Morgan Bates

Education

Undergraduate Institution: University of Texas at Austin

Graduate Institution: University of Minnesota - Twin Cities

Biography

As a chemical engineering undergraduate at The University of Texas at Austin, Morgan developed the anionic synthesis of silicon-containing diblock copolymers for improved feature density in bit patterned media using nanoimprint lithography. Morgan continued to pursue her interests in block polymer materials and self-assembly during her PhD in chemical engineering at the University of Minnesota – Twin Cities under the guidance of Professor Marc Hillmyer. Her research focused on developing the facile synthetic strategy of polymerization-induced microphase separation to achieve domain co-continuity for the enhanced performance of mechanically stiff electrolytes and the tunable mesoporosity of crosslinked thermosets. She also synthesized high χ materials ­­using new block chemistries ­and studied the assembly of Frank-Kasper phases and spherical morphologies in block polymer melts. Morgan­ joined the Hawker research group in November 2016.