SEM Bios
Below are the profiles of many SEM members, board members, speakers, instructors and award recipients. If you would like your profile included, please email us your headshot (jpg/png/tif) and short bio (75-100 words). Updates to existing bios can be sent to the same email address.
Doug Adams
Vanderbilt University
SEM Awards: SEM Fellow, D.J. DeMichele
Dr. Doug Adams is the Daniel F. Flowers Professor of Engineering at Vanderbilt University. He has pioneered the development of nonlinear system identification approaches in experimental structural dynamics to realize state estimation and health monitoring technology for application in the energy, defense, and manufacturing sectors. He has advised 59 graduate students, written 270 papers, and received 10 patents. He authored a textbook on structural health monitoring as well as 5 book chapters including one on nonlinear experimental dynamics for the upcoming SEM Experimental Structural Dynamics Handbook. He has organized sessions and delivered talks at the International Modal Analysis Conference for 27 years.
Last Updated: 11/23/2020
James Akers
National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s John H. Glenn Research Center
A senior aerospace engineer in the Structural Dynamics Branch at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's John H. Glenn Research Center, Cleveland, OH. His focus is the analysis and testing of aerospace vehicles and hardware in the areas of modal testing and analysis, vibration testing, shock testing, acoustic testing, and signal processing. He supports the NASA Engineering Safety Center. Most recently he has applied Operational Modal Analysis techniques to the NASA Artemis I Dynamic Rollout test data to identify its rollout modal characteristics.
Last Updated: 12/05/2023
Matt Allen
Brigham Young University
SEM Awards: B. J. Lazan, D. J. DeMichele
Dr. Matt Allen is a Professor in Mechanical Engineering at Brigham Young University. Prior to that he taught for 15 years in the department of Engineering Physics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He received a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from BYU, M. S. and PhD degrees from the Georgia Tech in 2005 and was a post-doc at Sandia National Laboratories. He enjoys playing sheep’s head (Bavarian card game) during breaks at IMAC, trying new kinds of ice cream and skiing, hiking, biking or almost anything to do with mountains.
Last Updated: 09/04/2024
Palle Andersen
Structural Vibrations Solutions A/S
Dr. Andersen is a Civil Engineer with specializations in computational methods for structural dynamics. He got his M.Sc. in 1993 from Department of Civil Engineering at Aalborg University, and his Ph.D. in 1997. Since 1999 he has been the managing director and co-founder of Structural Vibration Solutions A/S. He is the senior developer of the ARTeMIS software for Operational Modal Analysis. For more than 20 years, he has been giving lectures and courses on Operational Modal Analysis and the use of ARTeMIS software worldwide. He is the author and co- author of more than 100 papers and articles on Operational Modal Analysis and Damage Detection, and the co-inventor of the Frequency Domain Decomposition patent. Today one of the most used techniques for Operational Modal Analysis.
Last Updated: 08/28/2024
Bonnie Antoun
Sandia National Laboratories
SEM Awards: SEM Fellow
Dr. Antoun is a Distinguished Member of the Technical Staff in the Mechanics of Materials Department at Sandia National Laboratories in Livermore, California. She received her B.S. in Civil Engineering, M.S. degrees in Mechanical Engineering and Engineering Mechanics, and Ph.D. in Engineering Mechanics from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in 1998, after which she joined Sandia. Her research interests are in the mechanical behavior of materials with emphasis on coupled thermal-mechanical experiments and time and temperature dependence.
Bonnie has enjoyed active participation in the Society for Experimental Mechanics (SEM) as a presenter and author, Secretary, Vice-Chair and Chair of the Time Dependent Materials Technical Division, organizer of Track 2 (Challenges in the Mechanics of Time Dependent Materials) for the SEM Annual conference for several years, organizer of Track 5 (Mechanics of Additive and Advanced Manufacturing) for the 2017 and 2018 SEM Annual conferences, and organizer of several SEM conference sessions on metallic materials and extreme environments. She was a Technical Editor from 2016-2020 for SEM’s Journal of Experimental Techniques and is currently serving as the publication's Editor-in-Chief.
Bonnie has enjoyed active participation in the Society for Experimental Mechanics (SEM) as a presenter and author, Secretary, Vice-Chair and Chair of the Time Dependent Materials Technical Division, organizer of Track 2 (Challenges in the Mechanics of Time Dependent Materials) for the SEM Annual conference for several years, organizer of Track 5 (Mechanics of Additive and Advanced Manufacturing) for the 2017 and 2018 SEM Annual conferences, and organizer of several SEM conference sessions on metallic materials and extreme environments. She was a Technical Editor from 2016-2020 for SEM’s Journal of Experimental Techniques and is currently serving as the publication's Editor-in-Chief.
Last Updated: 11/19/2024
Sez Atamturktur
Pennsylvania State University
SEM Awards: Dominick DeMichele Scholarship
Dr. Sez Atamturktur Russcher returned to Clemson University in July 2023 as Associate Vice President for the Charleston Innovation Centers (located at the CURI Campus in Charleston, SC) and Professor of Mechanical Engineering. She provides leadership in academic matters and scientific research portfolio of the CURI campus and is responsible for staffing, budgeting, and maintaining the facilities and campus operations. In addition, she serves as a liaison between Clemson’s Charleston campus and the main campus in Clemson.
Previously, she was the Harry and Arlene Schell Professor and Department Head of Architectural Engineering in the College of Engineering at Pennsylvania State University. As the department head, she served as the chief academic officer of her unit responsible for all matters related to instruction, finance, human-resource, and facilities management. By revitalizing the curriculum and implementing innovative strategies, she led her unit to achieve dramatic increases in student enrollment, engagement and success, notable gains in research productivity, and sharp hikes in philanthropic giving. Prior to joining Penn State, she served at Clemson University as Associate Vice President for Research and Distinguished Professor and founded the Office of Research Development. Previously, Dr. Russcher was at Los Alamos National Laboratory as an LTV technical staff member. Dr. Russcher holds a master’s degree in architectural engineering and a doctorate in civil and environmental engineering from Penn State University.
Focused on uncertainty quantification, experimental calibration and validation of predictive models of engineering systems, Dr. Russcher’s research has received funding from several federal agencies including the National Science Foundation, the U.S. Department of Energy, the Department of the Interior, the Department of Transportation, the Department of Education, as well as industry organizations and corporate partners. Her work has been documented in over 120 peer-reviewed publications in engineering science journals and proceedings. Among her current professional services, is her role as a member of the board of directors for the National Institute for Building Science, a federally charged entity that reports directly to the President of United States. Dr. Russcher also holds lead advisory roles for the United Nation’s High Performance Building initiative, the Vice President of the Society of Experimental Mechanics, and serves as a board member for several academic and research entities worldwide.
