L’Oreal supports Childress’ work with optomechanics, helium

Lilian Childress, a postdoctoral researcher in physics, has won an award from L’Oreal USA worth up to $60,000.

Childress was one of five scientists recognized through the L’Oreal USA Fellowships for Women in Science program, which supports female scientists early in their careers. The winners were selected from nearly 300 candidates.

“I am grateful for the research support, and I am honored to participate in a program that encourages women to pursue scientific careers,” Childress said.

The award will support her efforts to develop a new optomechanical device based on superfluid helium. Childress is a postdoctoral associate in physics in the laboratory of Jack Harris, associate professor of physics and applied physics.

In her work at Yale, Childress has focused on studies in optomechanics, exploiting interactions with light to explore the motion of massive objects at the quantum level.

The American Association for the Advancement of Science, publisher of the journal Science, is L’Oreal’s partner in the program.