laagesen@umich.edu B.S. Physics, UC Berkeley Ph.D., Materials Science and Engineering, Northwestern University My research interests are in the application of theoretical and computational techniques to study the evolution of microstructures and nanostructures during crystal growth, phase transformations, and coarsening, and how this evolution affects material properties. Current projects focus on the growth of semiconductor quantum dots for high-efficiency third-generation solar cell designs and predicting the mechanical properties of magnesium alloys.