Engineering Physics Summer Internship-Aerosol Chemical Composition

The Air Force Institute of Technology is looking for 2025 candidates to participate in a paid summer internship for 10-12 weeks at Wright Patterson Air Force Base (Dayton, Ohio). This Internship is in the Engineering Physics Department, with the Center for Directed Energy. All applicants must be U.S Citizens and be able to pass a background check. 

Project Title: Seasonality Differences in Aerosol Chemical Composition and Their Corresponding Optical Properties

Brief Project Description: Earth’s radiative balance and laser propagation through the atmosphere are heavily influenced by aerosols and their interaction with light. Generally, measured optical properties of aerosols, such as those measured at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Federated Aerosol Network (NFAN), are limited to a small range within the light spectrum – the visible range. Consequently, it is very important to consider aerosols’ interactions with more than visible light as it is significantly dominated by their chemical composition, size, and morphology. The determination of the chemical makeup and extensive optical properties of these aerosols will contribute significantly to climatological efforts and atmospheric laser propagation and power beaming and propulsion. By the end of this project, the intern should determine the seasonality differences in aerosol chemical composition and relate that to the optical effects for at least two seasons' worth of data and compare that to previous results. The tasks for this project may include but are not limited to the following: collecting and analyzing Raman, Gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS), and optical extinction data on aerosol samples and correlating to NFAN data collected at Wright Patterson Air Force Base. 

Majors preferred: Chemistry, Atmospheric Sciences, Environmental Sciences, Physics, or any other related field.