Research Interests

I develop devices, materials, and materials processing technologies for demanding engineering applications, particularly in applications requiring engineered interfaces or thin films. A common theme is to understand how systems change over time as they interact with their environment, and what can be done during manufacturing, fabrication, and synthesis to prevent or control these changes.  Past and present systems under study include semiconductor/optoelectronic devices, chemical vapor deposition polymers, laser glasses and crystals, free-standing polymer films, and optical assemblies.

Ph.D. Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2009

B.S. Chemical Engineering, University of California at Berkeley, 2004

Full list of publications 

1. JH Yoo, HT Nguyen, NJ Ray, MA Johnson, WA Steele, JM Chesser, SH Baxamusa, S Elhadj, JT McKeown, MJ Matthews, E Feigenbaum, “Scalable Light-Printing of Substrate-Engraved Free-Form Metasurfaces,” ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces 11, 22684 (2019)
2. SH Baxamusa, P Ehrmann, J Ong, “Acoustic activation of water-in-oil microemulsions for controlled salt dissolution,” Journal of Colloid and Interface Science 529, 366 (2018).
3. X Lepro, P Ehrmann, J Rodriguez, SH Baxamusa, “Enhancing the oxidation stability of polydivinylbenzene films via residual pendant vinyl passivation,” Chemistry Select 3, 500 (2018).
4. TA Laurence, S Ly, JD Bude, SH Baxamusa, X Lepro, P Ehrmann, “Energy transfer networks: quasicontinuum photoluminescence linked to high densities of defects,” Physical Review Materials 1, 06501 (2017).
5. X Lepro, P Ehrmann, J Menapace, J Lotscher, S Shin, R Meissner, SH Baxamusa, “Ultra-low stress, thermally stable crosslinked polymer films of poly-divinylbenzene (PDVB),” Langmuir  33, 5204 (207).
6. SH Baxamusa, T Laurence, M Worthington, P Ehrmann, "Photo-oxidation of polymer-like amorphous hydrogenated carbon under visible light illumination," Polymer Degradation and Stability 122, 133 (2015).
7. SH Baxamusa, A Suresh, P Ehrmann, T Laurence, J Hanania, J Hayes, S Harley, D Burkey, "Photo-oxiation of polymers synthesized by plasma and initiated CVD," Chemical Vapor Deposition 21, 267 (2015).
8. SH Baxamusa, "Conformal Polymer CVD" in CVD Polymers: Fabrication of Organic Surfaces and Devices (Ed. KK Gleason) (2015).
9. SH Baxamusa, PE Miller, T Laurence, L Wong, R Steele, N Shen, J Bude, "Mitigation of organic laser damage precursors from chemical processing of fused silica," Optics Express 22, 29568 (2014).
10. SH Baxamusa, M Stadermann, C Aracne-Ruddle, AJ Nelson, M Chea, S Li, K Youngblood, and TI Suratwala, "Enhanced delamination of ultrathin free-standing polymer films via self-limiting surface modification," Langmuir 30, 5126 (2014).
11. SH Baxamusa, J Field, R Dylla-Spears, B Kozioziemski, T Suratwala, and J Sater, "Effects of self-heating and phase change on the thermal profile of hydrogen isotopes in confined geometries," Journal of Applied Physics 115 (2014). COVER ARTICLE
12. J Bude, P Miller, SH Baxamusa, N Shen, T Laurence, W Steele, T Suratwala, L Wong, W Carr, D Cross, and M Monticelli, "High fluence laser damage precursors and their mitigation in fused silica," Opt. Express 22, 5839 (2014).
13. T Suratwala, M Feit, W Steele, L Wong, N Shen, R Dylla-Spears, R Desjardin, D Mason, P Geraghty, P Miller, and SH Baxamusa, "Microscopic removal function and the relationship between slurry particle size distribution and workpiece roughness during pad polishing," Journal of the American Ceramic Society 97, 81 (2014).
14. H de Puig, A Cifuentes Rius, D Flemister, SH Baxamusa, and K Hamad-Schifferli, "Selective light-triggered release of DNA from gold nanorods switches blood clotting on and off," PLOS One 8 (2013).
15. SH Baxamusa, SD Bhandarkar, JL Reynolds, B Maranville, J Horner, DC Mason, CL Heinbockel, NA Antipa, and AD Conder, "A solvent cleaning process for the outer surface of plastic ICF capsules," Fusion Science and Technology 63, 169 (2013).
16. ME Alf, A Asatekin, MC Barr, SH Baxamusa, H Chelawat, G Ozaydin-Ince, CD Petruczok, R Sreenivasan, WE Tenhaeff, NJ Trujillo, S Vaddiraju, J Xu, and KK Gleason, "Chemical vapor deposition of conformal, functional, and responsive polymer films," Advanced Materials 22, 1993 (2010).
17. SH Baxamusa, SG Im, and KK Gleason, "Initiated and oxidative chemical vapor deposition: A scalable method for conformal and functional polymer films on real substrates," Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics 11, 5227 (2009). COVER ARTICLE
18. SH Baxamusa and KK Gleason, "Random copolymer films with molecular-scale compositional heterogeneities that interfere with protein adsorption," Advanced Functional Materials 19, 3489 (2009).
19. SH Baxamusa and KK Gleason, "Thin polymer films with high step coverage in microtrenches by initiated CVD," Chemical Vapor Deposition 14, 313 (2008).