyst systems for use in clean energy conversion and emissions control such as heavy oil upgrading, natural gas storage and utilization, CO2 capture and utilization, solid (coal and biomass) gasification/pyrolysis for liquid production, steam reforming of renewable resources, and hazardous pollutants removal in waste water and flue gas after fossil fuel combustion.

Student roles:
• Digesting literature published with related topics.
• Facilitating catalyst snythesis.
• Helping performing experiments in the lab.
• Collecting experimental data in an organized way.
• Carefully interpreting the collected data with a critical mind and
drawing convincing conclusions with clear experimental support.
• Presenting obtained results verbally in public.
• Taking assigned general lab duties.

Skills required:
• Majored in chemical engineering or chemistry.
• Self-motivated with strong desire in learning new things.
• Willing to spend time in lab performing hands-on experiments.
• Basic knowledge in the field of catalysis is preferred.

Research area: Environmental Chemistry and Biotechnology

Student roles:
The intern will actively participate in experimental research activities and contribute to the preparation of scientific publications in collaboration with the research team.

Skills required:
We are looking for passionate, creative individuals who thrive in a collaborative research environment. The ideal candidate will demonstrate:
• Strong planning and organizational skills
• Scientific rigor and perseverance
• Excellent communication and teamwork abilities

Research area: Le groupe Paquin est spécialisé dans la chimie des composés organofluorés. Les propriétés de l'atome de fluor en font un substituant clé en chimie biologique et dans les matériaux. Le développement de ces domaines est étroitement associé aux avancées en chimie du fluor. Notre groupe travaille à répondre à 3 questions : comment pouvons-nous synthétiser des molécules fluorées ? Comment se comportent ces molécules ? Pouvons-nous les utiliser pour des applications biologiques ? Pr Paquin est membre du Centre de chimie verte et catalyse et du Regroupement québécois de recherche sur la fonction, l'ingénierie et les applications des protéines.

Student roles:
Au cours du stage de 12 semaines dans notre laboratoire, l’étudiant(e) soutiendra notre équipe et contribuera activement au développement de nouvelles méthodes de synthèse pour la préparation de composés organofluorés. Cela pourra inclure, sans s’y limiter, la synthèse de matériaux de départ, l’optimisation des conditions de réaction et l’évaluation de l’étendue d’une réaction. L’étudiant(e) devra également caractériser les molécules obtenues à l’aide de techniques complémentaires (RMN du proton, du carbone et du fluor, spectrométrie de masse, IR, etc.). Enfin, l’étudiant(e) aura la possibilité de participer activement aux discussions scientifiques lors des réunions de groupe avec les autres membres de l’équipe de recherche. Pour mener à bien ces tâches, il/elle travaillera en étroite collaboration avec un étudiant de 2e ou 3e cycle.

Skills required:
L'étudiante ou l’étudiant devrait avoir une formation en chimie, incluant des connaissances spécifiques en chimie organique. Une expérience dans un laboratoire de chimie organique constituerait également un avantage. L'étudiante ou l’étudiant devrait également faire preuve de curiosité scientifique et d'initiative, et être capable de bien travailler en équipe. L'étudiante doit parler couramment le français. La sélection finale pourra s'effectuer par le biais d'une interview sur Zoom.

Research area: I am trained as chemist and environmental engineer. I am leading the research group on the Bioprocessing and Nano-Enzyme Formulation Facility (BANEFF) at INRS-ETE as Full Professor. My research interests lie in the development of finished products (formulations) of residuals, such as agricultural, agro-industry, wastewater and wastewater sludge based value-added bioproducts, such as enzymes, organic acids, platform chemicals, biocontrol agents, biopesticides, butanol and biohydrogen. I am also interested in the fate of endocrine disrupter compounds, pharmaceuticals, nanoparticles and other toxic organic compounds during value-addition of wastewater and wastewater sludge in turn finding suitable biological detoxification technologies.

Student roles:
The student will be responsible for following tasks in the present project:
1. Sampling of different wastewater treatment plant unit operations for analysis of presence of different pharmaceutical compounds.
2. Optimization of analysis method of a model pharmaceutical compound in coordination with an analytical laboratory and working in close coordination with the staff.
3. Mass balance of the presence of the organic contaminant in different liquid and solid portions of the unit operation.
4. Analysis of the results to identify the most polluted stream.
5. Physical-chemical analysis of the agro-industrial wastes, such as brewery and fruit processing wastes.
6. Optimization of process conditions of ligninolytic enzymes production using fungal monocultures and co-cultures.
7. Optimization of process conditions in flask scale experiments using response surface statistical approach.
8. Designing enzymatic biosystems and testing the systems in environmental samples.
8. Correlation of data with background data.
9. Compilation of results.
7. Report preparation.

Skills required:
The student will be required to have a general chemistry background as the research project involves environmental samples analysis and sampling and designing enzymatic methods. Further, The student will be required to have a general chemical/biochemical engineering/biotechnology background as well. The project requires basic microbiology understanding for inoculation, petri plating etc.. In addition, the student must be good in statistical analysis to verify the reproducibility of concentrations obtained with chromatography and mass spectrophotometry techniques.

Research area: My program combines training in organic chemistry and enzymology applied to the discovery of new methods for the synthesis of compounds of interest in medicinal and agricultural science.

Student roles:
The student will be trained in safety, best laboratory practices, and in the use of all instruments in our lab. The student will work daily in the laboratory alongside a graduate student or postdoctoral mentor. The student will carry out synthetic reactions, isolate products and characterize their structure by NMR and UV spectroscopy, and analyze the reaction using HPLC, as well as work on the purification of proteins and other related techniques. The student will attend weekly research group meetings, write a brief report, and present their results to a meeting of combined research groups. If successful, the student will contribute to the writing of a manuscript.

Skills required:
The student should have laboratory experience in synthetic organic chemistry, including carrying out reactions and isolating and identifying products. An understanding of NMR spectroscopy is preferred, and experience with column chromatography, UV-visible spectroscopy and HPLC will be an asset. The student should have a knowledge of enzymes. Experience in biochemistry and molecular biology are an asset but not required.

Research area: Our Team investigates the properties of nanomaterials to realize their full potential in next generation electronics. We are particularly interested in solution-processing techniques for their unparalleled potential in low cost, flexible, stretchable and large surface area applications. Our core objective is to establish a state-of-the-art laboratory for (1) solution processed based energy converters and for (2) power and light interactive electronic textiles, or simply smart textiles. Our multidisciplinary work unites skills and expertise from different disciplines including but not limited to electrical, chemical, mechanical and materials science engineering as well as physics and chemistry.

Student roles:
Our research is multidisciplinary and the student will be learning a variety of skills essential to solar cell design and fabrication. The student will perform the following duties:
• chemical processing of polymers and full characterization
• Investigate the impact of integrating different deposition processes on the layers and test their omniphobic properties
• Perform optical and electrical tests on promising films to further analyze their properties.
• perform stability testing on the layers developed and integrate them into proof-of-concept electronics

Skills required:
The student needs to be interested in science and engineering; passionate about research. The preferred background of the student would be chemistry, chemical engineering, materials science engineering or electrical engineering or any related fields to those cited.

Research area: We create and use new experimental methods to improve energy storage and conversion systems. Our specific interest is in improving the understanding and performance of lithium-ion batteries in harsh (i.e. real world) conditions. We design, build, and calibrate tools to measure the performance of battery components as a function of temperature, mechanical pressure, and electrochemical operating condition (e.g. current density, voltage). These measurements are motivated by our desire to understand the effect of macro, micro, and nanostructure and composition on material performance in dynamic conditions.