Dr. Russcher has a track record of broadening participation in engineering. She has served as the inaugural director of the National Science Foundation-funded ADVANCE project, which focuses on improving the status of women and minority faculty and was the principal investigator and director of the National Science Foundation-funded National Research Traineeship project funding for over 30 doctoral students on scientific computing and data analytics for resilient infrastructure systems. In addition, she has spearheaded federally funded projects on revitalizing undergraduate curricula and on improving transfer student success. In addition, Dr. Russcher was the director of two separate Department of Education-funded Graduate Assistantships in Areas of National Need projects that each provided funding for 10 doctoral students. Dr. Russcher served as one of the four codirectors of Clemson University’s Center of Excellence in Next Generation Computing and Creativity
Previously, she was the Harry and Arlene Schell Professor and Department Head of Architectural Engineering in the College of Engineering at Pennsylvania State University. As the department head, she served as the chief academic officer of her unit responsible for all matters related to instruction, finance, human-resource, and facilities management. By revitalizing the curriculum and implementing innovative strategies, she led her unit to achieve dramatic increases in student enrollment, engagement and success, notable gains in research productivity, and sharp hikes in philanthropic giving. Prior to joining Penn State, she served at Clemson University as Associate Vice President for Research and Distinguished Professor and founded the Office of Research Development. Previously, Dr. Russcher was at Los Alamos National Laboratory as an LTV technical staff member. Dr. Russcher holds a master’s degree in architectural engineering and a doctorate in civil and environmental engineering from Penn State University.
Focused on uncertainty quantification, experimental calibration and validation of predictive models of engineering systems, Dr. Russcher’s research has received funding from several federal agencies including the National Science Foundation, the U.S. Department of Energy, the Department of the Interior, the Department of Transportation, the Department of Education, as well as industry organizations and corporate partners. Her work has been documented in over 120 peer-reviewed publications in engineering science journals and proceedings. Among her current professional services, is her role as a member of the board of directors for the National Institute for Building Science, a federally charged entity that reports directly to the President of United States. Dr. Russcher also holds lead advisory roles for the United Nation’s High Performance Building initiative, the Vice President of the Society of Experimental Mechanics, and serves as a board member for several academic and research entities worldwide.
Dr. Russcher has a track record of broadening participation in engineering. She has served as the inaugural director of the National Science Foundation-funded ADVANCE project, which focuses on improving the status of women and minority faculty and was the principal investigator and director of the National Science Foundation-funded National Research Traineeship project funding for over 30 doctoral students on scientific computing and data analytics for resilient infrastructure systems. In addition, she has spearheaded federally funded projects on revitalizing undergraduate curricula and on improving transfer student success. In addition, Dr. Russcher was the director of two separate Department of Education-funded Graduate Assistantships in Areas of National Need projects that each provided funding for 10 doctoral students. Dr. Russcher served as one of the four codirectors of Clemson University’s Center of Excellence in Next Generation Computing and Creativity
Last Updated: 01/02/2024
Peter Avitabile
University of Massachusetts Lowell
SEM Awards: SEM Fellow, D. J. DeMichele, SEM Past President (2016-17)
Dr. Peter Avitabile is Professor Emeritus at the University of Massachusetts Lowell (1985-pres). He has over 4 decades of experience in design and analysis using FEM and experimental techniques. His focus is structural dynamics specializing in the areas of modeling, testing and correlation of analytical and experimental models along with advanced applications for developing linear and nonlinear structural dynamic models. Pete has written papers for every IMAC Conference since IMAC I as well as organized many sessions over the years. Numerous journal papers (50+) have also been published with his research assistants who are critical to moving the research agenda forward. He has published a book on “Modal Testing: A Practitioners Guide” as well as 17 years of “Modal Space” articles for Experimental Techniques. He is also Co-Editor of the Handbook of Experimental Structural Dynamics along with two handbook chapters contributed.
Last Updated: 01/04/2022
Javad Baqersad
Kettering University
SEM Awards: SAGE Publishing Young Engineer Lecture, D. J. DeMichele Scholarship
Dr. Javad Baqersad is currently an associate professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering and the director of Noise Vibration Harshness & Experimental Mechanics Laboratory (NVH&EM Lab) at Kettering University. His research interests and expertise are related to vibration and acoustics, computer vision and digital image correlation, structural health monitoring, and finite element analysis. He has published more than 70 journal articles and conference papers contributing to the literature in these areas. He is currently an editor for Mechanical Systems and Signal Processing and an associate editor for Experimental Techniques, and also chairs the optical technique and Computer Vision & Laser Vibrometry technical division at IMAC. He has received several awards, including DJ DeMichele Scholarship from SEM, Outstanding New Researcher and Outstanding Researcher Awards from Kettering University, and Colwell Merit Award from SAE International.
Last Updated: 11/15/2022
Carter Barkley
South Dakota School of Mines and Technology (SDSM&T)
SEM Awards: G. L. Cloud Scholarship
Carter Barkley is currently a M.S. student in Mechanical Engineering at the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology (SDSM&T) where he also received his B.S. in 2019. Carter has been involved with the Composites and Polymers Engineering (CAPE) lab at SDSM&T where he assisted with the manufacturing of continuous fiber reinforced thermoplastic prepreg production machines. In addition to projects at the CAPE lab, Carter’s masters research investigates the response of thermoplastic matrix composite joints to various loading conditions. The research project also aims to compare experimental techniques such as digital image correlation (DIC) with numerical models.
Last Updated: 09/24/2020
Janice M. Barton
University of Bristol, Bristol Composites Institute, UK
SEM Awards: SEM Fellow, William M. Murray Lecture
Janice Barton is a full professor in Experimental Mechanics. In 2019, she joined the University of Bristol, bringing a wealth of previous experience from the University of Southampton. Her research interests are in imaging for data-rich material characterizations and assessments of structural performance, with a special focus on the lightweight structural design of composite structures. Janice has been involved in numerous projects across disciplines.
Janice attended her first SEM conference in 1993 and is 25 year member of the Society. She is an SEM fellow and she gave the 2020 Murrey Lecture (the first woman), which was truly an honour. She chaired the inaugural TD on Thermomechanics and Infrared Imaging. She has recently led a successful £20M proposal for an Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council Centre for Doctoral Training in Innovation for Sustainable Composites Engineering to train 67 doctoral students over an eight year period. Janice puts knowledge sharing and student development at the centre of her activities and id delighted to be involved in the course.
Janice attended her first SEM conference in 1993 and is 25 year member of the Society. She is an SEM fellow and she gave the 2020 Murrey Lecture (the first woman), which was truly an honour. She chaired the inaugural TD on Thermomechanics and Infrared Imaging. She has recently led a successful £20M proposal for an Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council Centre for Doctoral Training in Innovation for Sustainable Composites Engineering to train 67 doctoral students over an eight year period. Janice puts knowledge sharing and student development at the centre of her activities and id delighted to be involved in the course.
Last Updated: 05/13/2024
Zdeněk Bažant
Northwestern University
SEM Awards: W. M. Murray Lecture
Born and educated in Prague (Ph.D. 1963), Bažant joined Northwestern in 1969, where he has been W.P. Murphy Professor since 1990 and simultaneously McCormick Institute Professor since 2002, and Director of Center for Concrete and Geomaterials (1981-87). He was inducted to NAS, NAE, Am. Acad. of Arts & Sci., Royal Soc. London, the national academies of Austria, Japan, Italy, Spain, Canada, Czech Rep., Greece, India, Lombardy and Turin, and Academia Europaea. Honorary Member of: ASCE, ASME, ACI, RILEM. Received Austrian Cross of Honor for Science and Art I. Class from Pres. of Austria; 7 honorary doctorates (Prague, Karlsruhe, Colorado, Milan, Lyon, Vienna, Ohio State); ASME Medal, ASME Timoshenko, Nadai and Warner Medals; ASCE von Kármán, Freudenthal, Newmark, Biot, Mindlin, TY Lin and Croes Medals, SES Prager Medal; Guggenheim Fellow; Outstanding Res. Award from Am. Soc. for Composites; RILEM L’Hermite Medal; Exner Medal (Austria); Torroja Medal (Madrid); etc. He authored nine books, on Scaling of Struct. Strength, Creep in Concrete Str., Inelastic Analysis, Fracture and Size Effect, Stability of Structures, Concrete at High Temp., Creep & Hygrothermal Effects, Probab. Mech. of Quasibrittle Str., and Quasibrittle Fracture Mechanics. H-index: 145, 88,000 cit. (Google). In 2019 Stanford U. weighted citation survey (see PLoS), he was ranked no.1 in CE and no.2 in Engrg. worldwide. In 2015, ASCE established ZP Bažant Medal for Failure and Damage Prevention.
