The College of Science is proud to announce that Alison Bain, assistant professor of chemistry, has been named one of the “Talented Twelve” by Chemical & Engineering News (C&EN), the newsmagazine of the American Chemical Society. The honor celebrates early-career researchers who are making the world a better place through chemistry.
“It is a great honor to be recognized alongside such amazing scientists,” said Bain, who leads the Bain Aerosol Research group at Oregon State.
Bain was recognized for her groundbreaking work in atmospheric chemistry, particularly her development of tools to isolate and study individual aerosol particles. Her research aims to uncover how these microscopic particles contribute to climate change and environmental health.
The particles play a role in affecting other things such as cloud formation. For example, the particle's optical properties and size relate to how much solar radiation is reflected back out of the atmosphere or absorbed, which can later be reemitted as heat in the atmosphere. Properties such as size and surface tension play a role in cloud formation and the resulting properties of those clouds.
Her lab uses state-of-the-art optical trapping techniques, including holographic and photophoretic traps, to levitate and study single particles under precisely controlled conditions. This allows her to study different types of solid and liquid particles and even non-spherical particles in a contactless environment, mimicking atmospheric conditions.
“We are excited to start applying the fundamental understanding of aerosol properties we have been building with model systems to increasingly complex systems, more representative of ambient aerosol,” Bain said.
