Dr. Vedran Nicholas Vukotic is an Assistant Professor and a NSERC/PROTO Industrial Research Chair in X-ray Diffraction and Crystalline Materials at the University of Windsor. Dr. Vukotic was born in Dubrovnik, Croatia in 1986 before making his journey to Canada. He completed his B.Sc. degree (2009) in Biochemistry at the University of Windsor, where he remained to complete his Ph.D. in Chemistry (2014) under the supervision of Professor Stephen J. Loeb, where he worked on supramolecular and inorganic chemistry incorporating dynamic interlocked molecules into metal-organic frameworks. His academic work led to a total of 22 publications, several awards and fellowships, and most notably the 2014 Governor General's Gold Medal. Dr. Vukotic then pursued a career in industry and started an industrial post-doc for PROTO Manufacturing Ltd. as an OCE TalentEdge fellow working on developing new X-ray diffraction instrumentation. In 2016 he became the Principal Scientist and Product Development Manager at PROTO and has since brought numerous new XRD products to market and has filed several patent applications. In 2017 he became an Adjunct Professor at the University of Windsor to further support his academic-industry collaborations. Currently, he runs a research program focused on developing new scientific research tools and the creation of new advanced crystalline materials with industrial applications as nanoporous adsorbents, chemical sensors, and drug releasing biomaterials.
Professional Experience
Assistant Professor NSERC/PROTO Industrial Research Chair University of Windsor July 2019 - Current Adjunct Professor University of Windsor November 2017 – June 2019 Principal Scientist and Product Development Manager PROTO Manufacturing Ltd. November 2016 – June 2019 Research and Development Scientist / OCE TalentEdge Fellow PROTO Manufacturing Ltd. October 2014 – October 2016 |
Education
Ph.D. Chemistry and Biochemistry University of Windsor (2014) B. Sc. Honours Biochemistry with Thesis, with Distinction University of Windsor (2009) Committees and Organizations Canadian National Committee for Crystallography (member) 2019 - Current Chemical Institute of Canada (CIC) (member) 2007 - Current |
Selected Fellowships:
2014-2016 OCE TalentEdge Fellowship 2014 Michael Jacko Scholarship in Organic Chemistry 2012 Ludo Frevel Crystallography Scholarship (ICDD) 2011-2014 NSERC CGS D 2011 Ludo Frevel Crystallography Scholarship (ICDD) 2010 NSERC CGS M 2009 OGS-ST 2008 NSERC USRA |
Selected Awards:
2014 Governor General Gold Medal 2014 Outstanding Graduate Student Research Award 2013 DOE Travel Award (ISMSC) 2012 Tuition Waiver (ICDD) – Rietveld Refinement & Indexing Workshop 2009 Dennis Tuck Memorial Award |