Last Updated: 11/02/2023
Christopher Bean
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
SEM Awards: M. Hetényi
Christopher Bean is currently a PhD student in Materials Science and Engineering at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. His research focuses on the mechanical properties and deformation mechanisms of metallic materials. He has been working on the evaluation of advanced mechanical properties by the rapid analysis of large datasets of nanometer-scale plastic localization events through utilizing computational techniques, specifically computer vision and other machine learning methods. He received his bachelor’s degree in Physics and Secondary Education from Valparaiso University in 2019.
Last Updated: 05/15/2024
Allison Beese
Penn State University
SEM Awards: Springer/Nature Publishing Young Investigator Lecture
Allison Beese is a professor of Materials Science and Engineering at Penn State University. She serves as Director of Penn State's Additive Manufacturing and Design graduate program, Associate Head for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in Materials Science and Engineering, and co-director of Penn State’s additive manufacturing center (CIMP-3D). Her multiscale mechanics of materials research group uses experimental and computational methods to identify the links between microstructural features and deformation and failure of materials, with a focus on additively manufactured metallic materials. She received her B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Penn State and M.S. and Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from MIT.
Last Updated: 11/06/2023
Sarah Bentil
Iowa State University
SEM Awards: Springer/Nature Publishing Young Investigator Lecture
Sarah A. Bentil is an Assistant Professor in the Mechanical Engineering at Iowa State University. Prof. Bentil received her Ph.D. from The Ohio State University and M.S. from the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa, both degrees in Mechanical Engineering. She has two B.S. degrees from the University of Vermont, one in Mechanical Engineering and the other in Mathematics. Prof. Bentil’s research interest is in the field of soft material mechanics. Her work includes application of experimental mechanics to (i) investigate traumatic brain injury mechanisms due to blast wave exposure and (ii) characterize the dynamic behavior of polymers in extreme environments.
Last Updated: 11/10/2022
Rephayah Black
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC)
SEM Awards: M. Hetényi
Rephayah Black is a PhD candidate in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC). He graduated with honors from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville with a bachelor's degree in chemical engineering. Between his undergraduate and graduate education, Rephayah worked at Los Alamos National Laboratory in the Chemical Diagnostics and Engineering Group. His current research interests lie in the deformation behavior of structural metallic materials with regard to microstructure.
Last Updated: 05/14/2024
Jason Blough
Michigan Technological University
SEM Awards: D. J. DeMichele
Dr. Blough received his BSME and MSME from Michigan Technological University. Dr. Blough attended the University of Cincinnati to obtain his Ph.D. in structural dynamics. Dr. Blough’s Ph.D. was on rotating machinery signal processing methods. Dr. Blough is currently a Professor in the Mechanical Engineering-Engineering Mechanics Department at Michigan Technological University. Dr. Blough has been active in SEM and IMAC for over 20 years publishing papers, serving on the SEM Executive Board, and continues to be an instructor in the “Young Engineers” program at IMAC. Dr. Blough’s research is industry funded, with support from the auto and powersports industries, and defense. Dr. Blough has graduated over 40 graduate students and published over 135 papers. Dr. Blough has taught over 40 short courses to industry on various NVH topics.
Last Updated: 11/23/2020
Rick Bono
The Modal Shop
Richard W. Bono is President of The Modal Shop in Cincinnati, OH, subsidiary of PCB Piezotronics, an MTS Systems Corporation. Bono holds a BSME degree from the University of Cincinnati and has studied graduate level courses with the University of Cincinnati’s Structural Dynamics Research Laboratory. Additionally, he has several years’ experience as a test engineer at a prominent noise and vibration consulting firm including experimental modal analysis, sound intensity measurement, nearfield acoustic holography and transducer calibration techniques. Since 1994, Bono has been with The Modal Shop, holding various positions with engineering, sales and marketing responsibilities.
Last Updated: 10/22/2020
Nicola Bonora
University of Cassino and Southern Lazio, Italy
SEM Awards: R. E. Peterson
Nicola Bonora is a professor of Machine Design at the University of Cassino and Southern Lazio. Previously, he worked at Battelle Memorial Institute, Columbus (OH), and successively at Wayne State University, Detroit (MI). In 2004 he received the NRC Research Associateship Senior Research Awards to conduct research at Air Force Research Laboratory Munitions Directorate (RW), Eglin AFB, FL. His research interests focus on damage and fracture of materials under varying strain rates and temperature conditions. In 2011, he co-founded Techdyn Engineering, a spin-off company. He has also directed several technology transfer projects working closely with SMEs and large companies.
Last Updated: 06/01/2023
Anders Brandt
Aarhus University, Denmark
Anders Brandt is currently professor and Head of the Department of Mechanical and Production Engineering at Aarhus University in Denmark. He received a MSc degree in electrical engineering from Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden, in 1986, and a Licentiate of Engineering degree in medical electronics from the same university in 1989 with a thesis on bone conduction hearing. For the next 20 years he worked with support, education and consultancy in industry in Sweden and abroad, in the areas of applied signal analysis. In 1996 he co-founded Axiom EduTech, a company dedicated to serve industry and academia with his expertise in advanced signal analysis methods for vibration analysis. During this time, he gave over 250 short-courses on various topics such as frequency analysis, modal analysis, order tracking, and vibration testing. He was also teaching at universities on similar topics.
In 2009, professor Brandt left the company and joined University of Southern Denmark (SDU) as an associate professor, building up a research group focusing on research within operational modal analysis and structural health monitoring. He has supervised and co-supervised 11 PhD students and 31 master students to completion and was promoted to full professor in 2019. He has published over 100 cited papers in the fields of vibration analysis and structural health monitoring. He left SDU to become Head of Department at Aarhus University in 2021.
Professor Brandt is the author of Noise and Vibration Analysis: Signal Analysis and Experimental Procedures, 2nd edition, published by John Wiley and Sons, 2023. In addition, he also published the free ABRAVIBE toolbox for MATLAB and GNU Octave, and maintains the site www.abravibe.com from which the toolbox and other educational material may be downloaded. The toolbox is used throughout universities and industry worldwide and has over 5,000 registered users. He also has a YouTube channel which contains lectures for many of the chapters of his book.
In 2009, professor Brandt left the company and joined University of Southern Denmark (SDU) as an associate professor, building up a research group focusing on research within operational modal analysis and structural health monitoring. He has supervised and co-supervised 11 PhD students and 31 master students to completion and was promoted to full professor in 2019. He has published over 100 cited papers in the fields of vibration analysis and structural health monitoring. He left SDU to become Head of Department at Aarhus University in 2021.
