Jared Viggers

Jared Viggers grew up in Mississauga, Ontario in Canada, just outside of Toronto. Growing up in the North, Jared played hockey throughout his life and earned a chance to play in college at Maryville University in St. Louis, MO. He gained his BS in Chemistry from Maryville in 2022. During his undergraduate studies, he joined Dr. Tom Spudich’s laboratory to develop a plasma-based ionization source, the solution cathode glow discharge (SCGD), with cost-effective materials. Further learning, studying and research led Jared to develop great interest in analytical chemistry and the development of the SCGD. This passion directed Jared toward Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and Prof. Shelley’s research group, which he joined in 2023.

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Jared’s current research aims to improve SCGD as an ionization source and further develop its list of capabilities. The SCGD is more conventionally inclined to the analysis of metals, but has also been proven capable as an ionization source for biomolecules. In the Shelley Lab, the SCGD is coupled with mass spectrometry to quantify and identify samples. Jared is working on optimizing the properties of SCGD plasma for ionization of varying sample types. He also studies the analysis and fragmentation of biomolecules with the use of the atmospheric pressure glow discharge.