Rana Ashkar Email and Phone Number

My research group focuses on unraveling the structural, dynamical, and functional responses of biological and soft materials on molecular and collective scales. We are an interdisciplinary team of scientists with a passion for exploring soft materials and biophysical systems and their real-world applications. Our research spans a variety of areas, from biomimetic lipid membranes to polymeric systems and interfaces. This includes: • Elastic and dynamic responses of biomembranes to compositional adaptations.• Dynamic signatures of membrane-protein interactions.• Predictive designs for stable liposomal nanocarriers.• Tunable patterning of lipid membranes by engineered molecules.• Curvature-induced membrane remodeling and organization.• Stimuli-responsive nanostructured interfaces.

Developing a science program to investigate curvature-mediated membrane phenomena in topologically nanostructured lipid membranes. The project utilizes the tunability of nanopatterned thermoresponsive polymer scaffolds to generate controllable 2D architectures in supported lipid membranes. The premise of this system is that it enables real-time realization of lateral membrane reorganization and peripheral protein binding in response to local membrane curvature, which will provide insights into critical membrane functions such as signal transduction, cell trafficking, and host-pathogen interactions. In addition, this tunability of membrane topography is envisioned to open new avenues to thermally switchable membrane-based biosensors.

My research projects included:• Investigating structure, dynamics and interfacial phenomena in polymer nanocomposites as candidates for advanced functional materials. • Studying the structural and dynamical behavior of biomimetic membranes and their effect on protein insertion and pore formation, a key element in improving drug transport through cell membranes. • Developing templates for the guided self-assembly of colloidal nanoparticles using controlled evaporation and enhanced surface resonance techniques.Achievements:• Performed high-resolution characterization of structural and dynamical hierarchy in carbon nanocomposites, both of which are critical for material design and application• Explored the local ordering of concentrated carbon nanotube suspensions in supersolvents for scalable fluid-phase processing of carbon coatings and composites. • Examined dispersion and interfacial wetting in composites with dissimilar brush and matrix polymer using scattering, precise modeling and entropy/enthalpy balance. • Investigated nanoscale structure and dynamics of lipid bilayers and their response to membrane composition and protein insertion• Identified enhanced thickness fluctuations in equimolar binary lipid membranes of tail-mismatched phospholipids and found a potential pathway for independent control of the temporal and spatial components of such fluctuations, a key factor for effective drug delivery.• Employed colloidal patterning of modulated substrates using controlled meniscus drag for facile head-to-tail assembly of long gold-nanorod chains with easy transfer to polymer films for use in enhanced plasmonic devices and multistructured electronics.

• Contributed to developing and promoting the novel neutron spin-echo small angle measurement technique used for real-space realization of density autocorrelations• Developed a new scattering approach to characterize the structure of matter in nanoconfinements• Implemented the new approach to study the assembly of colloidal nanosuspensions in sub-micron confinement and the conformity of thermoresponsive polymer films to underlying surface nanomodulations • Developed and designed robust code for the analysis of dynamical scattering from periodic structures • Developed an algorithm for 3D visualization of wavefunctions in strongly correlated systems • Developed various codes for the interpretation of weak scattering effects• Designed liquid cells for neutron scattering studies on confined fluids and liquid interfaces

• Built the vacuum chamber and the magnetic flux return system of the aCORN apparatus• Conducted magnetic field measurements of inhomogeneity for neutron-beta decays• Ran simulations for the optimization of experimental parameters needed for data collection

• Examined the optimization of growth conditions of chromium and carbon thin films using short-pulse laser in different gas environments. • Conducted AFM measurements to test the film growth rate and lateral homogeneity