News

Stay up-to-date about the news and events going on in the group.  You can find out about meetings and important information here.

  • Prof. Clayborne is named Interim Department Chair

    Prof. Clayborne has been named Interim Department Chair for the Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry at George Mason University. Congratulations!

  • Congratulations Derrick

    Congratulations Derrick Kwon on receiving his Master of Science in Chemistry this winter! We wish you the best!

  • Undergraduate Presentations

    Nicolas presented his semester research (Computational Investigations of Carboxyl Molecules for Batteries) at the Undergraduate Research Symposium this week. Great Job Nicolas!

  • Gordon Conference

    Prof. Clayborne attended the Atomically Precise Nanochemistry Gordon Research Conference.

  • NOBCChE 2022

    Nia and Kachief attended NOBCChE 2022 in Orlando, FL. They presented their research on the properties of materials using computational methods. Great Job!

  • Publication

    Check out our latest publication with Prof. Luo’s and Prof. Paige’s research groups at GMU. Kachief Callender performed the calculations. Great job team!

  • Welcome Dr. Bashir

    Dr. Beenish Bashir has joined the CLab at GMU. She is a postdoctoral researcher studying the properties of porphyrins. Welcome!

  • MARM 2022

    Maha and Prof. Clayborne presented some of the research on-going at the Mid-Atlantic Region Meeting (MARM) for ACS in Trenton, NJ. Great Job!

  • New Group Members

    A’Laura Hines and Nicolas Alt have chosen to join our research group. Welcome!

  • Congratulations

    Nia will spend part of the Spring/Summer Semester at IBM as part of their intern program for the second year in a row. Congratulations Nia!

  • Congratulations Nina

    Nina graduated with a Master of Science degree in Chemistry & Biochemistry in December 2021! Congratulations Nina! We wish you the best!

  • Nia Pollard receives support from QSEC

    Nia Pollard received funding support from the Quantum Science and Engineering Center (QSEC). She is studying quantum information sciences as it applies to chemistry. For more information about QSEC, please visit https://qsec.gmu.edu.

  • Center for Sustainable nanotechnology Affiliate

    Prof. Clayborne accepted an invitation to become an affiliate member for the Center for Sustainable Nanotechnology (CSN).

  • New Group Member

    Welcome Nina Kieninger to the Research Group! She will be studying small metal clusters.

  • Postdoctoral Position Available

    A post-doctoral position in computational chemistry is available in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at George Mason University (Fairfax, VA) under the direction of Prof. Andre Clayborne. The research will focus on developing a machine learning protocol for identifying molecules for quantum information systems and molecular electronics. Additionally, the researcher will be using simulation methods to understand the electronic properties of various molecules. The candidate will be part of a multidisciplinary team involving experimentalists and industrial partners.

    Applicants must have a Ph.D. in chemistry, chemical engineering, physics, bio-informatics, or related fields. The ideal candidate should meet the following requirements:

    • Possess knowledge of Computational Chemistry/Physics Software packages
    • Be able to demonstrate strong skills in Python and related machine learning packages; and
    • Candidates must possess the ability to work independently and collaboratively as part of a multi-disciplinary team.

     The position is for 1-year and may be extended upon mutual agreement. For full consideration, please apply by 06/30/21. View the full advertisement at https://jobs.gmu.edu/ position number F067Az

  • Congrats Graduates

    Congratulations to all of the 2021 Graduates. Sekou will be attending UC San Diego for graduate school. We wish you the best!

  • Funding

    Grateful to the National Science Foundation Division of Chemistry Chemical Theory, Models, and Computational Methods program for funding. We are excited to work on modeling and machine learning with the Lewis Research Group at Howard University.

  • Welcome

    Welcome to Annieka Reno and Melony Kim, our two newest undergraduates to join the group!

  • Paper on gold gallium

    Our paper in collaboration with Prof. Schnepf’s group on the gold gallium cluster is in press! Great job Nia and Adebola!

