DETROIT - Wayne State University is continuing its John P. Oliver Nano@Wayne SeminarSeries on February 19 with featured guest speaker Dr. James Hone, associate professor of Mechanical Engineering at Columbia University. His discussion will focus on recent results of electrical, mechanical and electromechanical studies, and transport properties of nanotube heterojunctions with known structure. The seminar is free and open to the public.

Dr. Hone, who has numerous publications, has interests in carbon nanotubes, nanoelectromechanical resonators (such as MEMS and its application in computational "chips") and nanobiology. He began his faculty appointment at Columbia University in 2003, five years after earning his Ph.D. in experimental condensed matter physics from the University of California, Berkley. He became a Millikan Fellow while attending Caltech working on his postdoctoral studies; he was also a post doctorate at the University of Pennsylvania.

In particular, carbon nanotubes have strong structural properties and unique electrical properties, which can efficiently conduct heat and conduct mechanical, optical and electronic signals. Applications with nanotubes include creating everyday clothing or combat jackets, uses in electrical circuits, and uses in drug delivery systems and possibly a gene delivery system.

The Nano@Wayne seminar will be held at 2:30 p.m. on February 19 at WSU's Welcome Center Auditorium located at 42 W. Warren Avenue, at the corner of Warren and Woodward. For further information, visit http://research.wayne.edu/nano/seminars, or call (313) 577-3738.

Wayne State University is one of the nation's pre-eminent public research universities in an urban setting. Through its multidisciplinary approach to research and education, and its ongoing collaboration with government, industry and other institutions, the university seeks to enhance economic growth and improve the quality of life in the city of Detroit, state of Michigan and throughout the world.