Case Summary:

“Smart coatings are advanced materials that are designed to respond to specific external stimuli to alter their properties. This behavior makes smart coatings applicable in a wide range of industries. In 2016, the smart coatings market was valued at more than one and a half billion dollars. Research is still required, however, to optimize smart coating technologies and improve the efficiency of their design and function. One researcher who has contributed substantially to this cause is [the client]. By extension, her research is of global significance and must be permitted to continue unimpeded.”

“[Client’s] research poses a significant benefit for the field of materials science as a whole, as her research directly affects one of the most versatile materials in the field. [The client’s] work focuses specifically on designing novel materials, especially polymers, with enhanced properties. Surface coatings, one of the most important applications of these materials, are of specific interest to researchers in the field of materials sciences, as they exhibit incredibly useful properties such as self-cleaning, self-assembly, anti-fouling, and self-healing. Given the advanced properties of these materials, there is a high demand for research in order to design more effective materials. [The client’s] research is thus of great value to her field.”

These statements are sections taken from letters of recommendation written by experts in materials science for a scientist in the field hailing from Malaysia. As an expert in the field of materials science, her proposed endeavor was to design novel materials to improve the properties of commonly used plastics and biomaterials using bottlebrush polymers. Her goal was to develop surface coatings with stimuli response capabilities, such as biomolecules for contaminant detection and coatings with antiviral and antibacterial properties. This meant that her research was of great importance because of its direct relevance to the manufacture of smart coatings that improve the antibacterial and antiviral qualities of everyday surface materials.

At the same time, due to the clear national importance of her research, her work has been supported with funding from the National Science Foundation (NSF), which is a federal agency tasked with supporting non-medical science and engineering research in the United States. Her work has also resulted in 8 peer-reviewed journal articles (3 of them first-authored) which have been cited a total of 76 times according to Google Scholar, thereby demonstrating that these publications are widely recognized and relied upon in the field of materials science.

We provided detailed descriptions of 3 of her key projects as evidence of her contributions to and expertise in the field of materials science. Having pursued research directly related to her proposed endeavor for 6 years she had gained valuable experience which facilitated the continuance of her work in the field.

We are thus thankful to her for choosing us and we wish her all the best in her future endeavors. We are happy to know that we could win her the NIW (National Interest Waiver) approval and that too without a request for evidence or RFE, thus making it possible for her to continue her work here in the U.S. uninterrupted.