  • New Group Member

    Kachief Callender has joined the group. Welcome!

  • New Group Members

    We welcome Bridget Moll and Derrick Kwon!

  • Congrats Sekou!

    Sekou received the AIChE-NCS award for being an outstanding student in Chemical Engineering. Congratulations Sekou!

  • First place in poster competition

    Congrats to Nyasia Davis on winning the best poster in the STEM Education category sponsored by Amgen at NOBCChE 2020!

  • Clayborne Research Group Open House

    The Clayborne Research Group will have an open house for any graduate or undergraduate student that may be interested in learning more about our group. The open house will be held on 10/09 from 4:00 PM until 5:30 PM. Any current or incoming graduate student interested should contact Prof. Clayborne via email.

  • New group members

    We welcome Maha Alotaibi to the group!

  • Paper on atomically precise copper clusters

    Our paper on atomically precise copper clusters was accepted in JPCA. Great job Adebola!

  • Congrats Joselyn

    Congratulations to 2019 BioNano workshop participant Joselyn on being accepted into the 2020 AHEC Scholars Program!

  • Prof. Clayborne is joining George Mason University

    Prof. Clayborne is joining the faculty in the Chemistry & Biochemistry Department at George Mason University in Fairfax, VA. His group will continue research endeavors in the nanoscience and materials science.

  • Congratulations Graduates

    Congratulations to all of the 2020 Howard University graduates (Adebola, Asif, Jaquesta, and Kachief)! We wish you all good luck in your graduate education!

  • NSF GRFP

    Congratulations Jaquesta on receiving the NSF GRFP!

  • Prof. Clayborne accepted in the Visiting Faculty Program

    Prof. Clayborne was accepted into the Visiting Faculty Program for Summer 2020 at Brookhaven National Laboratory! The VFP provides faculty members the opportunity to gain experience at a Department of Energy (DOE) laboratory.

  • New member

    Kachief Callender has joined the group. Welcome!

  • Gordon Conference

    Nia, Jaquesta, Adebola, and Prof. Clayborne are attending the GRC for Atomically Precise Nanoclusters.

  • NOBCChE Conference

    Adebola, Jaquesta, Nia, and Prof. Clayborne attended the NOBCChE conference in St. Louis, MO Nov. 18 – Nov. 21. Congratulations to Jaquesta and Nia on winning awards for best posters.

  • Academic Student Award

    Adebola received recognition for outstanding academic achievement in Chemical Engineering. Congratulations!

  • Welcome

    Nyasia Davis has joined the research group. Welcome!

  • Best Practices Workshop

    Prof. Clayborne attended the AFOSR HBCU Best Practices Workshop in Arlington, VA.

  • Student Awards

    Nia Pollard, Adebola Adeagbo, and Jaquesta Adams received the Advancing Science Conference grant to attend the 2019 NOBCChE Meeting. Adebola and Jaquesta also received the ACS Bridge Travel Award to attend the conference. Congratulations!

  • Welcome Group Members

    Welcome Asif Mouhiddin and Sekou Rowe to the group.

  • Openings for Student Research Assistants

    The Clayborne Research Group has openings for at least two undergraduate research positions. Student Research Assistants will assist Prof. Andre Clayborne by performing research in the broad area of computational chemistry, computational nanoscience, and materials discovery. Reporting directly to Dr. Andre Clayborne, the Research Assistant will perform basic lab research while simultaneously gaining research experience. Additional responsibilities include, but are not limited to: performing basic computational simulations using theoretical techniques, writing scripts and or apps for simulations and analyses, compiling and analyzing computational results, provides status reports on specific aspects of work.

    No experience in the area of computational chemistry or computer science is required. However, it is a plus. Interested students are encouraged to email their CV/resume along with a letter of interest in one PDF file to Prof. Clayborne. In the subject line, please type “Interest in Computational Chemistry Research Position”.

