The best part of undergraduate research, according to Jeremy Nielsen ’20, is “just being able to work on problems I’m passionate about. That’s super-empowering.”
“Being able to do that at such a young age is an amazing opportunity that I don’t think I could have had at a lot of other places,” Nielsen said.
Nielsen is a mechanical engineering major in the University Scholars honors program. In spring semester of his freshman year, he took the initiative to start doing research under the mentorship of Prof. David Hwang at the Advanced Energy Research and Technology Center (AERTC), where he has developed expertise in renewable energy technology. He has worked on microscale heat transfer analysis applied to process-based research of laser scribing manufacturing methods for thin-film solar cells and organic semiconductor technology. His current research focuses on improving methods for incorporating renewable energy into building components using perovskite-silicon tandem solar cells.
“I’ve been working in AERTC for over two and a half years now,” he said. “It’s a very collaborative environment. It’s nice to have that group setting where we can collaborate on ideas openly.”
This summer, Nielsen participated in the Science Undergraduate Learning Internship (SULI) program at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Golden, Colorado where he worked on developing quantified photoluminescence imaging methods to measure defects in silicon solar cells.
Nielsen interned as a hardware engineer at Jasmine Universe, where he worked on Internet of Things technology to enable higher energy efficiency for use in homes and small businesses. Jeremy has also worked as a systems integrator for Richlin Machinery, where he designed and fabricated automated manufacturing equipment. At Stony Brook, he has dedicated much of his time and energy to CentriSeed Innovations, a Stony Brook student organization devoted to providing innovative and sustainable solutions locally and abroad.
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