Overview

The NanoBioPhotonics Group at the University of Houston is led by Dr. Wei-Chuan Shih, a MIT-trained faculty who studied with Prof. Michael S. Feld (Optica MSF Award). Our interests lie in the intersections of nanophotonics, nanofabrication, Al/ML-enhanced imaging and spectroscopy, biomedical optics, and cancer detection. Specific projects involve a array of new technology development for biomedicine and portable chem/biosensing, surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS), optical imaging, microscopy & spectroscopy, single nanoparticle (exosome, virus) analysis, disease diagnosis by virtual biopsy, N/MEMS/microfluidics, lab-on-a-chip, smartphone microscopy and portable chemical/biological sensor. The lab has strong collaboration with leading biomedical institutions such as MD Anderson Cancer Center and UT Health. Dr. Shih welcomes all students/scholars with diverse background to participate in our interdisciplinary research. Applicants with more engineering/physics/chemistry training will find an arsenal of new technology development projects; while those more apt to biomedical science/engineering can implement readily available technologies to address biomedical problems. Our mission is to generate substantial societal impact.

Openings

NanoBioPhotonics Group has multiple openings for graduate students interested in pursuing PhD degree and postdoctoral trainees in the following areas. More senior positions such as Research Associate and Research Faculty will also be considered with qualified applicants.

• Nanophotonics

• Nano Fabrication

• Al/ML-enhanced Imaging and Spectroscopy

• Biomedical Optics

• Cancer Detection

Aspiring students should contact Dr. Shih with a resume, research interests, and relevant background/skills. Dr. Shih is committed to training the next-generation engineers and scientists with direct mentoring. In particular, he emphasizes on an effective mentoring framework tailored for specific individuals that leads to successful career development. Alumni from this lab have been employed by major US companies such as META, APPLE, INTEL, SLB, USAA, and AOI, as well as major foreign research institutions such as Chinese Academy of Sciences, and etc. Exceptional applications will be offered highly competitive salary and milestone-based pay increase. Dr. Shih, a first generation immigrant, believes in the benefits of diversity, and welcomes both domestic and international applicants.