Student roles:
The students day to day activities will be centered around designing and performing experiments to understand materials in a battery context. This includes:
- cleaning, assembling, testing, and disassembling electrochemical cells in a safe and consistent manner
- analyzing electrochemical performance data
- collecting and analyzing structural and mechanical data
- summarizing and explaining collected data, for presentation to the group, and eventually at conferences and in publications
- understanding relevant published literature
- as appropriate, designing and implementing new computational or experimental methods. This may include routines to model e.g. nucleation, or perform impedance spectroscopy at low temperatures.

The student will interact with other team members on a daily basis, generally multiple times each day. The student will also be exposed to collaborations within the research centre, on campus, and across Canada. Each team member leads a distinct aspect of a project but also depends on other team members for support and guidance.

Skills required:
The most important required skills are willingness and ability to learn new things in a wide variety of areas. Our work is inherently multidisciplinary and varies from using differential equations to understand diffusion and nucleation, to using wrenches to assemble electrochemical test cells. Background skills that can help include:

- solid-state materials / condensed matter (e.g. crystallography, nucleation, diffusion, phase transitions)
- scripting / programming (for data analysis, presentation)
- hands-on lab experience
- electrochemistry (not required), experience with vacuum systems (not required), electrical circuits (not required)
- mechanical aptitude
- understanding and contributing to scientific literature

Research area: The research focuses on the development and characterization of advanced polymeric materials for sustainable applications. This work addresses topics such as polymer degradation and durability, materials for energy storage systems, composites, and the modification and processing of polymers and cellulose-based materials. By combining materials chemistry, experimental characterization, and process engineering, we seek to better understand the relationships between structure, processing, and performance, with the goal of designing more sustainable materials and technologies for applications in energy, transportation, and the circular economy.

Student roles:
The student will play an active role in the development and evaluation of new recycled polymer formulations for the production of expanded polymer foams. Their primary responsibility will be to design and carry out a series of experiments aimed at understanding how the composition of polypropylene/polyethylene (PP/PE) blends influences material properties and processing behavior.
The project will begin with a literature review to familiarize the student with expanded polymer foams, recycled materials, and the characterization techniques used in the project. The student will then prepare and characterize a range of polymer formulations following an experimental plan developed in collaboration with the research team.
A significant portion of the project will involve laboratory work, including the use of thermal characterization techniques such as differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The student will analyze the resulting data to identify promising formulations and gain insight into the relationships between blend composition, thermal behavior, and expected foam performance.
The student will also participate in regular project meetings, document experimental procedures and results, and contribute to the preparation of a final report summarizing the work and key findings. Depending on project progress and opportunities with the industrial partner, the student may also be exposed to industrial validation activities and discussions related to the commercialization of recycled polymer materials.
This project will provide hands-on experience in materials science, experimental methods, data analysis, and applied research while contributing to the development of more sustainable plastic products.

Skills required:
We are looking for a motivated and curious student with an interest in materials, polymers, sustainability, or chemical engineering. Basic knowledge of material properties and experimental methods is considered an asset but is not required. The student should demonstrate attention to detail, independence, and strong analytical skills to conduct experiments and interpret results. Previous laboratory experience is desirable but not mandatory. Good written and oral communication skills, as well as an interest in applied research carried out in collaboration with industry, will be highly valued. The project is suitable for undergraduate students seeking hands-on research experience.

Research area: Our research focuses on the design, fabrication, and optimization of membrane electrode assemblies for water electrolysis systems. The group specializes in catalyst layer engineering, electrode manufacturing, electrochemical characterization, and durability assessment for PEM and AEM electrolyzers. By combining advanced coating technologies with materials innovation, we develop scalable approaches to improve electrode performance while reducing material consumption and manufacturing costs. This work supports the advancement of efficient and economically viable hydrogen production technologies.

Student roles:
Students will contribute to the fabrication, characterization, and evaluation of catalyst layers for anion exchange membrane water electrolyzers. Responsibilities will include preparing catalyst inks, operating ultrasonic spray coating equipment, fabricating catalyst-coated membranes and electrodes, and optimizing manufacturing parameters.

Skills required:
Applicants should have a background in Chemical Engineering, Materials Engineering, Electrochemistry, Mechanical Engineering, Nanotechnology, or a related field. Knowledge of electrochemical systems, catalyst materials, or energy conversion technologies is desirable. Experience with laboratory experimentation, materials characterization, or data analysis is considered an asset. Candidates should demonstrate strong analytical skills, scientific curiosity, and an interest in renewable energy and hydrogen technologies.

Research area: Our research focuses on developing inorganic photoactive materials for photoelectrochemical applications. It involves designing and optimizing materials that efficiently absorb sunlight while remaining cost-effective and sustainable. We use dopants to enhance material properties and improve light-driven chemical transformations. These materials are used to drive important reactions such as water oxidation and hydrogen production. We also investigate factors influencing energy conversion efficiency and long-term stability. This research aims to advance the performance of photoelectrochemical systems, contributing to the development of cleaner and more efficient renewable energy technologies for sustainable energy production.

Student roles:
Sample Preparation: Students will synthesize doped inorganic materials using hydrothermal methods. They will learn to safely operate autoclaves and perform post-synthesis processing techniques such as centrifugation and vacuum filtration to isolate and purify the samples.
Characterization: Students will characterize the structural and chemical properties of the doped materials using standard techniques such as X-ray diffraction (XRD), Raman spectroscopy, and X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS). They will gain hands-on experience in operating these instruments and analyzing the data to understand crystal structure, composition, and overall material quality.
Photoelectrochemical Cell Fabrication and Testing: Students will fabricate photoelectrochemical cells using the prepared materials and evaluate their performance under light illumination. They will measure key parameters such as photocurrent response and overall efficiency to understand material behavior under working conditions.
Data Analysis: Students will analyze the collected experimental data to evaluate material performance and identify trends. They will compare results across different samples to determine how variations in composition and structure influence photoelectrochemical activity and system efficiency.
System Optimization and Reporting: Based on their results, students will contribute to optimizing the photoelectrochemical system. They will document their procedures, results, and analysis in a clear and detailed report and present their findings in group discussions, helping to develop strong scientific communication skills.

Skills required:
Students should have basic laboratory skills, attention to detail, and an interest in energy-related materials research. They should be familiar with the use of personal protective equipment (PPE), solution preparation, and safe sample handling. Good organizational and time management skills are essential.

A foundational understanding of materials chemistry, inorganic crystal structures, and electrochemistry (including techniques such as cyclic voltammetry) is expected. Familiarity with synthesis methods such as sol-gel and hydrothermal techniques is an asset. Students should be responsible, careful, and motivated to learn new experimental techniques.

Research area: I completed PhD studies (in Canada) and postdoctoral studies (in Japan) in inorganic chemistry with focus on coordination complexes and their applications in artificial photosynthesis (photocatalysis for carbon dioxide reduction or hydrogen production) and optoelectronic devices. I have experience in synthesis of coordination compounds and in several characterization techniques, such as: X-ray crystallography, mass spectrometry, UV-vis and emission spectroscopy, electrochemistry, DFT calculations, gas quantification by gas chromatography in homogenous photocatalytic systems. I am very motivated and dedicated to my work in research and teaching because I love it.

Student roles:
After training and under supervision, the student will perform the synthesis of compounds and will characterize them using different techniques. The expectation is that the student becomes independent in his/her work. The intern will also analyse data, prepare presentations and give presentations in group meetings and conferences. He/she will have the opportunity to summarize the results in the form of a report or a draft peer-review paper.
The present project spans notions of organic, inorganic, analytical, and physical chemistry. This multidisciplinary approach offers students the opportunity to look into the advanced theoretical aspects and to learn and perfect different laboratory techniques.

