OZGUR SAHIN - Stanford University 

Invention: Harmonic Cantilevers for nanoscale sensing

Sahin invented a dramatically improved type of Atomic Force Microscope, an exciting type of instrument capable of taking pictures of individual atoms. The AFM is used by a wide range of researchers, from people designing cutting-edge computer chips to biologists trying to learn the inner workings of cells. The AFM uses a tiny probe that vibrates over a sample, literally feeling the surface.

JWA-MIN NAM AND COLBY SHAD THAXTON - Northwestern University

Invention: Bio-bar-code amplified detection system

Jwa-Min Nam is a chemist, and Shad Thaxton is a physician.  Together, they invented a new technology with the potential to revolutionize their respective fields of chemistry and medicine. 

The two graduate students at Northwestern University created what they call “bio barcode amplified detection systems.”  The complex process has a simple goal: to find miniscule amounts of microscopic biological materials.  Because their invention is so much more sensitive and precise than previous types of tests, it could be used to detect chemical signs of Alzheimer’s disease or types of cancer far earlier than conventional tests.

WEI GU - University of Michigan

Invention: Computerized microfluidic control for cell biology using Braille display

Wei Gu’s invention involves microfluidics, an emerging technology relying on microscopic control of liquid flows from medical purposes to chemical analysis. Gu has created an unusually simple, robust machine that acts as a miniature plumbing system, complete with microscopic pumps, valves, pipes, and mixing chambers.  “I think in the future these devices will be as common as cell phones or laptops,” Gu said, explaining that microfluidic machines could become powerful diagnostic tools for doctors, or allow patients to monitor their health more precisely than is possible today.