Bio

I am a staff research scientist and lecturer in the Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability. My primary responsibilities include managing both the day-to-day and long-term operations of the Stanford Microchemical Analysis Facility (MAF). I also have an active research program that includes projects in multiple scientific disciplines, and I teach multiple Stanford courses including courses at both the undergraduate- and graduate-levels.

In addition to my position at Stanford, I am the Treasurer of the Microanalysis Society, hold a courtesy faculty position at Oregon State University, and serve as a technical director for the National Nanotechnology Coordinated Infrastructure program.

Education & Certifications

  • Ph.D., Oregon State University, Geochemistry
  • M.S., San Diego State University, Geological Sciences
  • B.A., Humboldt State University, Geological Sciences

Contact

  • Work
    dhburns@stanford.edu
    University - Staff Department: Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability Position: Laboratory Manager Microanalysis Facility
    • 450 Jane Stanford Way
    • Stanford,  California  94305 

Additional Info

2025-26 Courses

Professional Affiliations and Activities

  • Technical Director, National Nanotechnology Coordinated Infrastructure program (NSF) (2018 - Present)
  • Professor (courtesy), Oregon State University (2022 - Present)
  • Treasurer, Microanalysis Society (2025 - Present)

All Publications

  • Inferences of Source Lithologies for Chicxulub Microtektites Using a Bayesian Approach GEOCHEMISTRY GEOPHYSICS GEOSYSTEMS Carter, J., Sanchez, P., Fuentes, A. J., Renne, P. R., Burns, D. H., Bermudez, H. D. 2025; 26 (3)

    View details for DOI 10.1029/2024GC011924

    View details for Web of Science ID 001451844800001

  • Effusive volcanic microcosm of a regional ignimbrite flare-up: Prolonged life cycle of the Chaxas Complex, northern Chile, and its influence on modern volcanic arc character GEOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF AMERICA BULLETIN Lewis, C., de Silva, S., Leon, A., Burns, D., Villarroel, M. 2025

    View details for DOI 10.1130/B37909.1

    View details for Web of Science ID 001423669500001

  • Melt Flux from the Mantle Regulates the Crustal Processing and δ<SUP>18</SUP>O Variations of Kama'ehuakanaloa Magmas JOURNAL OF PETROLOGY Pietruszka, A. J., Cunningham, M. J., Bindeman, I. N., Garcia, M. O., Boro, J. R., Burns, D. H., Jiang, P. 2025; 66 (1)

    View details for DOI 10.1093/petrology/egaf001

    View details for Web of Science ID 001410785100001

  • Heart cockle shells transmit sunlight to photosymbiotic algae using bundled fiber optic cables and condensing lenses. Nature communications McCoy, D. E., Burns, D. H., Klopfer, E., Herndon, L. K., Ogunlade, B., Dionne, J. A., Johnsen, S. 2024; 15 (1): 9445

    Abstract

    Many animals convergently evolved photosynthetic symbioses. In bivalves, giant clams (Cardiidae: Tridacninae) gape open to irradiate their symbionts, but heart cockles (Cardiidae: Fraginae) stay closed because sunlight passes through transparent windows in their shells. Here, we show that heart cockles (Corculum cardissa and spp.) use biophotonic adaptations to transmit sunlight for photosynthesis. Heart cockles transmit 11-62% of photosynthetically active radiation (mean = 31%) but only 5-28% of potentially harmful UV radiation (mean = 14%) to their symbionts. Beneath each window, microlenses condense light to penetrate more deeply into the symbiont-rich tissue. Within each window, aragonite forms narrow fibrous prisms perpendicular to the surface. These bundled "fiber optic cables" project images through the shell with a resolution of >100 lines/mm. Parameter sweeps show that the aragonite fibers' size (~1 µm diameter), morphology (long fibers rather than plates), and orientation (along the optical c-axis) transmit more light than many other possible designs. Heart cockle shell windows are thus: (i) the first instance of fiber optic cable bundles in an organism to our knowledge; (ii) a second evolution, with epidermal cells in angiosperm plants, of condensing lenses for photosynthesis; and (iii) a photonic system that efficiently transmits useful light while protecting photosymbionts from UV radiation.

    View details for DOI 10.1038/s41467-024-53110-x

    View details for PubMedID 39562764

    View details for PubMedCentralID PMC11576985

  • Assessing lunar paleointensity variability during the 3.9-3.5 Ga high field epoch EARTH AND PLANETARY SCIENCE LETTERS Jung, J., Tikoo, S. M., Burns, D., Vaci, Z., Krawczynski, M. J. 2024; 638

    View details for DOI 10.1016/j.epsl.2024.118757

    View details for Web of Science ID 001243213900001

  • The Presence and Composition of Mn-rich Chondrule Rims in CO3 Chondrites. Microscopy and microanalysis : the official journal of Microscopy Society of America, Microbeam Analysis Society, Microscopical Society of Canada Kirk, J., Hyseni, P., Jorge-Chavez, F., Mendoza, V., Burns, D., Simon, S., Telus, M. 2023; 29 (Supplement_1): 857-859

