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Full Service Law Firm | Michael Best & Friedrich LLP

Specializing in the Intersection of Business &amp; Government

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Nia supports clients in the intellectual property group by analyzing technical concepts and translating complex innovations into clear, strategic patent applications. With a background in physics and optics, she collaborates with inventors and entrepreneurs to protect emerging technologies.

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Before joining Michael Best, she was a doctoral researcher at Northwestern University, where she led experiments to advance understanding of gravity on a microscopic scale using optics and lasers. In this role, she developed data analysis and modeling programs in Python and MATLAB, fabricated microstructures through cleanroom processing techniques, and collaborated with graduate researchers to overcome experimental challenges. She also earned awards from the American Physical Society and the National Society of Black Physicists for her research presentations. During her time at Northwestern, Nia also completed the Kellogg Certificate Program in Management for PhDs, which equipped her with additional skills in strategy, leadership, and business decision-making.

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In addition to her technical research, Nia has worked as a science writer and communicator, publishing op-eds for Scientific American and APS News, creating podcasts and explainers to make graduate-level physics accessible to younger students, and presenting at public science outreach events.

Nia Burrell, Ph.D.*

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