Materials and Structures Research

Materials and Structures promotes research addressing fundamental and applied issues in the broad field of mechanics of solids. This field is playing an increasingly important role in areas such as additive manufacturing, fiber-reinforced composite materials and materials science. The backgrounds and expertise of the faculty merge the focus on theoretical, experimental, and numerical simulation approaches necessary to solve mechanical behavior of materials and structures at multi-scale levels.

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Interested in discussing the research we are working on or learning more? Please contact:

K. Chandrashekhara

Curators' Distinguished Professor

Research Interests

Composite Materials and Structures, Additive Manufacturing of Polymer Composites and Metal Cellular Structures, High Temperature Composites, Smart Structures, Bio-composites, Composite Manufacturing, Experimental Characterization, Finite Element Analysis, and Process Modeling.

Lokeswarappa Dharani

Chancellor’s Professor

Research Interests

Aircraft structures, fracture mechanics, fatigue and failure analysis; micromechanics; composite materials and structures; process modeling of ceramic matrix composites; friction and wear of composites; and fracture of laminated glazing.

Zhi Liang

Associate Professor

Research Interests

Micro/nanoscale thermodynamics and heat transferDynamics of nanodroplets, nanobubbles, and nanoparticlesStructure-property relationship for materials and interfaces, and Computational modeling

J. Keith Nisbett

Chancellor’s Professor

Research Interests

Kinematics, mechanical design and synthesis of mechanisms.

Jonghyun Park

Professor

Research Interests

Advanced li-ion battery, beyond li-ion battery, energy storage system, renewable energy system, grid energy storage, nano, macro-mechanics of materials, self-assembly of nanoparticles, nanostructure, multiphysics, multiscale experiment and simulation.

Daniel Stutts

Associate Professor

Research Interests

Dynamics, vibrations, modeling and development of piezoactuators and transducers-mechatronics, mechanics of bone, structural dynamics, optimal design, acoustics, design and modeling of ultrasonic piezoelectric actuators and transducers, dynamic parameter estimation, and vibration mitigation

Xiaodong Yang

Professor/Associate Chair of Graduate Affairs

Research Interests

Optical materials and devices in nanophotonics and plasmonics; Physics and applications of optical metamaterials; Nanoscale optomechanics, optical nanoelectromechanical systems (NEMS); Integrated optofluidic devices and optical sensors; Photon management for solar/thermal energy harvesting; Optical device micro-/nano-fabrication.