Stephanie Hooker, Ph.D.

Research Interests

• Engineered nanoparticles; carbon nanotubes; environmental health & safety of nanoparticles; nanocharacterization; surface science; functionalization
• Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA); mass sensing via quartz crystal microbalances; impedance spectroscopy; electrochemistry
• Physical infrastructure; water infrastructure; water quality; mechanical characterization of structural materials
• Sensors and actuators; bulk acoustic wave sensors; surface acoustic wave sensors; piezoelectric ceramics; gas sensors

Brief Biography

Dr. Stephanie Hooker is the Chief of the Materials Reliability Division at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) in Boulder, CO. She has been with NIST's Materials Reliability Division since 2002, leading research in the reliability of nanomaterials, structural materials, biomaterials, and biological materials. Prior to joining NIST, Dr. Hooker served as Business Development Manager for a small nanotechnology startup, introducing gas sensor products based on engineered nanoparticles. Dr. Hooker started her career at NASA-Langley Research Center as a Materials Research Engineer. In this position, she managed the successful demonstration of high-temperature superconductor electronics in space and characterized fatigue behavior in advanced actuators.

Most recently, Dr. Hooker has co-developed a novel measurement concept for screening the purity and consistency of carbon nanotubes. Her quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) approach offers a three-orders-of-magnitude improvement in sensitivity vs. conventional thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). The figures below show how the method works and the resulting material decomposition on heating.

Awards and Honors

• NIST Building Tomorrow’s Workplace Award, 2005
• Professional Achievement in Ceramic Engineering (PACE) Award (outstanding young ceramic engineer), awarded jointly by the American Ceramic Society and the National Institute of Ceramic Engineers, 1998
• NASA Exceptional Achievement Medal, 1997
• NASA Group Achievement Awards - 1997, 1996, 1993
• R&D 100 Award, 1994
• NASA Technology Transfer Award, 1993
• NASA Langley Research Center Summer Scholars Fellowship, 1990, 1988
• NSF Creativity Award, 1988-1990
• F.J. Jervey Alumni Scholarship, Clemson University, 1984-1988