Skills required:
The student should have at least first year undergraduate chemistry theory and laboratory experience in organic and inorganic synthesis and general characterization techniques. Appropriate training will be provided in the first weeks of the internship for operating the instruments used for synthesis (e.g., microwave reactor) and for general characterization (NMR, IR, UV-vis and luminescence spectroscopy; mass spectrometry).

The intern is also expected to be interested in research, keen to learn, proactive, dedicated to his/her work, able to work independently as well as in a team and to have strong work ethic, innovative thinking, and good communication skills.

Research area: We are a group of award-winning synthetic materials scientists. Our primary expertise lies in the synthesis and characterization of new materials that we apply in fields such as organic electronics (e.g., transistors, solar cells, batteries), medical imaging (e.g., disease-targeted cell imaging), and the discovery of novel modes of chemical reactivity in fields such as catalysis. For a recent example where one of our dyes was used to simultaneously allow for dye tracking using photoacoustic imaging, live animal fluorescence imaging, and complete tumor ablation please see: Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2026, 65, e4378015.

Student roles:
During this project, the student will work closely with a graduate student mentor and myself within a highly collaborative and diverse group as they conduct all of the proposed hands-on research (after initial safety and human resources training). They will develop the transferrable skills necessary to synthesize and characterize multifunctional molecular materials. Advanced synthetic techniques, such as Schlenk line and glove box chemistry, will be paired with cutting-edge characterization methods, including multinuclear NMR spectroscopy, absorption and emission spectroscopy, X-ray crystallography, and electrochemistry. DFT calculations will be used to guide the interpretation of these data as required and if time permits. The student will also be involved in drafting manuscripts based on their work for publication.

The combination of technical and professional skills gained by trainees within the Gilroy group has facilitated them landing desirable positions in top graduate schools, multinational companies, and high-profile professional schools.

Skills required:
To be successful in this project, a background in undergraduate chemistry will be required. Previous research experience is not required, and it is my belief that a willingness to learn and work hard are the best markers for success in a project such as the one proposed.

Research area: Our research focuses on sustainable polymer and organic chemistry, especially the design of intrinsically circular polymers, bio-derived monomers, and flow-enabled synthetic methods. We combine synthesis, catalysis, polymer design, and reaction–structure analysis to develop materials with improved recyclability and useful performance.

Student roles:
The student will participate in day-to-day research activities in a chemistry laboratory environment under supervision. Responsibilities may include assisting with synthesis and purification of small molecules or polymers, preparing and running experiments, analyzing products using standard characterization methods, maintaining accurate experimental records, and discussing results with the research team. The student will also contribute to literature review, data organization, and interpretation of results to help guide the next stage of the project. The exact tasks will be adapted to the student’s experience and the progress of the research.

Skills required:
Applicants should have a background in chemistry, preferably with training in organic synthesis and standard laboratory techniques such as reaction setup, purification, and product characterization. Experience with air-sensitive methods, flow chemistry, polymer chemistry, or spectroscopic analysis is an asset. Motivated students who are eager to learn are also strongly encouraged to apply.

Research area: In continuation of our survey of medicinal plants of the Southern Saskatchewan prairie, we are using organic synthesis methodologies to elaborate on interesting secondary metabolites from several medicinal plant species. We extract and purify these metabolites and then carry out reactions to create new and interesting molecules that may become prodrugs for discovery of new medicines. We are working towards developing a large organic chemistry research team and are looking for interested students to contribute.

Student roles:
- Gathering (harvest or "picking") of interesting medicinal plant species
- Processing of medicinal plants
- Literature surveys
- Extraction of ground plant materials
- Purification of compounds of note using chromatography and extraction techniques
- Basic and advanced organic chemical synthesis

Skills required:
- Basic understanding of organic synthetic and analytical chemistry
- Familiar with extraction of plant (organic) metabolites using Soxhlet extraction technique
- Familiar with NMR spectrometry, IR/UV-vis spectroscopy, and mass spectrometry
- Willingness to work in the field, travel and meet with Indigenous Elders and other Traditional Knowledge holders

Research area: Our research group specializes in synthetic organic chemistry applied to medicinal chemistry and small-molecule inhibitor discovery. We focus on the design and synthesis of structurally defined heteroaromatic compounds, including modular tri-aryl scaffolds that can mimic biologically relevant protein secondary structures. A major strength of the group is the use of palladium-catalyzed cross-coupling reactions, functional group interconversions, and iterative structure-activity-driven library synthesis. In this project, our contribution is specifically the chemical synthesis, purification, and structural characterization of candidate anillin inhibitors, while biological evaluation will be performed by collaborating researchers with expertise in cancer biology and protein-interaction assays.

Student roles:
The student’s role will be to design, synthesize, purify, and characterize candidate anillin inhibitors as part of a medicinal chemistry library. The student will plan synthetic routes, perform cross-coupling and functional group interconversion reactions, troubleshoot reaction conditions, and prepare compounds of sufficient purity for biological testing by collaborators. They will analyze reaction outcomes using TLC, NMR, and mass spectrometry, maintain detailed experimental records, and contribute to the interpretation of structure-activity trends as biological data become available. The student will not be responsible for conducting the biological assays but will use collaborator feedback to guide further compound synthesis.

Skills required:
The student should have a strong foundation in organic chemistry, including reaction mechanisms, retrosynthetic analysis, functional group compatibility, and common purification methods. Prior laboratory experience with air- and moisture-sensitive reactions, column chromatography, recrystallization, thin-layer chromatography, and NMR interpretation would be highly valuable. Familiarity with palladium-catalyzed cross-coupling reactions, heteroaromatic chemistry, and medicinal chemistry principles would be an asset, although these skills can be further developed during the project. The student should be careful, organized, safety-conscious, and comfortable maintaining accurate laboratory records while working independently under supervision in a synthetic organic chemistry research environment.

Research area: Professor Karin Kleiner focuses on advanced lithium-ion battery materials, combining synthesis, electrochemistry, and operando characterization to understand performance and degradation mechanisms. She develops new materials to improve sustainability, energy density, and cost efficiency for next-generation lithium-ion batteries. Her group also investigates direct and hydrometallurgical recycling of cathode materials to enable a low-carbon circular battery economy.

Student roles:
The student will join a collaborative and interdisciplinary research team focused on understanding degradation mechanisms in Ni-rich layered oxide cathode materials for lithium-ion batteries. As part of the group, the student will primarily contribute to the analysis of experimental data, including synchrotron X-ray diffraction and X-ray absorption spectroscopy data. This work will be carried out under the guidance of senior PhD students and the supervising professor, ensuring structured training in advanced data interpretation methods and best practices in materials characterization.

A key responsibility will be the processing, evaluation, and interpretation of operando datasets to extract meaningful structural and electrochemical insights. The student will learn how to correlate local atomic-scale information from spectroscopic techniques with long-range structural parameters obtained from diffraction, contributing to a multiscale understanding of battery behavior.

In addition, the student will have the opportunity to participate in synchrotron beamtime experiments when applicable. In this context, they will act as a team member supporting experimental operations, data acquisition, and preliminary data quality assessment, gaining valuable hands-on experience at large-scale research facilities.

The role also includes active involvement in scientific communication within the group. The student will contribute to the preparation of internal reports, data summaries, and discussions of results. Depending on project progress, the student may also assist in the evaluation of scientific literature and published papers relevant to the project’s objectives.

Overall, the position offers a structured training environment in advanced materials characterization and battery research, with strong emphasis on collaborative work, data-driven analysis, and exposure to state-of-the-art synchrotron-based techniques.

Skills required:
The student should have a strong background in materials science, chemistry, or physics with a focus on electrochemistry and solid-state materials. Experience in lithium-ion battery research, including electrode preparation, cell assembly, and electrochemical testing, is highly desirable. Knowledge of structural characterization techniques such as X-ray diffraction and X-ray absorption spectroscopy is important, particularly synchrotron-based methods. Familiarity with data analysis tools (e.g., EXAFS fitting software such as Artemis or equivalent) and basic programming skills for data processing are advantageous. The student should be comfortable working in an interdisciplinary environment and motivated to engage with advanced operando experiments at large-scale research facilities.

