News

UCF Study Suggests Some Alzheimer’s Symptoms May Begin Outside the Brain

April 16, 2026

UCF researchers have uncovered evidence that some movement-related symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease may originate outside the brain, which could change how the disease is diagnosed and treated in the future. The study was sponsored by the National Institutes of Health’s National Institute on Aging and was led by UCF Nanoscience Technology Center Professor James Hickman and Research Professor Xiufang “Nadine” Guo. In collaboration with researchers at healthcare tech company Hesperos, the team used lab-grown, human-cell systems designed to model how…

UCF Researcher Creates Improved Method to Harvest Hydrogen Energy

March 6, 2026

A decade of rigorous research led by Associate Professor of Material Science and Engineering Yang Yang produced an impactful patent. The focus of the research behind the patent is to create a cost-effective, high-efficiency and sustainable method for manufacturing nano-materials to enhance energy and chemical production. Yang says he hopes that this will in turn…

UCF Researcher Creates Color-Changing, Tunable Photonic Material Inspired by Nature

January 20, 2026

Color isn’t just about looks — it plays a vital role in how we communicate, protect ourselves and interact with the world. Debashis Chanda, a researcher and professor at UCF’s NanoScience Technology Center, has developed a new material that can change color dynamically in response to external stimuli like temperature, which creates a new possibilities…

UCF Researcher Creates Novel Sensors for Smartphone-Based Health Monitoring

December 2, 2025

Professor Debashis Chanda, working with researchers including physics doctoral student Mahdi Soudi, created a smartphone-based biosensor to improve infectious disease detection. The platform provides a faster, more affordable option for communities with limited access to traditional diagnostics. Early diagnosis of infectious disease is key to slowing outbreaks and improving treatment outcomes. However, current diagnostic techniques…

UCF Faculty, Graduate Student Develop Organ-on-a-Chip Technology for Industry

October 8, 2025

UCF researchers are developing powerful possibilities for industrially aligned research to support advances in healthcare with organ-on-a-chip (OOC) technology. OOC is built on a miniature glass wafer with human cells that mimics the function of human organs. The chips contain tiny channels lined with living cells, allowing researchers to study how tissues respond to medications, infections or…

UCF Researchers Developing New Methods to Passively Mitigate Lunar Dust for Space Exploration

July 21, 2025

Lunar dust is more than a mild irritant or hallmark of an untidy room like dust found on Earth. Lunar dust particles are sharp and abrasive due to the lack of atmosphere gradually dulling their surfaces, leading them to potentially damaging critical lunar equipment or causing respiratory issues for astronauts. Managing lunar dust (also known…

5 UCF Researchers Use 2025 NSF CAREER Awards to Address Emerging Challenges in Computer Science, Engineering

June 25, 2025

Three UCF faculty were named 2025 U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Program award winners while two recent faculty hires transferred their CAREER projects to continue their work at Florida’s Premier Engineering and Technology University. All five awardees teach and conduct research through UCF’s College of Engineering and Computer Science (CECS),…

Congrats to Mahdi Soudi, Ph.D. candidate in physics for receiving the Young Investigator Award at the SPIE Photonics West Conference

March 12, 2025

Congrats to Mahdi Soudi, Ph.D. candidate in physics for receiving the Young Investigator Award at the SPIE Photonics West Conference! He was celebrated for work on smartphone-compatible colorimetric biosensors with NanoScience Technology Center faculty, Debashis Chanda & team.

UCF Among Top 20 U.S. Public Universities Granted U.S. Utility Patents in 2024

March 11, 2025

Powered by world-class faculty who are leaders and inventors in their fields, Florida’s Premier Engineering and Technology University now ranks among the top 20 U.S. public universities for utility patents granted. UCF ranks No. 51 overall in the world and No. 20 among U.S. public universities in a National Academy of Inventors (NAI) list announced…

Recipients of the 2024-25 Seed Funding Program Announced

February 19, 2025

Twenty-one projects representing colleges across UCF and several centers were selected for 2024-25 Seed Funding awards. This is the fourth year the program has been available to faculty and aims to support new, innovative research or creative activity projects that are sustainable through external funding. The program, a result of a collaboration between the Office…