Members.

Students in the Brutchey Group develop expertise in air-free inorganic synthesis and state-of-the-art materials characterization to address challenges in renewable energy and sustainability. Our group culture is grounded in a commitment to excellence and intellectual independence. We provide students with a high degree of academic freedom to innovate and think creatively, with the goal of training independent scientists with strong, transferable skills.

Our Team

Richard L. Brutchey
Ray Irani Chair in Chemistry
Professor of Chemistry

Associate Editor, Inorganic Chemistry
[email protected]
Curriculum Vitae

Nicole Ammari
Graduate Student

B.S., UC Berkeley, 2025

Yizhen Chen
Graduate Student

M.S., NYU, 2023

Han Chi
Graduate Student

B.S., UC San Diego, 2024

Ariana B. Nygren
Graduate Student

B.S., University of Colorado, 2024

Christopher Pakhanyan
Graduate Student

B.S., CSU Northridge, 2023

Zihang Sun
Graduate Student

B.S., Wuhan University, 2025

Brendan Ward-O'Brien
Postdoctoral Fellow

Ph.D., University of Manchester, 2024

Where We Are From

Group Alumni

Graduate Student Alumni

1. Priscilla Antunez (NSF Graduate Fellow), Deputy Chief Strategy Officer, Brookhaven National Lab
2. Gözde Barim, Senior Scientist, Alsym Energy
3. Christopher Beier, Technical Director, Spherix Mineral Products
4. Iris Berg, Visiting Graduate Student, Hebrew University of Jerusalem (Israel)
5. Jannise Buckley (NSF Graduate Fellow), Chief Product Officer, Ciencia Labs
6. Kyle Crans, Process Engineer, Lam Research
7. Sean Culver (NSF Graduate Fellow), Cell R&D Manager, Peak Energy
   
8. Allison Forsberg
   
9. Matthew Franzman, Assistant Professor of Forensic Science, University of Baltimore
   
10. Matthew Greaney (ACS DIC Young Investigator), Group Leader, Clariant International
11. Lanja Karadaghi, Principal Engineer, Northrup Grumman
12. Kristopher Koskela, Staff Process Engineer, Applied Materials
13. Laura Lazarus, Professor of Chemistry, Fullerton College
14. Hyeyeon Lee, Visiting Graduate Student, Gyeongsang National University (South Korea)
15. Haipeng Lu (ACS PHYS Young Investigator), Associate Professor of Chemistry, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
16. Carrie McCarthy (NSF Graduate Fellow)
17. Michelle Norako, Senior Winemaker, NexTerra Wine Company
18. Emily Roberts (ACS Kenneth Hancock Memorial Awardee), Patent Prosecution Associate, Morrison & Foerster LLP
19. Sara Smock (NSF Graduate Fellow), Materials & Process Manager, GKN Aerospace
20. Marissa Strumolo, Sales Manager, Waters  Corporation
21. Zhaohong Sun
22. Bryce Tappan, Senior Scientist, SES AI Corporation
23. Emily Williamson, AI Applications Engineer, SandBox Semiconductor

Postdoctoral Fellow Alumni

1. Patrick Cottingham, Senior PV Chemist, Starpath
2. Elsa Couderc, Science Editor, The Conversation France
3. Lucía Mora, Assistant Professor of Chemistry, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México
4. Federico Rabuffetti, Associate Professor of Chemistry, Wayne State University
5. David Webber, Chemical Hygiene Officer, USC

Select Undergraduate Student Alumni

1. Karla Abuyen, Research Scientist, Viridian Biometals
2. Jose Araujo, Electro Optical Engineer, Meta
3. Marie Cuevas Heffern (NSF Graduate Fellow), Associate Professor of Chemistry, UC Davis
4. Aaron Ghrist (NSF Graduate Fellow), Graduate Student in Applied Physics, Stanford University
5. John Lee (NSF Graduate Fellow), Scientist II, Nurix Therapeutics
   
6. Ariel Nehoray, Graduate Student in Chemistry, Penn State
7. Viridiana Pérez, CEO, NANOSentinel
8. Emily Schueller, Principal Materials and Processes Engineer, Northrup Grumman
9. Antonio Tinoco, Assistant Professor of Chemistry & Biochemistry, UCLA