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IMS 2026 Ph.D. Graduate, Sajal Islam, Wins IEEE NPSS Graduate Scholarship Award

Sajal Islam has been named a recipient of the highly competitive 2026 IEEE Nuclear and Plasma Sciences Society (NPSS) Graduate Scholarship Award. He recently completed his Ph.D. at Vanderbilt äçÐÄvlogÃâ·ÑBվ’s Interdisciplinary Materials Science (IMS) and will graduate in May 2026.

The award includes a $2,500 prize and certificate and recognizes a small number of outstanding graduate researchers worldwide for excellence in Nuclear and Plasma Sciences.

Under the direction of Prof. Ron Schrimpf, Islam’s research focused on the reliability and radiation effects of wide-bandgap semiconductor devices, including SiC, GaN, and Ga₂O₃. His work addressed radiation-induced failures, degradation mechanisms, and long-term device performance for Space applications. He also brings expertise in thin-film synthesis and advanced characterization techniques, including XRD, Raman spectroscopy, photoluminescence, SEM, and UV-Vis.

Islam holds an M.S. from Missouri State äçÐÄvlogÃâ·ÑBÕ¾ and a B.S. from Primeasia äçÐÄvlogÃâ·ÑBÕ¾. He is now a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Center for Reliable & Trusted Electronics (IU-CREATE) at Indiana äçÐÄvlogÃâ·ÑBÕ¾, Bloomington, continuing his research in radiation effects and semiconductor device reliability.

His achievements highlight a growing impact in semiconductor and materials science research.