Brian Augustine grew up in the Hudson River Valley in Rhinebeck, New York. He received his B.A. in Chemistry from SUNY Geneseo in 1990 and his Ph.D. in Materials Chemistry in 1995 from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill working under the direction of Prof. Eugene Irene. His dissertation work was on understanding light emission phenomena from plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposited thin films of silicon-rich oxynitride materials. He worked as a Post-Doctoral Researcher and Member of Technical Staff at MCNC in Research Triangle Park, NC working on the fabrication and characterization of microelectromechanical devices.
Brian joined Furman’s faculty in 2024 as the chair of the Department of Chemistry after having served as the dean of the School of Natural Sciences and chair of chemistry at High Point University for eleven years. He began his teaching career in chemistry at James Madison University. He has mentored over 70 undergraduate research students and been awarded over $3M in grant funding. He was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship to the University of KwaZulu-Natal in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa in 2009 and a Fulbright Specialist to the Universidad Tecnológica Equinoccial in Quito, Ecuador in 2023.
Research Interests
Research in the Augustine laboratory is highly interdisciplinary bridging the disciplines of chemistry, physics, engineering and biology. We are interested in the surface science of materials that have potential applications in biomedical devices. Understanding the surface chemistry of polymers is critical to control and manipulate biological materials in a biomedical device. We use a variety of microscopy, spectroscopy and microfabrication technologies to control polymeric thin films, and to understand their morphology and surface chemistry.
Soft Lithographic Patterning of Conductive Polymers
We have been working with researchers at High Point University to develop techniques to grow thin films of the conductive polymer, poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT), onto planar substrates starting with chemically engineered amine-terminated substrates. We have also developed a methodology of patterning these films using microcontact printing to prepattern the substrate surface prior to the grafting-from polymerization. We are currently investigating the ultimate resolution of the patterned films and the range of substrates and polymer analogues that can be fabricated by this technique. (J. Poly. Sci. (2024) DOI: 10.1002/pol.20240377)
Nanoporous Polymer Materials
We have developed a technique for producing micro/nanoporous thin films of poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA). By controlling the solvent and hydration of solution, spun-cast films of PMMA can result in a highly porous morphology. These films have the potential to be used in filtration and high surface area catalytic applications integrated with microfluidic devices. (J. Vac. Sci. Technol. B (2023) (DOI: 10.1116/6.0002787)
Au and Pt Film Adhesion To Polymeric Surfaces
Metal adhesion to polymer surfaces is critical for a variety of device technologies such as sensors, lab-on-a-chip, and displays. Au and Pt are commonly used interconnnect metals but are notoriously difficult to stick to most surfaces since these metals are so inert. We have been developing a methodology to pre-treat PMMA surfaces with halogenated organic solvents which increases the Au adhesion by a factor of five compared to untreated or oxygen plasma treated surfaces. (Adv. Funct. Mater. (2013) DOI: 10.1002/adfm.201201955)
Current Funding:
Current Funding: National Science Foundation Major Research Instrumentation Grant: MRI Track 1: Acquisition of a Maskless Photolithography Instrument for Undergraduate Research and Teaching, 2023 – 2026.
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