    For more information about the research on-going in the Clayborne Research Group, please visit the research page or publications.

  • We’ve Moved

    The Clayborne Research Group lab has moved from the Laser Chemistry Building to the Chemistry Building Room B-14 on Howard University’s campus.

  • Summer Workshop

    Joselyn and Tony presented their research at our workshop symposium for summer research on June 13, 2019. Great Job!

  • Welcome Group Members

    Welcome to Mr. Tony Funchess and Ms. Joselyn Sixtos-Aguirre! They are joining us for the summer to perform research on nanoparticles.

  • Congratulations Graduates!
    Congratulations to Mr. Zhenhong Chen and Ms. Oluwatobi Aderotoye on their graduation!
  • Ms. Adams receives scholarship

    Congratulations to Ms. Jaquesta Adams who has received the Goldwater Scholarship for 2019 – 2020!

  • Prof. Clayborne interviewed on Beyond the Classroom
    Dr. Clayborne will be featured in an interview by Dr. Trina Coleman on Beyond the Classroom. The show will air on HBCU iRadio on Monday April 15 at 5 PM.
  • Research Week

    Adebola and Nia presented their research with our group at Howard University’s Research Week event. Great job!

  • Gold interacting with peptides paper published
    Our paper on Gold nanoparticles interacting with peptides with Prof. Tao Wei was accepted. Please find the paper here.
  • Undergraduate Summer Positions Available

    Undergraduate Researcher Positions for a month-long summer program are available at Howard University. For more information, please see the flyer below.

  • Postdoctoral Researcher Position Available

    A Postdoctoral Research Associate position is available from August 15 2019 for two years on the Computational Studies of Nanoparticle Protein Interactions.  The selected candidate will work at Winston-Salem State University (WSSU) in Year 1, and at Howard University (HU) in Year 2 (if contract is renewed with mutual agreement). This collaborative project is to understand the interactions between nanoparticles and proteins to develop state-of-the-art detection devices of surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) using both simulations and experiments.  The research will be guided by Prof. Tao (WSSU), Prof. Wei (HU), and Prof. Clayborne (HU).

    Required qualifications:

    • A candidate is expected to have a Ph.D. in Physics, Chemistry, Materials Science/Engineering, or a related discipline by the start date. 
    • The candidate must have good writing and presentation skills in English. 
    • The successful candidate will have good programming skills in one (or more) of the following:  C/C++, Fortran and Python, as well as data analysis experiences.
    • The ability to work well with a team and to train a diverse population of undergraduate students.  
    • Though the project is rooted in computation and theoretical development, the candidate is expected to interact with experimentalists who are Co-PIs on the two-campus project. 
    • The candidate may be required to travel between WSSU and HU in the project duration. 

    Desired qualifications:

    • Experience in at least one of the following areas: electronic structure simulations (DFT and beyond), molecular dynamics, Monte Carlo simulations, and force field development.
    • Experience in QM/MM and time-dependent DFT or continuum modeling.
    • Experience with high-performance computing. 
    • Candidates may also be involved in experiments, such as nanoparticle synthesis, SERS experimental design and Raman characterization. Experience in SERS experiments is a plus.

    Interested candidates should submit a cover letter, CV and 2 letters of reference to nanoparticle18@gmail.com. The official job announcement will be posted soon at https://jobs.wssu.edu.   Application review begins on March 15, 2019. The position will remain open until filled.

    Winston-Salem State University is a bold, vibrant and diverse academic community that fosters the creative thinking, analytical problem-solving, and depth of character graduates need to transform themselves and their world. Founded in 1892, WSSU enjoys a distinguished reputation as a historically black constituent institution of the University of North Carolina. Winston-Salem State University is dedicated to providing equal opportunity in employment based on merit, and without discrimination based on race, color, creed, religion, gender, national origin, age, disability or veteran status.