Diandra Leslie-Pelecky
Associate Professor
University of Nebraska—Lincoln
Department of Physics and Astronomy
Center for Materials Research & Analysis

Workshop Panelist: Ethics in Physics IV: Tenure & Academic Freedom

Biographical Sketch
After earning undergraduate degrees in physics and philosophy, Diandra Leslie-Pelecky earned the Ph.D. from Michigan State University in 1991 for research on the crossover of spin-glass behavior from 3D to 2D in multi-layered nanoscale structures. Following postdoctoral work on the structural glass transition in orientationally disordered crystals and magnetic transitions in chemically synthesized magnetic nanoparticles, she became an Assistant Professor in the Department of Physics & Astronomy and the Center for Materials Research & Analysis at the University of Nebraska – Lincoln in 1996 and an Associate Professor in 2002.

Professor Leslie-Pelecky’s research has been funded by the National Science Foundation, the Office of Naval Research, the Air Force Office of Scientific Research, the National Institutes of Health, and the Nebraska Research Initiative. One aspect of her research involves basic understanding of disorder in magnetic nanostructures, including enhancing the properties of permanent and soft magnets, and investigating the nature of glassy magnetic transitions. A more recent line of research is in collaboration with the University of Nebraska Medical Center and Los Alamos National Laboratory to develop and understand biocompatible multifunctional magnetic nanofluids to be used for simultaneous detection and treatment of cancer.

In addition to research, Professor Leslie-Pelecky has a long-standing interest in scientific education in K-12 schools and for the general public. She currently co-directs Project Fulcrum, a National Science Foundation-funded program that teams graduate students in math, science, and engineering with middle- and elementary-school teachers to enhance science and math education in the Lincoln Public Schools.