Research in the College of Science and Mathematics (CSM) at Kennesaw State University (KSU) is a large part of graduate, as well as undergraduate student's studies at this student-centered, research-driven R2 institution.

CSM is pleased to offer a number of significant internal research funding opportunities for faculty, support creative activity and scholarship of faculty, and provide undergraduate students with research and creative experiences to enhance their learning.

Research Interest Groups

Research Interest Groups (RIGs) help connect PIs across campus to build interdisciplinary teams that span multiple colleges, schools, or units, but for which there is not an established unit on campus. Topics, research questions, and goals are all driven by members of the RIGs. RIGs are a great way to mobilize a team with shared or complementary expertise and goals.

The College of Science and Mathematics (CSM) offers collaborative research opportunities in the following interest areas. Click on the research interest groups for more information, as well as the faculty associated.

csm research group in lab

Core Facilities

CSM Core Facilities provide state-of-the-art equipment and services to researchers at KSU, other universities, government agencies, nonprofit organizations and industry. These facilities make use of highly specialized scientific equipment, diagnostic tools, adaptable prototyping processes and mechanical production shops.

Department Research Areas

The research areas at the College of Science and Mathematics allows students to expand their skills beyond their major in various interdisciplinary fields that span across the departments. Students will have the exciting opportunity to engage with dedicated and knowledgeable faculty members to conduct research that helps grow and support our surrounding communities. Each department offers subcategories that fit into the interests within each field for every student to excel in research that matters most to them. 

Select a department below to learn more about the research possibilities and subcatergories available:

Departmental research icons

Other Equipment

The College of Science and Mathematics at Kennesaw State University (KSU) helps students, faculty, and external researchers by providing modern equipment, training, and assistance for advancing their projects across various research area. Listed below are some of the specialty equipment items used to make Kennesaw State a leader in research nationally and throughout the Southeast.

  • Microwave digestion offers a faster and more complete digestion of solid materials for total elemental analysis when compared with a more traditional hot-block system, completely digesting samples in hours instead of days. Microwave digestion breaks down solid materials using concentrated acid at temperatures of up to 200°C. Heavy teflon digestion vessels are designed to withstand the extreme pressure created by heating acids to these temperatures and utilize a venting system to ensure that the pressure inside the vessels is stable throughout the digestion.  The Multiwave GO Plus can digest 12 samples of up to 1g each at one time, allowing for good throughput of samples.  Once digested, samples can be analyzed for the concentration of any elements of interest using the College of Science and Math's Perkin Elmer Avio 200 ICP-OES system.  Please note that samples containing HF cannot be analyzed using the ICP system as HF can damage the ICP's nebulizer.
  • The Accuri C6 flow cytometer is equipped with 488nm and 647nm lasers, and four fluorescence detectors that can arranged in different modes via the use of interchangeable filters. Particle size and granularity are measured using forward and side-scatter detectors. The system is powered by BD software, and data can be exported in multiple file formats, including FCS-3 standard. The instrument is very easy to set up and run, and utilizes distilled water as the sheath fluid. Please contact Martin Hudson for training and scheduling. This instrument was purchased via a donation from the Georgia Research Alliance.
  • Our workhorse Biacore X100 SPR Biosensor facilitates kinetic and affinity analysis for intermolecular interactions using the established surface plasmon resonance (SPR) technology. National Science Foundation )NSF) logo The instrument is useful for a wide range of biological molecules and conditions, e.g. temperature control down to 4° C. Its sensitivity allows for analysis of small molecules down to 100 Da. Partially funded by NSF. For all inquiries, contact: Jonathan McMurry.
  • The BiologGEN III MicroStation System rapidly and accurately identifies about 3,000 species of aerobic and anaerobic Bacteria, Yeasts, and Fungi. The systems phenotypic technology provides valuable information on the properties of strains, in addition to a species-level identification. The systems technology identifies environmental and pathogenic microorganisms by producing a characteristic pattern, or “metabolic fingerprint”, from individual test reactions performed within a 96 well microplate. Culture suspensions are tested with a panel of pre-selected assays, then incubated, read, and compared to available databases. 
  • Whether your process includes cell culture or fermentation, with bacteria, yeasts, fungi, mammalian, insect or plant cells, and including compatibility with autoclavable or single-use bioreactors from 250 mL to 40 L, the BioFlo 120 and 320 systems seamlessly combines form and function in one state of the art package. These bioreactors run independently with the 120 supporting microbial fermentation and the 320 having additional cell culture capabilities. Currently, CSM has 500mL, 1L, and 5L autoclavable bioreactor vessels. The gas supply includes air and O2. Additional configurations are available at the user’s request.
  • Using biolayer interferometry (BLI), the ForteBio Octet Red96e Biosensor allows for rapid, real-time, label-free kinetic analysis of binding between biomacromolecules. By analyzing the shift in the interference pattern of white light that results from one molecule binding another on disposable sensors, we can easily assign rate and affinity constants. Kennesaw State is a leading publisher of BLI data. Funded jointly by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the College of Science and Mathematics at Kennesaw State University. For all inquiries, contact: Jonathan McMurry.

  • The Glass Research Laboratory consists of two laboratory spaces housed under the physics department at the Marietta campus: 

    • High-Temperature Furnace Laboratory: The furnace lab is in building G. The laboratory is equipped with Sentro-Tech ST-1600, and Thermo-Scientific Muffle-furnace, Mixer Mill MM 500, and an advanced digital glass cutter with diamond blades. The lab is equipped with a fume hood, storage cabinets, chemical storage, sink, eyewash, and shower. The sink, eyewash, and the shower are built with handicap access.
    • Thermal Laboratory: This research laboratory is used for thermal analysis and X-Ray Diffraction studies. This lab is equipped with wall cabinets as well as countertop space with cabinets. The SDT Q600 Thermal Analyzer is housed in this lab and is on a special vibration-free table. The 554 800 RONTGENGERAT X-Ray apparatus is housed in this laboratory along with an optical microscope and a high precision scale. This laboratory is equipped with large N2, Ar, and dry air gas cylinders.

    For all inquiries, contact: Kisa Ranasinghe.

  • The PerkinElmer Avio 200 Inductively Coupled Plasma Optical Emissions Spectrometer (ICP-OES) is a powerful instrument capable of analyzing aqueous samples for approximately 95% of the elements on the periodic table.  For most elements, the ICP can resolve concentrations down to the parts per billion level and for certain elements it can resolve concentrations as low as tens of parts per trillion.  The instrument features an autosampler that can be programmed to analyze several dozen samples once a programmed run is started. 

    All inquiries should be directed to Dan Ferreira.

  • The SH800 cell sorter is equipped with four lasers (405nm, 488nm, 561nm and 638nm) and six fluorescence detectors in addition to forward and backscatter detectors. This laser setup permits maximum flexibility in experimental design and allows easy discrimination between live cell labels such as GFP and RFP or Cherry. Disposable sorting chips featuring microfluidic technology are used to combine the sheath and sample lines. Fluidics, laser alignment, and sort stream calibration are all fully automated. The system can be run in analytical and preparative sort modes. Multiple sample tubes can be accommodated (0.5ml microfuge tube up to a 35ml centrifuge tube) and a wide variety of collection systems are available for cell sorting runs, including a 96 well-format collector that can be used in single cell sort mode. The entire instrument is housed in a custom-built Baker BSL class IIA biosafety cabinet, allowing the safe sorting of potentially hazardous samples. The system is controlled by proprietary Sony software and is very easy to set up and use.

    Please contact Martin Hudson for training and scheduling. This instrument was purchased via a NSF MRI grant.