Professor Brandt is the author of Noise and Vibration Analysis: Signal Analysis and Experimental Procedures, 2nd edition, published by John Wiley and Sons, 2023. In addition, he also published the free ABRAVIBE toolbox for MATLAB and GNU Octave, and maintains the site www.abravibe.com from which the toolbox and other educational material may be downloaded. The toolbox is used throughout universities and industry worldwide and has over 5,000 registered users. He also has a YouTube channel which contains lectures for many of the chapters of his book.
Last Updated: 06/24/2024
Florent Bridier
Naval Group, Nantes (France)
SEM Awards: M. Hetényi
Florent Bridier received his M.S.Ing. degree in Aeronautics in 2002 at Ecole Nationale Superieure of Space and Aeronautics in Toulouse (France), and his PhD in Material and Mechanical Science in 2006 at University of Poitiers (France). After a year as postdoctoral researcher at Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta, Florent worked for 6 years as a researcher at the Mechanical Engineering department of Ecole de Technologie Superieure in Montreal (Canada) specializing in experimental characterization of microscale plastic behavior of aeronautical alloys. Since 2013, Florent joined Naval Group in Nantes (France) as a Research Engineer. His main current research activities concern fatigue behavior of naval structures and numerical simulation of welding.
Last Updated: 04/07/2020
Eric N. Brown
Los Alamos National Laboratory
SEM Awards: SEM Fellow, J. W. Dally Young Investigator, A. J. Durelli, SEM Past President (2021-22)
Dr. Eric N. Brown is the Division Leader for the Explosive Science and Shock Physics Division at Los Alamos National Laboratory where he oversees the premier research program on energetic materials and dynamic material response in support of National Security. His research has spanned fracture and damage of complex heterogeneous polymers and polymer composites for energetic, reactive, and structural applications including crystalline phase transitions, plasticity, dynamic loading conditions, and self-healing materials. He is the founding Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Dynamic Behavior of Materials and been named Fellow of the Society for Experimental Mechanics. He has received awards for his technical achievements in solid mechanics and materials science from the ASC, DOE-NNSA, LANL, MRS, SEM, TMS and the University of Illinois. He has served on several committees in SEM including Board of Directors as Member-at-Large, Research Committee, Technical Activities Council, Biological Systems and Materials Technical Division, and SEMEF. He has organized and chaired sessions for the Dynamic Behavior of Materials, Composites, and Biological Systems, and Materials Technical Divisions. He served three terms as an Associate Technical Editor of Experimental Mechanics. Eric was a Director’s Postdoctoral Fellow and Technical Staff Member in the Materials Science and Technology Division at Los Alamos National Laboratory, Technical Advisor for the Joint DoD/DOE Munitions Technology Program in the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense, and managed the Neutron Science and Technology Group in the Los Alamos National Laboratory Physics Division. Eric received a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering in 1998 and a Ph.D. in Theoretical and Applied Mechanics in 2003, both from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
Last Updated: 12/28/2021
Hugh Bruck
University of Maryland
SEM Awards: C. E. Taylor
Prof. Bruck is a Professor in the Department of Mechanical of Engineering at the University of Maryland, where he also serves as Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs. He was a pioneer of Digital Image Correlation with over 250 publications characterizing and modeling the thermomechanical behavior of bulk metallic glasses, functionally graded materials, nanostructured materials, biological/bio-inspired composites, and multifunctional structures for robotics. He is a SEM Fellow, and has served as an at-large member of the executive board, Fellows Committee Chair, Research Committee Chair, National Meetings Council member, associate editor for Experimental Mechanics, and founded the Biological Systems and Materials TD.
Last Updated: 11/08/2023
Daniel Casem
US Army Research Laboratory
SEM Awards: R. E. Peterson, G. A. Brewer
Daniel Casem received his B.S. in mechanical engineering from the University of Maryland, College Park in 1993. After a brief time doing manufacturing support and structural analysis at General Dynamics Electric Boat Division he returned to the University of Maryland and obtained both M.S. (1998) and Ph.D. (2000) degrees in mechanical engineering. In 2001 he started at the US Army Research Laboratory as a National Research Council Post-Doctoral Fellow for one year and has been there as a federal employee ever since. His research focusses on high rate experimental solid mechanics and shock.
Last Updated: 05/21/2024
Vijaya Chalivendra
UMass Dartmouth
SEM Awards: M. M. Frocht
Vijay Chalivendra completed his Ph.D. in Applied Mechanics at the University of Rhode Island in 2003 and served as a Postdoctoral researcher at Caltech during 2003-2005. He is currently serving as a Professor of Mechanical Engineering at UMass Dartmouth. He served as Chairs of Dynamic Behavior of Materials (2010-2012) and Composite, Hybrid and Multifunctional Materials (2020-2022) TDs. Over his career, he has received numerous honors including, ASME Fellow (2020), Technical Editor for Experimental Mechanics (2013-present), University Research Recognition Award (2021), University Outstanding Undergraduate Faculty Research Mentor Award (2023), College of Engineering Faculty Award for Excellence in Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (2024).
Last Updated: 01/06/2025
Weinong (Wayne) Chen
Iowa State University
SEM Awards: SEM Fellow, B. J. Lazan
Wayne Chen, SEM Fellow, is Vance and Arlene Coffman Department Chair and Professor of Aerospace Engineering at Iowa State University. He received PhD from Caltech in Aeronautics and was faculty members at University of Arizona and Purdue University. His research group has been developing innovative dynamic experimental methods and characterizing the high-rate material responses under challenging conditions. He has been an SEM member for over three decades, served as a founding member of the editorial board of JDBM, is a long-time Associate Editor of EM and a member of the International Advisor Board of ET.
Last Updated: 01/06/2025
Gary Cloud
Michigan State University
SEM Awards: C. E. Taylor, SEM Past President (1993-94)
University Distinguished Professor Gary L. Cloud joined the faculty of Michigan State University in 1961 and now conducts research in the MSU Composite Vehicle Research Center, of which he was Founding Director. He is a licensed Professional Engineer and Chartered Physicist as well as a Fellow of the Society for Experimental Mechanics and the Institute of Physics. His research brings together optical and electronic techniques to solve problems in geomechanics, biomechanics, composites, fracture mechanics, fastening, nondestructive evaluation, and design. He has written extensively, including the book Optical Methods of Engineering Measurement, and he holds 5 patents.
Last Updated: 11/08/2023
Wendy Crone
Wisconsin Institute for Discovery at the University of Wisconsin–Madison
SEM Awards: C. E. Taylor, SEM Past President (1993-94)
Wendy C. Crone is the Karen Thompson Medhi Professor in the College of Engineering at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. She also holds the title of Discovery Fellow with the Wisconsin Institute for Discovery. Her research is in experimental solid mechanics, and many of the topics she has investigated are connected with nanotechnology and biotechnology. She has applied her technical expertise to improving fundamental understanding of mechanical response of materials, enhancing material behavior through surface modification and nanostructuring, exploring the interplay between cells and the mechanics of their surroundings, and developing new material applications and medical devices. Dr. Crone has published 80 journal publications, dozens of explanatory education products, four patents, and two books: Introduction to Engineering Research and Survive and Thrive: A Guide for Untenured Faculty. Prof. Crone has garnered numerous awards for research, teaching and mentoring, including the Award for Mentoring Undergraduates in Research, Scholarly and Creative Activities from UW–Madison and the M.M. Frocht Award from SEM. She has been a member of the Society for Experimental Mechanics since 1988, Fellow since 2015, and has served in several roles including President. She has also served in numerous leadership roles including Interim Dean and Associate Dean of the Graduate School at UW-Madison and Program Director at the National Science Foundation.
