From our electrical engineer to our undergrad cryogen assistants (plus one daughter), the SCS NMR Lab family covers seven decades of experience:
From our electrical engineer to our undergrad cryogen assistants, the SCS NMR Lab family covers seven decades of experience.
Lab Director
Dean Olson, Ph.D.
dolson@illinois.edu
217-244-0564
146 Roger Adams Lab
Box 81-5
Responsibilities: Overall Lab Operations
Dean is originally from Saint Paul, Minnesota, USA.
Spectroscopist
Lingyang Zhu, Ph.D.
lingyang@illinois.edu
217-333-6283
55 Noyes Laboratory
Box 34-1
Responsibilities: Solution NMR, Computers, Software, and System Administration
Originally from Liaoning province in China, Lingyang comes to us via Colorado where she spent several years in industry before moving to Illinois.
Spectroscopist
Yijue (Collette) Xu, Ph.D.
yxu049@illinois.edu
217-333-2586
55 Noyes Laboratory
Box 31-1
Responsibilities: Solid-State NMR, Computers, Software, and System Administration
Dr. Yijue (Collette) Xu is originally from Wuhan, China. She moved to Canada in 2011 for undergraduate studies at the University of Ottawa, followed by graduate school. Working with Professor David Bryce, Yijue spent most of her doctoral research developing novel, solid-state NMR methods to characterize halogen bonds in various co-crystalline compounds.
Dr. Xu then went on to a postdoctoral fellowship at the National High Magnetic Field Laboratory in Tallahassee, Florida, which has the strongest NMR spectrometer in the world (1500 MHz, 36 Tesla). At NHMFL, she helped with experimental set-ups and instrument maintenance for internal and external users of the 36 T series-connected hybrid magnet. Collette gained additional experience with solid-state NMR, including half-integer quadrupolar nuclei applied to glasses and minerals in both organic and inorganic materials.
&Yijue arrived at the University of Illinois in February 2023 as the spectroscopy specialist in solid-state NMR. She will help users employ the 300WB and 500WB for ssNMR in Noyes Lab, in addition to occasional use of the 750NB for ssNMR in CLSL.
Although a huge fan of dogs, she has an adorable cat named Skittles, who apparently likes backpacking.
Operations Manager
Nikki Duay
nduay@illinois.edu
217-333-2041
146 Roger Adams Lab
Box 81-5
Responsibilities: General Lab Operations, Newcomer Training, Cryogen Management, Accounting, Safety Compliance
Nikki is originally from the Philippines, and grew up speaking Tagalog. She comes to us from Kraft-Heinz in Champaign, where her kids thought she "cooked Mac and Cheese all day," but she was actually an analytical food chemist. Nikki has a bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering.
Research Engineer
John Rosheck
jrosheck@illinois.edu
217-244-6603
121 Noyes Lab
Undergraduate Hourly
Richard Nong (Since May 2025)
rnong2@illinois.edu
Responsibilities: Liquid nitrogen fills, spinner cleaning, bore swabs, odd jobs
Richard is studying Chemical Engineering. He enjoys working out with friends, reading history books, and spending time with his family and cat. He hopes to work in the semiconductor industry or attend graduate school in his hometown, Boston, MA.
Samaira Haque (Since December 2025)
Responsibilities: Liquid nitrogen fills, spinner cleaning, bore swabs, odd jobs
Samaira is studying chemical engineering. She is from Bolingbrook, IL, and enjoys being on the Illini Raas dance team, going on walks, listening to music, and cooking. Her goal is to obtain her master’s degree and eventually work in the pharmaceutical industry.