The lab as classroom

Students in lab

How MRI research facilities powers education at Penn State and beyond

By Jamie Oberdick

When most people think of cutting-edge scientific research, they imagine white-coated scientists, gleaming labs, and futuristic technologies. But at Penn State’s Materials Research Institute (MRI), the work goes deeper and reaches further. Here, research is not just a pipeline for innovation. It’s a dynamic engine of education, preparing students with hands-on experience, cultivating a future-ready workforce, and fulfilling the university’s land-grant mission. 

Spinning up new flexible material for self-powered wearable sensors

fibers close up on shirt

By Jamie Oberdick

Could clothing monitor a person’s health in real time, because the clothing itself is a self-powered sensor? A new material created through electrospinning, which is a process that draws out fibers using electricity, brings this possibility one step closer.  

A team led by researchers at Penn State developed a new fabrication approach that optimizes the internal structure of electrospun fibers to improve their performance in electronic applications. They published their findings in the Journal of Applied Physics.