Beckman Young Investigator Named

Xiaoji Xu, assistant professor of chemistry, has been named a Beckman Young Investigator, earning a prestigious grant awarded by the Arnold and Mabel Beckman Foundation for “the most promising young faculty members in the early stages of their academic careers in the chemical and life sciences.” Xu is one of only 10 2018 Young Investigators named this year nationwide.

Xu will receive $600,000 over four years to support the development of an infrared microscopy technique that bypasses the two current limitations of the current method: low spatial resolution due to the diffraction limit and incompatibility with the aqueous phase measurement due to the strong infrared attenuation from the water. The goal is to achieve infrared nanoscopy in the aqueous phase for a range of chemistry and biology applications.

According to Xu, the new technique will empower researchers to study previously inaccessible nanoscale objects, as well as chemical reactions and biological processes in the aqueous phase with an unprecedented spatial resolution.

“The support from the Beckman Foundation will elevate my research to the next level, toward label-free super-resolution imaging in the liquid phase, where many important chemical and biological processes take place,” said Xu.