Jenny Sun’s Mission to Reveal Mysteries in the Human Body and Improve Healthcare

ECE PhD Student Jenny Sun Wins National Science Foundation Fellowship

By Shereen Abubakr (QST ’18)

Jenny Sun is advised by Professor Jerome Mertz.
Jenny Sun is advised by Prof. Jerome Mertz.

ECE PhD Candidate Jenny Sun (EE ‘21) received a National Science Foundation Fellowship. The NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program recognizes outstanding graduate students in NSF- supported engineering and science disciplines. Fellows receive a three-year annual stipend of $34,000 and a $12,000 educational allowance. The fellowship program is awarded to those who are on track to become knowledge experts and significantly contribute to the field. Sun was one of 2,000 awardees selected from a pool of over 12,000 applicants.

Sun is a second year PhD student and has a strong research background in optical signal processing. She works in the Biomicroscopy Lab, overseen by Prof. Jerome Mertz, and is currently developing an ultra-fast high-resolution microscope capable of extracting different types of information, such as phase, from live cardiac neurological samples. With an appreciation for the beauty of optics, Sun engineers microscopes to probe the mysteries of the human body. “I hope the results of my research will lead to improvements in the lives of people suffering from medical conditions such as cardiac arrhythmias and neurological disorders.”

In 2016, Sun graduated from Princeton University with a Bachelor of Science in Engineering degree in Electrical Engineering. With help from the fellowship and her graduate studies, Sun is eager to continue learning, researching, and taking great risks to push boundaries in her research.