Research area: Our group studies the chemistry of inorganic heteroanionic materials. Oxide materials are already widely used for energy storage. Heteroanionic materials are known to have greater tunability allowing for materials to be tailored for specific purposes, changing their optical, electronic or magnetic properties. However synthetic routes to these materials are severely underdeveloped. We specialize in understanding the synthesis of solids and applying this understanding towards the synthesis of new functional materials. By understanding the synthesis, structure and property relations of heteroanionic solids we enable new technological developments.

Student roles:
The student will work primarily in the laboratory performing solid state synthesis. A typical synthesis requires the weighing and grinding of multiple powders using a mortar and pestle. Owing to the air sensitive nature of the reagents, much of this work will be performed inside of a glovebox. The resulting powder mixtures will be sealed into a glass ampule under vacuum using a methane torch before reaction. The student will be trained in elementary glass working technique to accomplish this task. Reactions will then be heated to around 700oC in box furnaces before being removed from the ampules for analysis.
The principle analytical technique to be used by the student will be powder x-ray diffraction. The student will receive appropriate training to safely operate the instrument. The student will also be trained on analysis of the received data. Students will also have the opportunity to perform electrochemical cycling on successfully synthesized targets. The PI will work with the student to develop scientifically sound conclusions based on the collected data.
In addition to laboratory work, the student will be expected to attend laboratory meetings and to communicate any problems the student is encountering to the PI or to other members of the laboratory. Students are also expected to participate in events organized by MITACS and communicate with the PI should any scheduling conflicts arise. Before leaving, the student will be expected to present their work to the group. In the likely event that the student performs publishable work, they may be contacted after the internship period to review manuscript drafts prior to submission.

Skills required:
Students should feel comfortable working in a laboratory setting. A background in either chemistry or materials science will be greatly beneficial. Training on specific techniques required for this research project will be provided to the student upon arrival. The ability to communicate any problems to either the PI or other group members is essential. Most researchers at the Université de Sherbrooke, including the PI, are fluent in both English and French, so either language may be used to communicate.

Research area: Dr. Park's research focuses on sustainable packaging systems and design, packaging distribution, life cycle assessment (LCA), packaging-product waste dynamics, and human factors in packaging. His work aims to optimize packaging performance, sustainability, and user experience through interdisciplinary research that integrates engineering, environmental assessment, and consumer-centered design. Current research areas include sustainable packaging materials, e-commerce and omnichannel distribution systems, cold-chain logistics, reusable and refillable packaging, packaging ergonomics, and the application of artificial intelligence to packaging design and optimization.

Student roles:
The student will assist in evaluating cosmetic and pharmaceutical packaging systems with a focus on product recovery, user interaction, and sustainability. Responsibilities may include conducting literature reviews, performing laboratory experiments to measure residual product waste, assisting with consumer-use and usability studies, collecting and analyzing experimental data, and supporting life cycle assessment (LCA) activities. The student will also contribute to the development of sustainable packaging design recommendations, prepare research reports and presentations, and participate in regular meetings with the research team and industry partners.

Skills required:
The ideal candidate will have a background in packaging, engineering, industrial design, environmental science, chemistry, pharmaceutical sciences, or a related field. Students should possess strong analytical and problem-solving skills, attention to detail, and an interest in sustainable packaging, consumer behavior, and product design. Experience with laboratory testing, data analysis, life cycle assessment (LCA), human factors research, or statistical analysis is considered an asset but is not required. The successful candidate should be self-motivated, able to work both independently and collaboratively, and willing to learn new research methods and technologies.

Research area: The Solar Energy Research Group in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at Concordia University specializes in the preparation and design of new inorganic molecules and materials for converting sunlight. This includes the development of catalytic surfaces for the generation of “solar fuels” or for driving solar-to-chemical processes. The group works to both characterize these materials to understand their fundamental properties as well as to apply them to existing challenges in the field.

Student roles:
The incoming student will work with a current graduate student in the lab to synthesize materials for low energy photocatalysis. This will involve benchwork, along with characterization (NMR, UV-Vis, fluorescence, electrochemistry) and data workup. The expectation is that the student will work closely with their in-lab mentor and the PI to learn about some new ways of approaching solar energy conversion and participate in regular group meetings to further broaden their understanding of this exciting field.

Skills required:
Some synthetic chemistry experience (organic/inorganic) is an asset—can be from lab courses. A general fundamental understanding of spectroscopy (e.g., UV-Vis, fluorescence) is also an asset. Students from a chemistry program will have the basic knowledge to approach this project. Most important is enthusiasm to learn about something new.

Research area: Interface engineering in optoelectronic devices, such as lasers, organic light emitting diodes, perovskite and organic photovoltaics; focus on interfacial degradation, electronic stucture and work function tuning, functionalization, and morphology control. Solution deposition of nanoparticles

Student roles:
The student will, under supervision, perform solution chemistry experiments, focussing on the solubility and reactivity of reagents in a variety of solvents to produce nano particles using the reverse micelle technique. The chemical and physical characteristics of the produced nanostructures will be determined by x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, x-ray diffraction, atomic force microscopy, and photoluminescence spectroscopy.

Skills required:
The ideal student will have a background in physics, chemistry, materials science, or engineering, with an interest in nanomaterials and photonics. Experience with solution synthesis, optical spectroscopy, or semiconductor materials is beneficial but not required. Strong experimental skills, analytical thinking, and enthusiasm for interdisciplinary research are essential.

Research area: Photocatalysis in our case uses sunlight to break stable chemical bonds, either pollutants or water itself - similar to the first step of photosynthesis. Our team has filed a patent for a process that capitalizes on the thermal effect of otherwise unused infrared photons. We aim at both waste water remediation as well as hydrogen production, both fields share the same physics but not necessarily the same toxicological requirements.

Student roles:
Students will actively participate in all aspects of our ongoing research, this is not limited to the laboratory activities but includes team discussions, seminars etc. We have always and will continue to integrate interns as full members to the team.

Skills required:
Students should first and foremost be curious and enjoy experimental work in a multidisciplinary field between chemistry, physics, and materials sciences. Hands-on experience in inorganic chemistry is certainly advantageous, at least some basic knowledge in physics is also welcome. Candidates with deeper knowledge in physics of e.g. solar cells will certainly also enjoy the project.

Research area: We are an organic chemistry research group engaged in the discovery and mechanistic analysis of new catalytic reactions. Areas of focus include boron catalysis and the chemistry of carbohydrates, nucleosides and nitrogen heterocycles. Representative discoveries from our laboratory include: - Site-selective functionalizations of OH groups using organoboron catalysis; - Catalyst-controlled O- and N-glycosylations; - Photocatalytic hydrogen atom transfer reactions for carbohydrate and nucleoside analog synthesis; - Regioselective functionalization of nitrogen heterocycles. For publications, see: https://scholar.google.ca/citations?user=Z8mIUssAAAAJ&hl=en.

Student roles:
Working closely with an experienced graduate student mentor, the student(s) will learn to plan, carry out and analyze the results of new photocatalytic reactions, and to purify and characterize the products. The student(s) will then optimize photocatalytic reaction conditions (photocatalyst, co-catalyst, solvent, concentration) to achieve a novel transformation, using spectroscopic and chromatographic techniques for monitoring and analysis. Conventional and/or Bayesian optimization methods may be employed, depending on the nature of the problem. Once the optimal conditions have been developed, they will be applied to a series of substrates to assess the scope of the method. Products will be purified by chromatography and characterized by spectroscopy (NMR, IR, MS).
In parallel with the experimental work, opportunities exist to use density functional theory (DFT) calculations to model proposed intermediates and transition states. These calculations will be carried out using Gaussian 16, implemented on the Digital Research Alliance of Canada clusters.

