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Open Position: We have an opening for a funded NSF-supported Research Assistantship for an MS in Physics in experimental nanophotonics. The student must have already been admitted to the MS Physics program. The position involves hands-on experimental work with opportunities for theoretical modeling. Applicants with a background in optics, electromagnetism, or condensed matter physics are encouraged to apply. Interested students should email Dr. Manna with their CV and a brief statement of research interests.

Learn. Experiment. Discover with Light!

For more details, see RESEARCH.

Nanophotonics: We study light–matter interactions in nanomaterials, metamaterials, and beyond — with potential applications in imaging, renewable energy, and optical communications.

Bio-Imaging: We use Total Internal Reflection Fluorescence (TIRF) microscope for imaging intraflagellar transport (IFT) in live cells.

Image of Dr. Manna working with students

RECENT HIGHLIGHTS:

October 2025, Our work on "Optical trapping with optical magnetic field and photonic Hall effect forces", in collaboration with the Scherer Lab at the University of Chicago, is published in Nature Communications!
October 2025, Our article in "Nanophotonic phenomena driven by vector beams" is published in Advanced Photonics!
October 2025, Our article on "Polycaprolactone - based block copolymers for nanopatterning oxide materials via sequential infiltration synthesis" in published in Nanotechnology!
October 2025, Our article on "Immersed-Prism TIRF Microscopy for Visualizing Intraflagellar Transport in Live Cells" in published in Photonics!
August 2025, Our work on "Detection of Hybrid Optical Anapoles in Dielectric Microspheres" is published in Advanced Optical Materials!
August 2025, Robert is joining Emory University for his Ph.D. and Prachi is joining the University of Nebraska for her Ph.D. — best of luck to both as they begin their graduate journeys!
July 2025, We have received funding from the Div. of Chemistry (CHE), National Science Foundation (NSF) (Award # 2505894) to enable spin-forbidden molecular transitions using dielectric metasurfaces!
May 2024, Robert Sevik was awarded Barry Goldwater Fellowship! Way to Go, Robert!
April 2024, Our article on "Sequential Infiltration Synthesis of Silicon Dioxide" in collaboration with Biswas Lab is published in Journal of Physical Chemistry!
July 2023, We received the inaugural Advancing Research and Creative Scholarship (ARCS) grant, in collaboration with Engelke Lab and Kim Lab from the Office of Research and Graduate Studies at Illinois State.

We acknowledge supports from the Division of Chemistry (CHE) and Division of Material Research (DMR), National Science Foundation (NSF) for funding our research (Award # 2505894 and Award # 2208240)