2024 RSI-WAVE Fellows

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Meet the 2024 RSI-WAVE Fellows

This summer we are delighted to welcome a cohort of 8 undergraduate researchers to campus as RSI-WAVE fellows. The Caltech WAVE program was started in 2015 to attract more undergraduates from historically minoritized communities to campus to conduct research while also receiving support and guidance from faculty and current graduate students. The WAVE program was greatly expanded in 2021, thanks to support from research institutes across campus, including the RSI, which sponsored undergraduates doing research across all our research initiative areas.

Raisha Abubo

Raisha Abubo is a rising junior at Stanford University studying Earth and Planetary Sciences and Geophysics, with a focus on Geomorphology and Sedimentology. This summer, she is working in the Lamb Surface Processes lab studying the erosion and fluvial morphodynamics of Arctic rivers flowing through permafrost in an experimental setting. With rising temperatures and rapid melting of permafrost due to climate change, she hopes to understand how changing temperatures will affect river morphology and erosion, and how this will impact communities and infrastructure along Arctic rivers.

Elizabeth Ballmann

Elizabeth Ballmann, a rising senior at Wayne State University, is studying biochemistry with a keen interest in physical chemistry and spectroscopy. Her WAVE project focuses on constructing a terahertz air-based coherent detection (ABCD) apparatus to study spintronic terahertz emitters (STEs) fabricated in the Kavli Nanoscience Institute at Caltech. After completing her undergraduate degree, she plans to pursue a PhD in physical chemistry, aiming to become a cosmochemist and use spectroscopic analysis to study biological evolution in the cosmos.

Noah Conner

David Goba-Rivera

David Goba-Rivera is a rising senior studying Mechanical Engineering at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County with a minor in Entrepreneurship. This summer, he will be measuring the electrochemical characterization of 3-D architected electrodes for Li-ion batteries in Dr. Greer's Lab, which he believes will revolutionize battery technology to support electric air vehicles. Driven by his lifelong passion for aviation and his commitment to his community, he aspires to obtain his Ph.D. and begin his own company, while inspiring others to pursue their dreams as well.

Ezra Korican-Barlay

Ezra is a rising senior from Oakland, CA majoring in chemistry at UC Berkeley. This summer he is excited to be studying photocatalysts using ultrafast electron energy loss spectroscopy (EELS) in Prof. Scott Cushing's research group. 

Ananya Venkatachalam

Ananya, a rising junior at Harvey Mudd College, is a Joint Physics-Math major deeply interested in biophysical chemistry. This summer, she is working in the Wang Research Group in the Chemical Engineering department to study the effect of asymmetrical dipole moments on the interfacial potential gradient of the fluid-vapor interface. Through this research, she aims to better understand the chemical dynamics that influence critical climate processes, such as the formation and behavior of atmospheric aerosols and the interaction of pollutants with natural water bodies.

Xiaoli (Shelli) Wang

Shelli is a returning student at Pasadena City College majoring in Environmental Science.  Her 2024 summer WAVE Fellowship is with the Kornfield Lab at the Chemistry and Chemical Engineering Division, focusing on sensing phosphorus with integrated biosensor encapsulates in soil.

Rachel Willick

Rachel is a rising senior at Amherst College in Massachusetts studying physics.  This summer she is working under Professor Pellegrino in the Space Structures Lab on the Space Solar Power Project.  She is working with grad student George Popov to create a more effective and lighter-weight method of properly tensioning the solar panels to their frames.