The student(s) engaged in this work will build skills in planning and executing the synthesis, purification and analysis of organic compounds. They will gain experience with chromatographic and spectroscopic techniques, with a particular emphasis on NMR spectroscopy, including 1D and 2D experiments. They will learn how to conduct and optimize photocatalytic reactions and will have opportunities to develop a working knowledge of Bayesian optimization.

Weekly meetings with the group PI, graduate student mentor and participating student(s) will be held to discuss progress, interpret findings and discuss next steps. In addition, the student(s) will participate in weekly lab group meetings, including research updates, literature presentations and problem sets.

Skills required:
Required background: strong background in undergraduate organic chemistry coursework, including organic reactions/synthesis, mechanism and spectroscopic characterization.

Required skills: laboratory techniques for organic chemistry (e.g., planning/conducting reactions, liquid-liquid extraction, chromatography, TLC analysis, NMR/IR spectroscopic analysis, proper use of personal protective equipment); structure-based literature searching (Reaxys or SciFinder), reading and interpreting material safety data sheets.

Previous research laboratory experience in organic chemistry is preferred but not required. No previous experience with coding or quantum chemical calculations is needed.

Research area: My research program utilizes my strengths in the areas of energetic materials, solid-state chemistry, novel bonding, and small-molecule activation, for discovery in areas related to green materials and sustainable transformations. Through thorough understanding of the influence of bonding interactions on material properties, we are designing molecular co-crystals that can turn light into mechanical work and release large amounts of energy (detonate) upon activation of a photochemical trigger (light).

Student roles:
The student will be responsible for synthesizing new photoactive molecular switches. Photoactive molecular switches are compounds that can switch between two electronic forms when irradiated by light of a specific wavelength. For example, trans-azobenzene isomerizes to the cis-form upon irradiation with ultraviolet light. We will derivatize azobenzene molecular switches with different functional groups to (i) control the intermolecular interactions in the crystalline state and (ii) tune the wavelength at which isomerization (switching) processes occur.

Once a new photochromic molecular switch has been established, we will explore its viability in both the solution and solid-phases, and attempt co-crystallization studies with a variety of energetic materials (explosives).

The student will be expected to collaborate with a Doctoral student and the PI on a daily basis, yet perform independent work when directed.

Skills required:
The desired student(s) will have strong synthetic skills and an interest in organic chemistry, photochemistry, materials science, and/or crystallography. The student should be in their third- or fourth-year, and have succeeded in most of their course works (cumulative average >75%). The student should be adaptable, detail-oriented, and interested in contributing to a positive and productive working environment. Students belonging to underrepresented groups are highly encouraged to apply. Previous research experience is not needed, but is highly desirable.

Research area: Over the last 10 years, our group has studied various forms of corrosion, including general, flow accelerated, and localized material degradation. Our work ranges from wet, analytical chemistry to simulation build-out projects, including material transport (mass transport and heat transfer) and statistical modelling. Our experience in both code development and experimental studies to simulate various corrosion methodology allows us to validate modelling results with experimental data.

Student roles:
-With support of a research scientist, design and assemble test setup (stagnant and flowing) to generate pitting corrosion datasets.
-Work with a graduate student and the UNB machine shop to support SAA sample preparation (cutting, capping).
-Conduct immersion tests, receiving training on and using non-destructive dye penetrant testing to monitor the evolution of pits at various sample locations while monitoring environmental conditions (pH, temperature, flow rate)
-Receive training on scanning electron microscopy and focused ion beam from UNB's Microscopy Centre, performing surface analysis on SAA samples that have undergone pitting in the immersion tests.
-Receive training on the machine learning (ML) plugin for JImage microscopy software and begin training the algorithm to process SEM-FIB images.
-Use WebCorr's EVS software to input deepest pit data for test samples, producing preliminary predictions for time-to-failure for SAA design that was tested.
-Support the graduate student in preparing an interim report for the client (Measurand).
-Present a brief (20 min) summary presentation to the UNB research team.

Skills required:
Basic programming skills (Python or another language) are required. Basic bench-scale laboratory skills (e.g., use of pH meters, volumetric glassware) are strongly recommended. General spacial awareness or surroundings in the laboratory area and a willingness to participate in workspace safety culture are strongly recommended. General chemistry training at the equivalent of an undergraduate university laboratory lab is recommended. Understanding of basic statistics (probability distributions) would be useful. Students from a variety of academic backgrounds are encouraged to apply.

Research area: Our research program focuses on exploiting electroactive organic monomolecular films to electrochemically trigger, drive, and modulate processes at interfaces in ways of potential impact in technologies such as actuators, sensors, and molecular electronics.

Student roles:
The student will be involved in all aspects of the project: preparation of the plasmonic surfaces, surface modification with electroactive self-assembled monolayers, electrochemical-plasmonic measurements, and analysis of the data.

Skills required:
Background in chemistry, physics or materials engineering. Basic knowledge of electrochemistry and optics is a plus but not absolutely essential. Good analytical and organizational skills.

Research area: We are part of the interdisciplinary Green Chemistry and Catalysis Group at Memorial University. Green Chemistry is used to "design products and processes that minimize the use and generation of hazardous substances". Research areas currently under investigation by our team include: Transformations of bio-sourced molecules using alternative solvents and catalysts; New earth-abundant metal-based catalyst systems; Use of carbon dioxide as as a reagent; Degradable polymers. Dr. Kozak received an Innovation Fund Award from the Canada Foundation for Innovation, which will provide nearly $10M CAD in new research tools and equipment for the Atlantic Canada Environmental and Sustainable Chemistry Centre.

Student roles:
Tasks will depend on the achievements in our group during the next year before the Globalink students arrive, and also on the exact nature of the project that the student chooses to tackle (e.g. polymers or inorganic synthesis). In previous years, tasks to be performed by the research assistant (intern/student) included: (1) Prepare and characterize new catalysts or polymers. This will involve using appropriate synthetic and analytical methods. (2) Screen polymerization methods. (3) Screen new catalysts in catalytic reactions involving carbon dioxide activation. Quantitative data will be obtained via GC-MS and/or proton NMR analysis. (4) Use a scientific approach to optimize the reaction conditions (concentrations, time, temp. etc.). Obtain kinetic data on reactions. A range of techniques (NMR, IR and/or GC) will be used. (5) Find and read relevant papers from scientific journals. (6) Participate in group activities (e.g. whale-watching trip and picnics) and tasks (e.g. updating the chemical inventory and keeping the lab safe and organized). (7) Organize and file your scientific findings e.g. spectra, journal articles. (8) Write a short report concerning your findings. These last two points will help Dr. Kozak prepare your results for publication. Depending on the student’s interest, there is also the opportunity to collaborate with colleagues in computational chemistry e.g. modelling of reaction mechanisms, thermodynamic data.

Skills required:
Students should be completing a chemistry degree program (or a closely related field). Students should have basic knowledge of inorganic, organic, analytical and physical chemistry. Students must have completed laboratory courses in organic chemistry and be able to perform standard lab tasks e.g. suction/Büchner filtrations, distillations. Knowledge of organic spectroscopic techniques, e.g. NMR and IR spectroscopy, would also be desirable. Knowledge of inert-atmosphere synthetic methods (e.g. use of Schlenk lines) is an asset, but students will be trained as needed.

