Nanoscale Science and Technology Division Graduate Competition
Receive a student registration waiver for the conference!!!
As nanoscience has continued to expand its impact in diverse fields, including quantum science, biology, mechanics, and energy, the Nanoscale Science and Technology Division (NSTD) has been a hub of research broadly related to instrumentation, lithography, manipulation, imaging, and translation to industry. The NSTD holds a Graduate Competition at the annual AVS International Symposium to highlight and celebrate exceptional researchers working on the frontiers of nanoscience. All graduate students presenting a poster or oral presentation in an NSTD-sponsored or co-sponsored session are encouraged to apply.
To apply, submit a cover letter, resume, advisor support letter, and AVS abstract to the awards submission site by the
deadline date of May 18th, 2026.
For eligibility, the applicant must not have received a doctoral degree at the time of abstract submission.
All finalists will receive a student registration waiver for the conference!!!
The NSTD Awards Committee will select all finalists, and they will be informed in the summer of 2026. All finalists must present a five-minute talk (with additional time for questions) at the NSTD Sunday plenary session for the awards competition. The winner will be selected based on the quality of the talk, the responses to subsequent questions, and the level of the research. The graduate award winner will receive a certificate and a cash award of $500. This award is made possible by financial support from NSTD's sponsors, in 2025 they were were Nanosurf and SPECS-TII.
Awards Application
Recipients (Graduate Student Competition Winners)
2025: Jason Lynch
2024: Dave Austin
2023: Lidia Kuo-Kim
2022: Kiyoung Jo
2021: Likun Wang
2020: Lin Wang
2019: Jeremy Schultz
2018: Omur Erdinc Dagdeviren
2017: Xiaolong Liu
2016: Alma Eva Pérez Perrino
2015: Wei Bao
2014: Deep Jariwala
2013: Cedric Barroo
2012: David Reid
2011: Justice Alaboson
2010: Farzad Behafarid
2009: Mehmet Baykara
2008: Qing Hua
2007: Jacob Palmer
2006: Tracie Colburn
2006: Dirk Weber
2005: Kiu-Yuen Tse
2004: Qinguang Li
2003: Cheol-Soo Young
2002: Jeremy Steinshinder