Last Updated: 02/12/2024
Samantha Daly
University of California at Santa Barbara
SEM Awards: J. W. Dally Young Investigator, M. Hetényi, Michael Sutton International Student Paper, JSA Young Investigator Lecture
Samantha (Sam) Daly is a Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at UCSB. She received her Ph.D. from Caltech in 2007 and subsequently joined the University of Michigan, where she was on the faculty until 2016 prior to her move to UCSB. Her research interests lie at the intersection of the experimental mechanics of materials and data science. Currently, the Daly group is engaged in the development of new methods for multi-scale material characterization and application of machine learning to understand the deformation and failure of advanced structural materials. Prof. Daly is a Fellow of The American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME), and currently serves on the Executive Committee of the ASME Applied Mechanics Division and as Vice Chair of the U.S. National Committee of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics.
Last Updated: 12/19/2024
James P. De Clerck
Michigan Technological University
SEM Awards: C. E. Taylor, SEM Past President (1993-94)
Dr. James De Clerck is a Professor of Practice in the Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics Department at Michigan Technological University. He earned BS, MS and PhD degrees from Michigan Tech, receiving his Ph.D. in Engineering Mechanics in 1991.
Prior to joining the Michigan Tech faculty in 2009, Jim was a Project Design Engineer at the General Motors Noise and Vibration Center where he worked on improving vehicle noise and vibration performance at every stage of the vehicle development process. Jim led the development and implementation of new vibration analysis and testing technology. He also developed techniques for establishing design performance requirements and for validating analytical model predictions.
In addition to advising the Michigan Tech Formula SAE Team, Jim teaches classes on Model Based Design, Dynamics, System Dynamics Senior Capstone Design, Analytical and Experimental Modal Analysis, Machine Design, and Analytical Vibro-Acoustics classes. Jim’s areas of expertise include noise and vibration, structural dynamics, design, modal analysis, model validation, inverse methods applied to design, and advanced measurement techniques.
Prior to joining the Michigan Tech faculty in 2009, Jim was a Project Design Engineer at the General Motors Noise and Vibration Center where he worked on improving vehicle noise and vibration performance at every stage of the vehicle development process. Jim led the development and implementation of new vibration analysis and testing technology. He also developed techniques for establishing design performance requirements and for validating analytical model predictions.
In addition to advising the Michigan Tech Formula SAE Team, Jim teaches classes on Model Based Design, Dynamics, System Dynamics Senior Capstone Design, Analytical and Experimental Modal Analysis, Machine Design, and Analytical Vibro-Acoustics classes. Jim’s areas of expertise include noise and vibration, structural dynamics, design, modal analysis, model validation, inverse methods applied to design, and advanced measurement techniques.
Last Updated: 10/20/2020
Rosa De Finis
University of Salento - Department of Engineering for Innovation (Lecce-Italy)
Rosa De Finis is an Assistant Professor (Senior Researcher) at the Department of Engineering for Innovation of the University of Salento (Italy). She holds a PhD in Mechanical and Management Engineering, a MS in Mechanical Engineering and a BS in Mechanical Engineering from the Polytechnic of Bari (Italy). Her PhD research focused on the fatigue and fracture mechanics behaviour of materials, with assessments via energy-based methods. Rosa undertook a six-month internship at the Instituto Tecnológico de Aeronáutica (Sao José dos Campos, Brazil) and four months at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology-NTNU in Trondheim (Norway), working on additive manufactured Ti-based alloys using thermography and digital image correlation techniques.
Rosa is involved in different research projects investigating energy-based methods for rapid fatigue behaviour assessment as well as innovative non-destructive evaluations (NDE) via thermoelastic stress analysis.
She has served as Co-Chair and is currently Chair for the Technical Division 'Thermomechanics and Infrared Imaging'. Rosa first attended SEM Annual Congress in 2016.
Rosa is involved in different research projects investigating energy-based methods for rapid fatigue behaviour assessment as well as innovative non-destructive evaluations (NDE) via thermoelastic stress analysis.
She has served as Co-Chair and is currently Chair for the Technical Division 'Thermomechanics and Infrared Imaging'. Rosa first attended SEM Annual Congress in 2016.
Last Updated: 05/13/2024
Adrian DeWald
Hill Engineering
SEM Awards: F. Zandman
Dr. Adrian DeWald is the President of Hill Engineering; a global leader in improving the performance of materials – delivering expertise in residual stress measurement, mechanical design, material testing, structural integrity, and service life extension. Adrian is a technical expert in residual stress measurement and simulation of residual stress effects on material performance. His research and publication record covers the contour method, laser shock peening, weld residual stress, and related topics. Adrian is professionally active within the SEM (Associate Technical Editor for Experimental Mechanics and former Chair of the Residual Stress Technical Division) and ASTM.
Last Updated: 01/07/2025
Brandon Dilworth
MIT Lincoln Laboratory
Brandon Dilworth is currently an Assistant Group Leader in the Mechanical Engineering Group at MIT Lincoln Laboratory. Brandon holds a BS (2004) in Mechanical Engineering with a Minor in Acoustics from Kettering University and MS (2006) and Ph.D. (2009) degrees in Mechanical Engineering from Michigan Technological University. Brandon started as a Technical Staff member at MIT Lincoln Laboratory in 2009, working as a design and structural dynamics test engineer supporting several optical-mechanical prototype programs. As both staff and a Group Leader, Brandon has helped to advance the Laboratory’s capabilities in structural dynamic testing and analysis.
Last Updated: 10/20/2020
Anna Lena Eberle
ZEISS - Oberkochen, Germany
SEM Awards: M. Hetényi
Anna Lena Eberle has a Diploma degree in Biology from the University of Tübingen and holds a doctoral degree in neurosciences, obtained at the Max-Planck-Institute for Biological Cybernetics. Multi-modal microscopy measurements were a key element of her work as a researcher on quantitative investigations of the brain’s vasculature. Since 2012, she joined ZEISS as Product Manager for the ZEISS MultiSEM. She and her colleagues are working on developing the application space of this first commercial multi-beam SEM to a broader spectrum beyond its current main application in neuroscientific research.
Last Updated: 05/15/2024
McLean Echlin
UC Santa Barbara
SEM Awards: M. Hetényi
McLean Echlin is a research scientist in the Materials Department at UC Santa Barbara. His graduate work focused on the use of statistical approaches for modeling fracture toughness at the University of Michigan. His understanding of ultrashort pulse laser-materials interactions has led to the development of tomography techniques, such as the TriBeam microscope, for the acquisition of large multimodal 3-D datasets critical for understanding failure mechanisms in structural materials, such as superalloys, and for improving performance in thermoelectric materials. He also has interest in the merging of data modalities including the measurement of strain and microstructure for structure-property relations.