Research area: We are part of the interdisciplinary Green Chemistry and Catalysis Group at Memorial University. Green Chemistry is used to "design products and processes that minimize the use and generation of hazardous substances". Research areas currently under investigation by our team include: Transformations of bio-sourced molecules using alternative solvents and catalysts; New earth-abundant metal-based catalyst systems; Use of carbon dioxide as as a reagent; Degradable polymers. Dr. Kozak received an Innovation Fund Award from the Canada Foundation for Innovation, which will provide nearly $10M CAD in new research tools and equipment for the Atlantic Canada Environmental and Sustainable Chemistry Centre.

Student roles:
Tasks will depend on the achievements in our group during the next year before the Globalink students arrive, and also on the exact nature of the project that the student chooses to tackle (e.g. polymers or inorganic synthesis). In previous years, tasks to be performed by the research assistant (intern/student) included: (1) Prepare and characterize new catalysts. This will involve using a glovebox and NMR spectrometers. (2) Grow crystals, for X-ray diffraction analysis, of any new catalysts. (3) Screen new catalysts in catalytic reactions involving carbon dioxide activation. Quantitative data will be obtained via GC-MS and/or proton NMR analysis. (4) Use a scientific approach to optimize the reaction conditions (concentrations, time, temp. etc.). Obtain kinetic data on reactions. A range of techniques (NMR, IR and/or GC) will be used. (5) Find and read relevant papers from scientific journals. (6) Participate in group activities (e.g. whale-watching trip and picnics) and tasks (e.g. updating the chemical inventory and keeping the lab safe and organized). (7) Organize and file your scientific findings e.g. spectra, journal articles. (8) Write a short report concerning your findings. These last two points will help Dr. Kozak prepare your results for publication. Depending on the student’s interest, there is also the opportunity to collaborate with colleagues in computational chemistry e.g. modelling of reaction mechanisms, thermodynamic data.

Skills required:
Students should be completing a chemistry degree program (or a closely related field). Students should have basic knowledge of inorganic, organic, analytical and physical chemistry. Students must have completed laboratory courses in organic chemistry and be able to perform standard lab tasks e.g. suction/Büchner filtrations, distillations. Knowledge of organic spectroscopic techniques, e.g. NMR and IR spectroscopy, would also be desirable. Knowledge of inert-atmosphere synthetic methods (e.g. use of Schlenk lines) is an asset, but students will be trained as needed.

Research area: Dr. Sun’s research aims to apply innovative processing technologies for improvement of health benefits, nutritional quality, and functionality of food proteins, to add value to by-products from food, agriculture, and aquaculture, to develop new protein-based food products with healthy, sustainable, and sensory attributes, and to understand their underlying fundamental mechanisms. Her specialized research areas include food chemistry, food processing, food proteins, and bioactive peptides.

Student roles:
The student will play a central role in integrating experimental data generation with quantitative modeling to establish structure–function relationships between protein secondary structure and emulsion characteristics.
Specifically, the student will:
1. Design and conduct laboratory experiments to prepare and modify protein systems (e.g., thermal treatment, enzymatic hydrolysis, or glycosylation).
2. Characterize protein secondary structure using spectroscopic techniques (e.g., circular dichroism, FTIR) and evaluate emulsion properties such as emulsifying activity, stability, and droplet size distribution.
3. Manage and curate experimental datasets, ensuring accurate data recording, organization, and reproducibility.
4. Perform statistical analysis and modeling, including regression and multivariate approaches (e.g., PCA, PLS), to establish predictive relationships between structural descriptors and emulsion performance.
5. Validate and interpret predictive models using appropriate metrics (e.g., R², RMSE), and translate quantitative results into mechanistic insights related to protein functionality.
6. Visualize and communicate findings through figures, reports, and presentations, contributing to manuscripts.

The students are expected to actively contribute to both the experimental and computational aspects of the project, working collaboratively within the research team while developing increasing independence in research design, data analysis, and scientific communication.

Skills required:
The student should have a background in food science, chemistry, biochemistry, or a related field, with interest in protein structure and emulsions. Strong data analysis and quantitative modeling skills are essential, including proficiency in Excel, R, Python, or MATLAB. Familiarity with regression, multivariate analysis (PCA/PLS), and model validation (R², RMSE) is highly desirable. Experience with data processing, visualization, and basic programming workflows is expected, while exposure to machine learning is an asset. Knowledge of protein characterization (e.g., CD, FTIR) is useful, but strong computational and analytical skills are prioritized.

Research area: The Skene group focuses on the synthesis and characterization of organic conjugated materials that can be used in organic devices. More specifically, the group has recently started developing and synthesizing conjugated/conductive polymers that can be stretched and bent. These polymers can ultimately be used as wearable electronics and biosensors.

Student roles:
The student will be involved in synthesis and characterization of the conjugated stretchable polymers. The student will also evaluate the materials’ electrical properties using four-point probe. An universal testing station will be use to test the polymers' mechanical properties including Young modulus, bendability, and stretchability. The self-healing properties of the polymers will also be assessed. The student may have the possibility to participate in co-authoring a paper based on the successful results of the newly developed materials.

Skills required:
It is preferred that the student have some experience in chemistry, specially organic synthesis and purification.

Research area: The Skene group focuses on developing sustainable devices using sustainable materials and environmentally friendly methods. The group leverages their knowledge is organic materials development to prepare sustainable wearable sensors. They also develop clean energy devices that generate electricity from human actuation.

Student roles:
The student will be involved in preparing elastomer films and their compounding. The student will also evaluate the materials’ mechanical properties. A universal testing station will be used to test the polymers' mechanical properties, including Young modulus, bendability, and stretchability. The student will also fabricate TENGs and test their performance by measuring the potential generator, power output contingent on load, and force response.

Skills required:
It is preferred that the student have some experience in chemistry, specially organic synthesis and purification.

Research area: Our research is exploring the design, synthesis, and examination of novel forms of quantum dots that also have an eye towards sustainable practices and materials. These materials are being pursued for a wide range of applications spanning from enhanced contrast agents to use in biomedical and environmental sensing.

Student roles:
The successful student to join this research project will gain hands-on skills in working with materials, such as synthesis and assembly of nanoscale quantum materials. They will
also gain hands-on experience in the use of advanced microscopy and spectroscopy techniques for assessing the materials and changes to these materials in the areas of
application sought through this work. The student will work with a multidisciplinary team of scientists and be exposed to an environment that provides state-of-the-art tooling for
patterning, characterizing and otherwise working with materials, which includes advanced scanning and transmission electron microscopy, atomic force
microscopy, and advanced X-ray spectroscopy for surface characterization (e.g., facilities within www.4dlabs.ca). The student will join regular meetings with myself and other members of the team, reporting out their progress on a weekly basis and outlining the next steps they propose to pursue, while also receiving feedback and guidance on their path.

Skills required:
I look for a student that is self-motivated to learn, curious about science, and aspiring for continual self-improvement. They will need to be willing to work on and lead their own project,
while also managing their schedule to work collaboratively with other students in the research group. They will need to be patient with others as they will receive a lot of hands-on training
that requires multiple steps, and willing to help others in return. I also look for a student that is safety conscious. Importantly, I also seek someone that is creative and a problem solver.

Research area: The internship will be supervised by Professor Ammar Yahia, full professor in the Department of Civil Engineering at the Université de Sherbrooke, CRIB director and holder of the NSERC Industrial Research Chair on adapted-rheology fluid concretes (Research Centre on Concrete Infrastructures). His expertise maps directly onto the project: the design of materials for 3D printing, the rheology of cement-based suspensions, additive manufacturing in concrete, and biobased materials. His team inaugurated the first 3D concrete printer in Canada and has already trained doctoral students on the use of biopolymers and 3D printing.

