Rachel Sun

Rachel Sun is a master’s candidate whose research applies innovative computation tools in the development of new nanofabrication techniques. Supported by a MathWorks seed grant, Rachel developed a groundbreaking fabrication method for microscale magnetic metamaterials with tunable properties, actuated by magnetic fields using a nanoscale 3-D printer. As a MathWorks Fellow, Rachel will continue to explore properties and fabrication approaches for acoustic metamaterials and reconfigurable, architected materials. Acoustic metamaterials that block specific frequency ranges have been realized at larger scales; the goal of Rachel’s current project is to advance understanding of these materials’ acoustic properties at the microscale and higher frequency ranges. She has utilized and created numerous MATLAB tools during her research and shared flexible and innovative tools, such as an acoustic metamaterial analysis script, with the MathWorks community. Rachel’s research could serve to speed the development of valuable metamaterials for a wide range of applications from reconfigurable waveguides and logic switches, to remotely actuated micro-medical and computing devices, and other smart, multifunctional materials.