Last Updated: 04/07/2020
Igor Emri
University of Ljubljana, Slovenia
SEM Awards: B. J. Lazan, S. Nemat-Nasser
Igor Emri is a Chair Professor of Mechanics at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, University of Ljubljana and President of the Institute for Sustainable Innovative Technologies, EEIG. He has developed an innovative theoretical-experimental approach, known as Knauss-Emri model, to study the non-linear behavior of time-dependent materials. His current research activities are focused on non-linear time-dependent behavior of dissipative systems with the emphasis on behavior of solid polymers and their nano-, micro-, and macro-composites and granular systems. He is one of the founders and Editor-in-Chief of the international journal »Mechanics of Time Dependent Materials«, published by Springer. He is a fellow grade member of the Society of Experimental Mechanics (USA), Russian Academy of Engineering, Russian Academy of Natural Sciences, European Academy of Sciences and Arts, European Academy of Sciences, Slovenian Academy of Engineering, Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts, and Honorary Member of the Ukrainian Academy of Engineering. He is the Chairman of the Science Europe Scientific Advisory Committee, and a past president of the Society of Experimental Mechanics and the International Committee on Rhelogy (ICR).
Last Updated: 03/04/2020
David Epp
Sandia National Laboratory
David Epp is currently the Reactor Facility Development manager at Sandia National Laboratory. He received his B.S., M.S. and Ph.D. degree in Mechanical Engineering from University of Oklahoma in 1997, 2001 and 2002, respectively with a focus on dynamics and controls. David joined Sandia in 2002 and has held a variety of positions as a staff member, including a test engineer, experimental facility owner, principle investigator, and project leader. David’s Sandia career started with modal and structural dynamic testing and includes applications such as MEMS, satellites, and other Sandia missions. David was promoted to manager of the Structural Dynamics and Radiography/NDE department in 2012 and has since held several management positions including a two year rotation in Washington DC.
Last Updated: 10/21/2020
Horacio D. Espinosa
Northwestern University
SEM Awards: P. S. Theocaris, S. Nemat-Nasser, SEM Fellow, W. M. Murray Lecture, M. Hetényi, B. J. Lazan
Professor Espinosa received his PhD in Solid Mechanics in 1992, from Brown University. He started his academic career as Assistant Professor of Aeronautics and Astronautics at Purdue University, where he was promoted to Associated Professor with tenure in 1998. Since 2000, he has been on the faculty of Mechanical Engineering at Northwestern University, has held the James and Nancy Farley Professorship since 2009, has served as Director of the Theoretical and Applied Mechanics program since 2007, and Director of the Institute for Cellular Engineering Technologies. Espinosa has made significant contributions in the areas of deformation and failure of materials, from mesoscale dynamic failure of ceramics and composites to the mechanisms responsible for the hardness and toughness of biomaterials to size scale effects in elasticity and plasticity of thin films and low dimensional materials.
Last Updated: 11/20/2024
Xue Feng
Tsinghua University
SEM Awards: SEM Fellow
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Last Updated: 11/19/2024
Garrison Flynn
Los Alamos National Laboratory
Garrison Stevens Flynn completed her Ph.D. at Clemson in 2016 as a U.S. Department of Education GAANN fellow studying propagation of model uncertainties and systematic bias in multi-scale and multi-physics models. She is currently an R&D Engineer at Los Alamos National Laboratory on the Data Analysis Team of the Test Engineering group. Her research interests focus on statistical methods for inverse analysis of complex systems, with applications including nuclear nonproliferation and arms control and treaty verification. Garrison has been an active member of SEM since 2013. She currently serves as Vice-Chair of the Model Validation and Uncertainty Quantification Technical Division. In addition to her research, Garrison is passionate about mentorship. She has served as a mentor to a Girls in STEM program, providing mentorship to seven girls as they progress from 6-12th grade. She was a founding member of an early career development initiative promoting career discovery and collaboration across weapons engineering at LANL. Garrison received her B.S., M.S., and Ph.D. from Clemson University in Civil Engineering with an emphasis in structural engineering.
Last Updated: 06/12/2024
Christian Franck
University of Wisconsin-Madison
SEM Awards: SEM Fellow, M. Hetényi
Christian Franck is the Bjorn Borgen Professor in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. His work specializes in cellular biomechanics and new experimental mechanics techniques at the micro and nanoscale, including unique three-dimensional full-field imaging capabilities based on multiphoton and confocal microscopy and digital volume correlation. Current application areas of these three-dimensional microscopy techniques include understanding the 3D deformation behavior of neurons in the brain during traumatic brain injuries, and the role of non-linear material deformations in soft matter.
Last Updated: 06/01/2023
Cosme Furlong-Vazquez
Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI)
SEM Awards: SEM Fellow, A. J. Durelli
Cosme Furlong-Vazquez is Professor and Director of the Center for Holographic Studies and Laser micro-mechaTronics (CHSLT) in the Mechanical and Materials Engineering Department at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI), Worcester MA. He received his B.Eng. from the University of the Americas, Mexico, and his M.S. and Ph.D. from WPI. He was a visiting Post-doctoral investigator in the field of optical metrology at BIAS, Bremen, Germany. His professional interests and involvement include: combination of modeling and simulation with quantitative optical metrology, fiber optic sensors, digital holography, NDT, materials characterization, and optimization of mechanical and microelectromechanical components and systems (MEMS). He has been recipient of such awards as Sigma Xi Researcher Faculty, WPI’s Morgan and Russell M. Searle Distinguish Instructorships, A.J. Durelli Award from SEM, and he is a research affiliate in the Department of Otology and Laryngology at the Mass. Eye & Ear Infirmary (MEEI) and a Lecturer on Otology and Laryngology at Harvard Medical School. He is a long-term member of SEM and has actively participated in leadership positions and activities within the society, including sessions and conferences organizer, officer of the Optics TD, and one of the founding members of the MEMS and Nanotechnology TD.
Last Updated: 01/21/2024
Tomasz Garbowski
ZEISS - Oberkochen, Germany
SEM Awards: M. Hetényi
Tomasz Garbowski has a Diploma degree in Physics from the University of Düsseldorf. After working in the automotive industry, he joined ZEISS in Oberkochen, Germany in 2012. As Application Specialist for the ZEISS MultiSEM, the world’s fastest scanning electron microscope, he mastered the art of high-throughput imaging with this then new technology, collected millions of images over the time and supported and trained numerous colleagues and customers around the world on the system since then.
Last Updated: 05/15/2024
Emmanuel Gdoutos
Academy of Athens, Greece
SEM Awards: S. Nemat-Nasser
Dr. Emmanuel Gdoutos is full member of the Academy of Athens, the most prestigious academic institute in Greece, member of the European Academy of Sciences (EAS), European Academy of Sciences and Arts, Academia Europaea, American Academy of Mechanics, International Academy of Engineering, Foreign member of the Russian, Bulgarian and Ukrainian Academy of Sciences, Fellow of ASME, SEM, International Congress on Fracture (ICF), European Structural Integrity Society (ESIS), European Association for Experimental Mechanics (EURASEM), American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), Doctorate Honoris Causa of the Democritus University of Thrace (Greece), Russian Academy of Sciences, University of Nis (Serbia) He is Honorary member of IGF (Italy), PSTAM (Poland), SSTAM (Serbia), Literary Society “Parnassos” (Greece), author of more than 300 technical papers in refereed journals and conference proceedings, 16 books and editor of 35 books. He received many awards from international societies, including SEM (Lazan, Tatnall, Zandman, Theocaris), ICF, ESIS, EAS, EURASEM, the Turin Academy of Sciences and EAS. He served as president of SEM (2013-2014), ESIS (2006-2010) and EURASEM (2004-2007). A special issue of the journal Meccanica was dedicated to his honor: “Experimental Solid Mechanics: In Honour of Professor Emmanuel Gdoutos” Vol. 50 (2), pp. 253-590 (2015). Among his books are: “Matrix Theory of Photoelasticity” (with P.S. Theocaris), Springer, 1979, “Fracture Mechanics”, 3rd ed. (accompanied with Solutions Manual), Springer, 2020, used as textbook for fracture mechanics courses worldwide, and “Experimental Mechanics”, Springer 2022. He is chair of the Theocaris Foundation which supports the SEM Theocaris award.