Student roles:
1) Prepare biopolymer powders according to various processing and conditioning protocols, including drying, grinding, sieving, and storage.
2) Carry out physical characterization tests on the prepared powders.
3) Develop low-carbon cementitious mixtures suitable for rheological evaluation and 3D printing.
4) Perform rheology, stability, extrudability, and shape-retention tests.
5) Analyse the experimental data, produce graphs, and contribute to the interpretation of the results.
6) Prepare scientific report & end-of-internship presentation.

Skills required:
Lokking for an undergraduate student in civil engineering, materials engineering, chemical engineering, chemistry, polymer science, environmental engineering, or a related field, who demonstrates a strong interest in cementitious materials, biopolymers, functional powders, and 3D printing. Experience in rheology, granular materials, cementitious materials, or microscopy would be an asset.

Research area: - Recovery and recycling of forest products (end-of-life residues, contaminated wood residues, effluents from the pulp and paper industry) - Production and characterization of bioproducts (bio-oil, biochar, and syngas) and porous and carbonaceous biosourced materials - Study of the application of carbonaceous materials according to their porosity, surface chemistry, and physical and chemical properties - Development of new technologies to produce carbonaceous materials from forest residues - Application of biosourced and carbonaceous materials: bioenergy, bioremediation, agriculture, forestry, CO2 capture and sequestration, wastewater treatment, catalysis, energy storage, and electrochemistry, among others.

Student roles:
Each student will have a specific role to play and will be primarily responsible for realizing and achieving the objectives of his/her research. They will acquire knowledge and expertise in the valorization of wood residues, their thermochemical conversion, and bio-sourced and carbon-based materials.

Skills required:
• Autonomy
• Motivation and rigor
• Willingness to go beyond current knowledge and practices
• Good level of French and/or English (Reading / Writing / Speaking / Understanding)
• Openness to criticism to benefit from it
• Use of different means of communication and digital tools to support the development of professional skills

Research area: The Rondeau-Gagné group focuses on the development of new organic materials for next-generation electronic devices, including flexible and stretchable sensors. We place particular emphasis on materials with enhanced properties, such as stretchability, self-healing behaviour, and sustainability, which we design using concepts from supramolecular chemistry, self-assembly, and polymer chemistry. Our research contributes to the development of more efficient, adaptable, and sustainable technologies with broad applications in electronics, sensing, and bio/nanotechnology. The group is highly multidisciplinary, and students can become involved in several aspects of materials science, including organic synthesis, polymer chemistry, materials characterization, and electronic device fabrication.

Student roles:
The roles of the student will be broad and diverse. First, the students is expected to collaborate with the graduate students involved in the project by helping with materials synthesis and characterization. This mentoring experience will help the students to learn the key concepts of the research project and to acquire various skills. More specifically, the students will learn how to perform organic reactions and purifications as well as polymerization by several strategies. Our group is a highly collaborave environment where everyone is expected to contribute through team work and problem solving. The candidate is, therefore, expected to be actively involved in the research group via group meetings and other activities. This team work approach is crucial for the development of research and will help everybody to move forward with their respective project and challenges. Upon completion of the research objective, the students will also have the opportunity to get involved in manuscript redaction and publication, as well as preparationon of technical reports. Throughout the research project, a special emphasis will be put in helping the candidate with problem-solving strategies and communication. Our group is a diverse and inclusive environment, providing all the support to the team members to achieve their goals and objectives. Mental health and well-being of our researchers is critical for us.

Skills required:
Research interests in polymer chemistry, synthetic organic chemistry and materials science are desirable. By being involved in this project, the students will have the opportunity to develop their skills in synthesis and polymerization methodologies. Moreover, a complete characterizaon of the materials will be performed, which will allow for the students to learn various instrumental techniques. Finally, most of the materials will be processed in thin films allowing for the student to acquire skills in polymer processing and engineering. No experience is required: only motivation! We will train you to become the next an expert in conjugated materials and organic electronics.

Research area: Research in my group spans the traditional bounds of synthetic inorganic and organic chemistry, with an overarching goal to develop new functional molecules: ligands, transition metal complexes, and main group compounds that promote the equitable use of resources, specifically with regard to global hydrogen, carbon, nitrogen, and oxygen cycles. We are motivated by a desire to revise the way in which we, as humans, interact with the planet by inventing ways to utilize greenhouse gasses as feedstocks, designing new catalysts for clean energy, and providing better methods for the synthesis of specialty chemicals, pharmaceuticals, and bulk consumer products.

Student roles:
The student in this role will work in a synthetic chemistry laboratory equipped with state-of-the-art equipment and facilities – all training will be received as necessary (previous experience is not required). The student will work with air/moisture sensitive compounds employing a hands-on, problem-solving based approach toward managing and troubleshooting problems in research and discovery. Communication skills and teamwork will be emphasized.

Skills required:
The candidate will engage with the Drover Group to develop a diverse array of skills ranging from research communication, peer-to-peer mentoring, and how to safely handle chemical substances. Students will gain the fundamentals and skills necessary to succeed in inorganic chemistry – starting with field-specific concepts, encouragement to read broadly, to generate new ideas, and to tackle problems that are of global relevance. Students will attend mandatory group meetings, outings, and team building exercises. The importance of writing, organization, care to detail, oral communication, and junior mentorship will be stressed.

Research area: In light of the decrease in the native prairie plants, our research objective is to study Saskatchewan native prairie plants and how their bioactive components relate to their traditional and medicinal uses. Our research objectives are 1) To perform an extensive chemical survey of approximately 10 native plant species growing in Saskatchewan and 2) To perform a thorough investigation of medicinally interesting components and their associated structure for secondary metabolites present in abundant quantity. This research will help to preserve these native plants and their cultural significance through better awareness and appreciation of their bioactive compounds and their traditional uses.

Student roles:
The student will help us in the lab during these analyses:
- Soxhlet extraction
- Silica gel column chromatography
- High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC)
- Gas chromatography (GC)
- Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS)
- Infrared spectrometry (IR)
- NMR spectrometry
The student will participate in plant harvesting with Elders.
The student will write a report at the end of the internship.

Skills required:
The student should have the following skills/background:
- An interest to learn about chemistry and plant biology.
- An interest to learn about Indigenous knowledge and culture.
- Chemistry experience/knowledge with these methods/instruments:
- Soxhlet extraction
- Silica gel column chromatography
- High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC)
- Gas chromatography (GC)
- Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS)
- Infrared spectrometry (IR)
- NMR spectrometry
- Plant harvest on the land.

Research area: The main efforts of our group are directed toward developing electronic structure and quantum dynamics methods on classical and quantum computers.

Student roles:
performing numerical simulations, doing theoretical modelling, and
reporting results

Skills required:
Familiarity with quantum mechanics and quantum chemistry methods.

Research area: My expertise is in quantum computational science and technology with a focus on quantum chemistry and computational chemistry. My research aims to advance chemistry by the adoption and integration of machine learning and quantum computing. We work towards developing new computational approaches and tools that enable accelerated virtual workflows to bridge the gap between highly accurate but computationally expensive quantum mechanical methods and the need for efficient and reliable computations for large-scale molecular studies. The applications of interest to us include materials discovery for gas capture, catalyst search for various chemical processes, computer-aided synthesis planning, and others.

Student roles:
In this project, the intern will primarily focus on utilizing large scale quantum mechanically calculated chemical property data sets to investigate the performance of quantum machine learning models on accurately predicting corrections of quantum chemical properties calculated between low- and high- level electronic structure methods. The interns will be required to work extensively with Python programming language. All implementations pertaining to the QML models will be carried out using IBM’s Qiskit. Additionally, the intern will also work with classical machine learning libraries such as Scikit-Learn and PyTorch. They will be responsible for extending algorithmic implementations to enable experimentation on high-performance computing clusters as well as real quantum processing devices.

