The world’s largest scientific society, the American Chemical Society, has named Ellen Fisher, senior faculty advisor for the Vice President for Research and professor of Chemistry at Colorado State University to its 2015 Class of Fellows.
Founded in 2009, the ACS Fellows program identifies members for outstanding accomplishments and contributions to chemistry and the society. The 2015 Class of Fellows includes 78 scientists and engineers from academia, industry, government labs and businesses from across the country.
Among the top
Less than 1,000 of the nearly 158,000 ACS members have been distinguished with this honor, placing Fisher among the top one percent of her peers. The fellows will be recognized during the society’s national meeting in Boston on Aug. 17.
“Dr. Fisher elevates Colorado State as a research institution with her work in materials and physical chemistry and her passion for teaching fully embodies our university’s land grant heritage,” said Alan Rudolph, vice president for Research at CSU.
Fisher’s research
Fisher’s research crosses analytical, materials and physical chemistry and focuses on understanding the fundamental chemical processes that take place during plasma processing and chemical vapor deposition. She works to improve solar cell efficiency, develops composite nanomaterials, and explores environmental applications for plasma chemistry.
Her research has considerably influenced the microelectronics community. Fisher’s wide-ranging scholarship has also had a lasting impact on improving porous polymers for use in purification and filtration applications; creating novel thin-film and nanostructured materials for use as protective coatings, solar cells, drug-delivery systems, and biocompatible materials; and innovative “green” chemistries that seek to reduce greenhouse gases in engine exhaust and organic contaminants in water. She also has performed research in science education and the responsible conduct of research.
Spanning diverse topics in Chemistry
As a professor, Fisher’s teaching interests span diverse topics in Chemistry as well as multidisciplinary Responsible Conduct of Research, and Women in Science seminars for the CSU Women’s Studies program. She has also been involved in a university-wide ethics infusion program designed to help faculty incorporate ethics topics and concepts into their classrooms.
Her work has resulted in five patent disclosures, more than 135 peer-reviewed journal articles and 120 invited talks. She has graduated 15 Ph.D. and 4 M.S. students, 6 students are currently pursuing the Ph.D. under her guidance, and she has mentored dozens of undergraduate research students, many of whom have gone on to graduate and professional programs across the country.
Fisher performed post-doctoral work from 1991-1993 at the Sandia National Laboratories, and received her doctoral degree from the University of Utah in 1991, and her bachelor’s degree from Texas Lutheran University in 1986.