Last Updated: 04/25/2023
Mladen Gibanica
First CAE Engineer, Volvo Car Group, Gothenburg, Sweden
SEM Awards: D. R. Harting
Dr. Mladen Gibanica is a First CAE Engineer at the Driving Dynamics and NVH department within Volvo Car Group. He recently finished his PhD in uncertainty propagation of synthesised components at Chalmers University of Technology and Volvo Car Group in Gothenburg, Sweden. His research interests include uncertainty quantification, system identification and dynamic substructuring.
Last Updated: 04/14/2020
Martha Grady
University of Kentucky
SEM Awards: Michael Sutton International Student Paper Competition, J. W. Dally Young Investigator
Dr. Martha E. Grady (Meg) is an Associate Professor at the University of Kentucky in Lexington, KY, USA. She obtained a Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from University of Central Florida, Masters and PhD degrees in Theoretical and Applied Mechanics from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and spent two years at the University of Pennsylvania as a Postdoctoral Fellow before beginning her faculty appointment in 2016. She is a past chair of the Biological Systems and Materials technical division and current chair of the Education Committee for the Society for Experimental Mechanics. She was awarded the UCF MAE Alumni Young Engineer Award in 2015, the NSF CAREER Award in 2021, and the UK College of Engineering Excellence in Research Award in 2022. Her research is supported by NSF, NIH, and NASA. Her research interests lie at the intersection of materials, deformation mechanics, and medical interfaces.
Last Updated: 01/06/2025
Abhishek Gupta
University of Wisconsin-Madison
SEM Awards: Michael Sutton International Student Paper
Abhishek Gupta is currently a Ph.D. student in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. His research is focused on the development of novel structured materials with tailored mechanical properties for hypersensitive sensors, biomedical devices, and protective applications in extreme conditions. He obtained his undergraduate degree in Industrial Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee in 2019. For his undergraduate thesis, he worked on the design of nonlinear acoustic metamaterials with tunable bandgaps.
Last Updated: 09/05/2023
Julie Harvie
Lilium, Germany
Julie Harvie is working to make electric aircraft a reality in her current role at Lilium in Germany. At Lilium, Julie’s role as a Noise, Vibration, and Harshness (NVH) engineer involves combining test and analysis data to provide design recommendations that optimize the vibratory and acoustic characteristics of the aircraft. Prior to this chapter, she spent three years at VIBES.technology in the Netherlands as a project engineer and manager, using dynamic substructuring to help automotive customers solve noise and vibration problems. She also worked at Sandia National Laboratories for five years as an environments engineer, developing shock and vibration qualification tests for aerospace systems and constructing the BARC challenge problem that is highly popular at IMAC. She earned B.S. (2012) and M.S. (2013) degrees in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Massachusetts - Lowell, where she worked as a research assistant to Dr. Peter Avitabile in the Structural Dynamics and Acoustics Laboratory.
Last Updated: 01/02/2024
Jeffrey Helm
Lafayette College
SEM Awards: Michael Sutton International Student Paper, F. G. Tatnall
Jeffrey D. Helm received his Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of South Carolina in 1999 and was one of the founding members of Correlated Solutions Inc. He is currently an associate professor in the Mechanical Engineering Department at Lafayette College. Dr. Helm served as chair of the Education Committee, is a member of SEMEF, was the editor-in-chief of Experimental Techniques and continues on as an associate editor for the journal. Dr. Helm’s interests include the application and development of the digital image correlation method. His current work centers on civil applications including pile/soil movement and assessing the bioremediation of sandy soils.
Last Updated: 10/20/2020
Peter Ifju
University of Florida
SEM Awards: F. G. Tatnall
Peter Ifju is the Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Excellence Term Professor in the Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Department at the University of Florida. He received a Ph.D. in Materials Engineering Science in 1992, an M.S. in Engineering Science and Mechanics in 1989, and a B.S. in Civil Engineering in 1986 all from Virginia Tech. He also performed a Post-Doc at NASA Langley Research Center in the Mechanics of Materials Branch. His research activities include experimental mechanics, composite materials, unmanned aircraft systems, micro aerial vehicles, and electric vertical take-off and landing vehicles (eVTOLs). In experimental mechanics he is known for his advances in optical methods for stress analysis with applications in composite materials and aeroelasticity. He has also been on the forefront of electric vehicle development for natural resource and wildlife applications for more that 20 years. He has been recognized with Fellow status and numerous other awards in the Society for Experimental Mechanics including serving as the President in 2012, along with serving on numerous SEM committees, and educational activities. He has co-authored two books, one on optical methods for solid mechanics stress analysis, and one on micro aerial vehicles. He has also co-authored more than 120 journal papers (three of which have received SEM sponsored journals paper of the year awards), 170 conference papers, 14 book chapters, and 7 patents. Four startup companies got their start in his lab including: Prioria Robotics, Aries Geospatial, Altavian and most recently Archer Aviation, named after his lab on Archer Road in Gainesville.
Last Updated: 01/06/2025
Matti Isakov
Tampere University, Finland
SEM Awards: D. R. Harting
Dr. Matti Isakov, a former member of the Tampere Institute for Advanced Study, works as a staff scientist in the Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences at Tampere University, Finland in the field of advanced mechanical testing of materials. He has a background in the mechanical testing of various material groups especially at high loading rates and in cyclic loading. His current activities involve supporting the work of PhD students and other researchers in his fields of expertise as well as developing new materials testing methodologies and infrastructure.
Last Updated: 05/13/2024
Niels-Jørgen Jacobsen
Hottinger Brüel & Kjær
Mr. Jacobsen joined Brüel & Kjær (now Hottinger Brüel & Kjær (HBK)) in 1986 as a Digital Signal Processing software developer on analyzer systems. Later job positions include project manager, application specialist, vibration group manager and product manager as which he is currently working with responsibility for HBK’s structural dynamics solutions. Mr. Jacobsen has worked intensively with both theoretical and practical aspects in the fields of structural dynamics, machine diagnostics and industrial acoustics. He has been the author of several technical papers and articles and is frequently lecturing worldwide. Mr. Jacobsen holds a B.Sc. in Electronic Engineering from the Technical University of Denmark and a B.Sc. in International Business from Copenhagen Business School.
Last Updated: 08/28/2024
Helena Jin
Sandia National Laboratories
SEM Awards: SEM Fellow
Helena received her Ph.D. from the University of Maryland, College Park. Through her Ph.D. study and fifteen years of R&D experience at Sandia National Laboratories, Helena has made significant contributions to experimental mechanics, particularly in developing experimental techniques for small scale characterization, integrating the full-field deformation measurement technique with in-situ mechanical testing and advanced imaging capabilities including optical microscope, SEM, AFM and X-ray tomography, to investigate the fundamental failure mechanisms of materials. In recent years, Helena has applied her engineering expertise to mission-critical projects for the nation. She won Sandia Employee Recognition Award and NNSA Defense Program Award of Excellence in 2021. She is currently leading the environmental requirements team in her program.