The intern’s role will involve designing implementation workflows, development and management of research code and executing experiments on quantum simulators and devices. They will also learn to use quantum chemistry packages to generate relevant quantum chemical data as inputs to the QML models. This project will be mentored by me and one PhD student. Effective communication and guidance will play a crucial role in the student’s engagement. They will participate in one-on-one communication with me to receive direction on interdisciplinary method development, chemical intuition, data analysis, result interpretation, and effective research communication, including publishing articles and giving presentations. Through this research experience, students will gain new skills in applying computational tools and techniques to interdisciplinary applications such as those valued in the pharmaceutical industry and materials science, which will be highly relevant in their future careers.

Skills required:
Ideal candidates for this project are students interested in quantum computing, computational science, and machine learning, and who are eager to explore the intersection of these fields through the study of quantum algorithms and quantum-enhanced learning methods. They should be motivated to work in a highly interdisciplinary research environment, collaborating with researchers from diverse backgrounds in natural sciences, mathematics, computer science, and engineering. Preference will be given to students enrolled in natural sciences, mathematics, computer science, or related disciplines with strong computational and programming skills. Familiarity with linear algebra, quantum mechanics, or machine learning would be advantageous.

Research area: My research focuses on artificial intelligence, computational materials discovery, and emerging quantum technologies for sustainable energy applications. We develop AI-assisted methods that combine machine learning, optimization, and molecular modeling to accelerate the design of advanced catalytic materials for clean fuels and low-carbon hydrogen production. Our research explores how quantum computing and quantum machine learning can complement classical approaches to address complex materials-design challenges relevant to industrial decarbonization.

Student roles:
The student will assist in developing and evaluating AI and quantum machine learning models for catalyst screening and property prediction. Responsibilities include data preparation, model development, implementation of Qiskit-based workflows, comparison of classical and quantum-enhanced approaches, and interpretation of results. The student will collaborate with multidisciplinary researchers and contribute to technical reports, scientific presentations, and potential publications.

Skills required:
Students should have a background in chemical engineering, chemistry, materials science, computer science, physics, or related disciplines. Knowledge of Python programming, machine learning, data analysis, or computational modeling is desirable. Exposure to catalysis, materials informatics, molecular modeling, or quantum computing concepts is beneficial but not required. The project is suitable for students interested in the intersection of AI, quantum technologies, and sustainable energy systems.

Research area: We are a radiochemistry and imaging probe development research group. Projects include novel chemistry for incorporating radioisotopes in new ways or more efficiently. The new methods are then applied to clinical radiotracers used in Positron Emission Tomography (PET) or Single Photon Emission Computed Tomography (SPECT) for visalizing disease like cancer and neurodegeneration at a molecular level. We also apply radiochemistry to developing new and undiscovered imaging probes to help our collaborator test hypotheses about disease mechanism or new treatments.

Student roles:
The student will learn wet lab chemical synthesis skills through the synthesis of a precursor molecule. This process will involve mixing reagents and then purifying products through standard approaches (crystallization, liquid-liquid extraction, silica column chromatography). A rough idea for the synthesis will be prepared but optimization of the procedure will be up to the student. After completing the synthesis, experimental design for radiolabeling will be conducted with the supervisor. Safe radiolabeling will be conducted with close supervision. Preliminary evaluation for in vivo imaging will include lipophilicity measurements, serum stability, and suitability for safe human administration.

Skills required:
A basic understanding of chemical laboratory techniques is needed. A strong ability to critically assess literature and extract relevant methodological/experimental information. Student with the ability to learn new skills with an open mind and to strive for independence will excel. A customized training plan will be in place to fill in skill gaps. Willingness to work in a safe nuclear environment (total exposure will be < 1 dental x-ray).

Research area: Interface engineering in optoelectronic devices, such as organic light emitting diodes, perovskite and organic photovoltaics; focus on interfacial degradation, electronic stucture and work function tuning, functionalization, and morphology control. Novel electrode materials development (graphene, nanoparticles, 2D materials) and characterization. Novel device architecture (gate all around transistors, inverted, nanoparticle) development.

Student roles:
The student will, under supervision, perform solution chemistry experiments, focussing on the solubility and reactivity of reagents in a variety of solvents to produce nano particles using the reverse micelle technique. The chemical and physical characteristics of the produced nanostructures will be determined by x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, x-ray diffraction and atomic force microscopy.

Skills required:
The ideal student will have a background in physics, chemistry, materials science, or engineering, with an interest in nanomaterials and electronic devices. Experience with solution processing, semiconductor characterization, or photovoltaics is beneficial but not required. Strong laboratory skills, data analysis abilities, and enthusiasm for interdisciplinary research are essential.

Research area: Dr. Xiaolei Wang is a Canada Research Chair in Batteries for Sustainability and an associate professor of chemical engineering at the University of Alberta. The research themes centre upon the design, development and application of novel nanostructured materials for energy-related technologies including lithium-ion batteries, aqueous zinc-ion batteries, lithium-sulfur batteries, sodium (and other alkaline)-ion batteries, and electrocatalytic system such as metal-air batteries, water electrolyzer, and systems for electrochemical CO2 reduction. We build upon our knowledge from the fundamental studies and understanding of mechanisms by correlating the electrochemical performance of clean energy technologies with materials' morphologies and microstructures, towards next-generation energy technologies.

Student roles:
Carrying out experiments relevant to the research;
Writing reports/research papers for publication;
Attending group meetings/individual discussions on the research progress;
Possibly presenting research at conferences.

Skills required:
1. Basic chemistry and electrochemistry knowledge from undergraduate/graduate course studies;
2. Research experience of electrochemical energy storage/conversion technologies, e.g., rechargeable batteries, electrocatalysis;
3. Be familiar with materials characterization techniques, e.g., XRD, SEM, TEM, etc.;
4. Be able to carry out electrochemical measurements, e.g., potentiostats;
5. Previous research relevant to batteries, battery recycling is preferred.

Research area: My research area is theoretical and computational chemistry. We develop and apply state-of-the-art quantum chemical methods (usually density functional theory, DFT) to study molecules, materials, surfaces, interfaces, and solids. We engage in a wide range of projects, covering large parts of the periodic table, often in collaboration with experiment. Recently, we have pursued the following research projects and programs: 1. Theoretical actinide molecular science; 2. Environmental; heavy elements, crude oil; 3. Separations: nuclear waste, metal-organic frameworks (MOFs); 4. Solar: singlet fission, polymers; 5. Method/ code development: solvation, excited states, benchmarking, analysis; 6. Materials: surfaces, nanostructures, 2D materials. (See also CV.)

Student roles:
The project will be designed to have the potential for eventual publication in the scientific literature, and to be essentially self-contained. Thus, the student will be fully responsible for all aspects of the research, although, of course, with supervision and strong support. Moreover, the intern will collaborate with other group members (undergraduate, graduate students and/ or postdocs). He/she is expected to take ownership of, and control over their project. The intern will, together with the research supervisor, define and refine the project and familiarize him- or herself with the respective literature. With the help of the other group members, the student will learn use of the software used by the group. He/she will set up, run, monitor and trouble-shoot all of their calculations/ simulations, and extract the relevant data. The student will keep clear and detailed notes on their research, their ‘computational experiments’, and results. Depending on the level of progress and success, the student will write the first draft of either a report or manuscript summarizing the data. The student is expected to actively participate in the weekly group meetings of my group, and to present their project at least once during the term of the internship.

Skills required:
A degree in chemistry, physics, or a related subject, completed or in progress; at least one course in basic quantum mechanics (quantum chemistry) and in inorganic chemistry completed. English language proficiency at a level that is sufficient to communicate in an English-language environment. Prior knowledge of quantum-chemical modeling and respective codes (e.g. Gaussian, ADF, NWChem, GAMESS, Turbomole) is an asset but not required. Likewise, prior experience with actinide chemistry is an asset but not required.