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Distinguished Postdoctoral Fellows Program

The program

The Distinguished Postdoctoral Fellows program supports outstanding scholars whose research is related to energy and the environment with a focus on innovative technological solutions, smart economic analyses, and/or impactful policy solutions to our most pressing energy and environmental challenges.

Distinguished Postdoctoral Fellows collaborate with Princeton faculty and/or senior researchers within an energy or environment-related field to articulate an interdisciplinary research plan that is aligned with the mission of the Andlinger Center. Applicants are encouraged to develop research plans that establish new collaborative links to or between faculty and researchers.

This program provides a unique opportunity for postdoctoral fellows to develop their careers through independent and interdisciplinary research, while working with one or more research mentors who are experts in their fields, pursue broad inter-disciplinary research combining science, engineering, technology, policy, and social dimensions, and engage in theoretical and/or experimental research, which is either fundamental or applied in nature.

Distinguished Postdoctoral Fellows

Holly Caggiano


Caggiano earned her Ph.D. from the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning

Caggiano earned her Ph.D. from the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy at Rutgers University. Her dissertation research, chaired by Drs. Rachael Shwom and Cara Cuite, explored social-behavioral drivers of household resource consumption at the food-energy-water nexus.

As a Distinguished Postdoctoral Fellow at the Andlinger Center for Energy and the Environment, Caggiano is working under the mentorship of professors Elke Weber and Chris Greig to identify pathways for cross-partisan public support for large-scale renewable energy deployment projects in key communities in the U.S. Motivated by ACEE’s Rapid Switch research effort and Net-Zero America study, this research contributes to deep decarbonization efforts to mitigate global climate change.

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Allyson McGaughey


McGaughey received her doctorate in civil and environmental engineering in 2020 from the University of Southern California, where she studied membrane-based water treatment systems for desalination and wastewater reclamation. Her dissertation focused on the role of material properties in performance for membrane distillation, a thermal desalination process that is promising for the reclamation of high-salinity waste streams.

As a Distinguished Postdoctoral Fellow at the Andlinger Center for Energy and the Environment, McGaughey is working with professors Rodney Priestley and Z. Jason Ren to explore advanced polymer materials for water treatment processes, specifically, highly effective antifouling materials that can improve performance and lower energy consumption.

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Aniruddh Mohan

Mohan has a Ph.D. in Engineering & Public Policy from Carnegie Mellon University where he studied the technology policy challenges of electric and automated vehicles. His dissertation highlighted the trade-offs between automation and electrification for light vehicles and the societal costs and benefits of electrifying ride-hailing services.

As a Distinguished Postdoctoral Fellow at the Andlinger Center for Energy and the Environment, Mohan studies the role of emerging technologies in transport, electricity, and carbon removal for achieving deep decarbonization, collaborating with Dr. Eric Larson and Professor Jesse Jenkins.

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Fernando Temprano-Coleto


Temprano-Coleto earned his Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering in 2021 from the University of California Santa Barbara. His doctoral research focused on the effect of surfactants on the performance of superhydrophobic surfaces, coatings designed to reduce fluid drag and improve the energy efficiency in areas such as maritime transportation or pipeline hydraulics.

As a Distinguished Postdoctoral Fellow at the Andlinger Center for Energy and the Environment, Temprano-Coleto is working with Professors Howard Stone, Sujit Datta, and Z. Jason Ren to develop techniques based on diffusiophoresis for the manipulation of colloids. These methods are targeted towards the characterization of microplastics, as well as their efficient remediation from natural water.

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Lara Tomholt


Tomholt holds a Doctor of Design (DDes) degree from Harvard Graduate School of Design. Driven by the need for more energy-efficient building thermoregulation, her research focused on biologically inspired concepts for compliant façades with tunable heat transfer. Her work has the fundamental objective of integrating the fields of science, technology, and design.

As a Distinguished Postdoctoral fellow at the Andlinger Center for Energy and Environment, Tomholt works with professors Reza Moini and Forrest Meggers to explore novel solutions for 3D-printed ceramic systems with energy-efficient heat transfer for building thermoregulation, inspired by architectural design rules of plant leaves.

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Former postdoctoral and presidential fellows

In the News

New Light Distinguished Postdoctoral Fellow Seminar Series – Our Distinguished Postdoctoral Fellows held a public seminar this summer to talk about their research and answer questions from the academic community and prospective postdocs.