    View details for DOI 10.1093/micmic/ozad067.425

    View details for PubMedID 37613775

  • Significance of Secondary Fe-Oxide and Fe-Sulfide Minerals in Upper Peak Ring Suevite from the Chicxulub Impact Structure MINERALS Verhagen, C. M., Jung, J., Tikoo, S. M., Wittmann, A., Kring, D. A., Brachfeld, S., Wu, L., Burns, D. H., Gulick, S. S. 2023; 13 (3)

    View details for DOI 10.3390/min13030353

    View details for Web of Science ID 000959239600001

  • Andesites and evolution of the continental crust: Perspectives from the Central Volcanic Zone of the Andes FRONTIERS IN EARTH SCIENCE Burns, D. H., de Silva, S. L. 2023; 10

    View details for DOI 10.3389/feart.2022.961130

    View details for Web of Science ID 000923004300001

  • Rhyolitic melt production in the midst of a continental arc Hare-up-The heterogeneous Caspana ignimbrite of the Altiplano-Puna volcanic complex of the Central Andes GEOSPHERE Lewis, C. T., de Silva, S. L., Burns, D. H. 2022; 18 (6): 1679-1709

    View details for DOI 10.1130/GES02462.1

    View details for Web of Science ID 000860699000001

  • Comparison of temperature and doping dependence of elastoresistivity near a putative nematic quantum critical point. Nature communications Palmstrom, J. C., Walmsley, P., Straquadine, J. A., Sorensen, M. E., Hannahs, S. T., Burns, D. H., Fisher, I. R. 2022; 13 (1): 1011

    Abstract

    Strong electronic nematic fluctuations have been discovered near optimal doping for several families of Fe-based superconductors, motivating the search for a possible link between these fluctuations, nematic quantum criticality, and high temperature superconductivity. Here we probe a key prediction of quantum criticality, namely power-law dependence of the associated nematic susceptibility as a function of composition and temperature approaching the compositionally tuned putative quantum critical point. To probe the 'bare' quantum critical point requires suppression of the superconducting state, which we achieve by using large magnetic fields, up to 45 T, while performing elastoresistivity measurements to follow the nematic susceptibility. We performed these measurements for the prototypical electron-doped pnictide, Ba(Fe1-xCox)2As2, over a dense comb of dopings. We find that close to the putative quantum critical point, the elastoresistivity appears to obey power-law behavior as a function of composition over almost a decade of variation in composition. Paradoxically, however, we also find that the temperature dependence for compositions close to the critical value cannot be described by a single power law.

    View details for DOI 10.1038/s41467-022-28583-3

    View details for PubMedID 35197491

    View details for PubMedCentralID PMC8866430

  • Crustal Forensics at Putauaki (Mt. Edgecumbe), New Zealand reveal the influence of deep crustal arc processes on magma evolution in the Taupo Volcanic Zone CONTRIBUTIONS TO MINERALOGY AND PETROLOGY Burns, D. H., de Silva, S. L., Shane, P., Coble, M. A. 2022; 177 (1)

    View details for DOI 10.1007/s00410-021-01875-5

    View details for Web of Science ID 000740381700001

  • Chasing the mantle: Deciphering cryptic mantle signals through Earth's thickest continental magmatic arc EARTH AND PLANETARY SCIENCE LETTERS Burns, D. H., de Silva, S. L., Tepley, F. J., Schmitt, A. K. 2020; 531

    View details for DOI 10.1016/j.epsl.2019.115985

    View details for Web of Science ID 000510947100037

  • Trace Element Characterisation of MAD‐559 Zircon Reference Material for Ion Microprobe Analysis Geostandards and Geoanalytical Research Coble, M. A., Vazquez, J. A., Barth, A. B., Wooden, J., Burns, D., Kylander-Clark, A., Jackson, S., Vennari, C. E. 2018

    View details for DOI 10.1111/ggr.12238

  • Hadean zircon from a 3.3 Ga sandstone, Barberton greenstone belt, South Africa GEOLOGY Byerly, B. L., Lowe, D. R., Drabon, N., Byerly, G. R. 2018

    View details for DOI 10.1130/G45276.1

  • Recording the transition from flare-up to steady-state arc magmatism at the Purico-Chascon volcanic complex, northern Chile EARTH AND PLANETARY SCIENCE LETTERS Burns, D. H., de Silva, S. L., Tepley, F., Schmitt, A. K., Loewen, M. W. 2015; 422: 75-86

    View details for DOI 10.1016/j.epsl.2015.04.002

    View details for Web of Science ID 000355350700009

  • Chemical heterogeneity in the Hawaiian mantle plume from the alteration and dehydration of recycled oceanic crust EARTH AND PLANETARY SCIENCE LETTERS Pietruszka, A. J., Norman, M. D., Garcia, M. O., Marske, J. P., Burns, D. H. 2013; 361: 298-309

    View details for DOI 10.1016/j.epsl.2012.10.030

    View details for Web of Science ID 000314907000030

https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6062-6230