Helena has engaged with the Society of Experimental Mechanics in various capacities, serving as an author, reviewer, guest editor, session and tracker organizer, the officer for optical methods technical division, research committee chair and executive board member. Having grown within this society as a graduate student, Helena has consistently given back to the society, demonstrating her commitment and leadership through the numerous roles. In addition to her professional work, Helena is very passionate about promoting STEM among youth. She plays leading roles in multiple youth programs and non-profit organizations, both inside and outside Sandia. Helena enjoys traveling and running. Having raced in the Boston and Chicago Marathons, she is on her way to complete all six World Major Marathons.
Helena has engaged with the Society of Experimental Mechanics in various capacities, serving as an author, reviewer, guest editor, session and tracker organizer, the officer for optical methods technical division, research committee chair and executive board member. Having grown within this society as a graduate student, Helena has consistently given back to the society, demonstrating her commitment and leadership through the numerous roles. In addition to her professional work, Helena is very passionate about promoting STEM among youth. She plays leading roles in multiple youth programs and non-profit organizations, both inside and outside Sandia. Helena enjoys traveling and running. Having raced in the Boston and Chicago Marathons, she is on her way to complete all six World Major Marathons.
Last Updated: 11/19/2024
Jennifer L. Jordan
Los Alamos National Laboratory
SEM Awards: G. A. Brewer, A. J. Durelli
Jennifer L. Jordan is the Deputy Program Director for Los Alamos National Laboratory’s (LANL) UK Program Office. Prior to this position, she was Group Leader for Shock and Detonation Physics, where she led 50+ staff responsible for dynamic properties of metals, polymers, and explosives. Jen has also served as the Dynamic Materials and Interactions Program Officer at the Air Force Office of Scientific Research, which focused on energetic materials and shock physics of heterogenous materials, and the Lead for the Munitions Energetic Materials Core Technical Competency, Air Force Research Laboratory. She received her BS, MS, and PhD in Materials Science and Engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology. Jen’s research is focused on the high strain rate response of polymers and composites. She completed her term as Editor-in-Chief for the Journal of Dynamic Behavior of Materials (JDBM) in Dec 2024 and took on the chair of JDBM’s International Advisory Board. She has over 45 technical papers and proceedings publications. Jen is a recipient of the SEM A. J. Durelli (2018) and the G. A. Brewer (2021) Awards.
Last Updated: 12/19/2024
Michael Keller
University of Tulsa
SEM Awards: M. M. Frocht
Michael W. Keller received his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Tulsa in 2001 and his Ph.D. in Theoretical and Applied Mechanics from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2007. After completing his Ph.D. he served as a Post-doctoral researcher in the Dept. of Chemistry and Dept. of Materials Science and Engineering at the University of Arizona. After his postdoctoral appointment, he joined the faculty of Mechanical Engineering at The University of Tulsa in 2008, where he is currently a Professor and the Associate Dean for Research of the College of Engineering and Computer Science. Over his career he has received numerous honors for research and teaching, including an NSF CAREER Award (2014), the SAE Ralph R. Teetor Award (2017), University Teaching and Research Awards, and the SEM M.M. Frocht Award (2024).
Last Updated: 12/19/2024
Addis Kidane
University of South Carolina
SEM Awards: R. E. Peterson, J. W. Dally Young Investigator
Dr. Addis Kidane is an Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the University of South Carolina. He obtained his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Defense University, Ethiopia in 2001, and M.S. in Aerospace Engineering from Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, India in 2005. He received a Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics from the University of Rhode Island in 2009. He joined the faculty of the University of South Carolina in 2011 after completing a two year postdoctoral studies at the California Institute of Technology. His research focuses on, energetic, cellular and graded materials, high strain rate experimental mechanics and materials behavior at different time and length scale. He is the recipient of the Orr Early Career Award from the Materials Division of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME), Young Investigator Award from AFOSR, the Haythornthwaite Research Initiation Grants from ASME Applied Mechanics Division, and Young Investigator Research Award from the College of Engineering and Computing, the University of South Carolina.
Last Updated: 04/07/2020
Sharlotte Kramer
Sandia National Laboratories
Dr. Sharlotte Kramer is a research lead of the Structural Mechanics Laboratory at Sandia National Laboratories. She leads a research program in the Engineering Science Center that advances predictive solid mechanics for rapid transformation of qualification and sustainment of national security systems. She is the principal investigator of multi-disciplinary projects, transitioning fundamental research to mission applications at the intersection of solid mechanics, materials science, computer science, and data science, with internal Sandia collaborators and external collaborators around the globe.
Sharlotte received her Bachelor’s degree in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Virginia with Ioannis Chasiotis and her Master’s and Ph.D. degrees in Aeronautics from the California Institute of Technology with G. Ravichandran. She was a postdoctoral researcher in Materials Science and Engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign with Nancy Sottos before joining Sandia National Laboratories. She has been a member of the Society of Experimental Mechanics since 2007. She is the founding chair of the SEM Additive and Advanced Manufacturing Technical Division and has served as the chair of the Research Committee and the Inverse Problem Methodologies Technical Division.
Sharlotte received her Bachelor’s degree in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Virginia with Ioannis Chasiotis and her Master’s and Ph.D. degrees in Aeronautics from the California Institute of Technology with G. Ravichandran. She was a postdoctoral researcher in Materials Science and Engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign with Nancy Sottos before joining Sandia National Laboratories. She has been a member of the Society of Experimental Mechanics since 2007. She is the founding chair of the SEM Additive and Advanced Manufacturing Technical Division and has served as the chair of the Research Committee and the Inverse Problem Methodologies Technical Division.
Last Updated: 06/14/2023
Luciano Lamberti
Politecnico di Bari (Italy)
SEM Awards: SEM Fellow
Prof. Luciano LAMBERTI is a Professor of Mechanical Design in the Politecnico di Bari (Italy) where he leads the Optical Techniques laboratory. His research interests cover Experimental Mechanics, Structural Optimization, Nanosciences, and Bioengineering. He specializes in optical techniques, inverse methods, optical super-resolution, cell elasticity, micro/nano-manipulation with optical resonators.
Prof. Lamberti authored some 250 technical papers in ISI journals, refereed books and conferences, receiving the Fylde Electronics Prize for the best paper published in 2010 in Strain. He chaired the Optical Methods of SEM, and was a council member of EURASEM.
Prof. Lamberti has been in the editorial board of several ISI journals since 2011 and evaluated research projects for several international agencies including the European Community Research Agency (FP7 and Horizon 2020 Programs).
Prof. Lamberti authored some 250 technical papers in ISI journals, refereed books and conferences, receiving the Fylde Electronics Prize for the best paper published in 2010 in Strain. He chaired the Optical Methods of SEM, and was a council member of EURASEM.
Prof. Lamberti has been in the editorial board of several ISI journals since 2011 and evaluated research projects for several international agencies including the European Community Research Agency (FP7 and Horizon 2020 Programs).
Last Updated: 11/19/2024
John Lambros
University of Illinois
SEM Awards: SEM Fellow, M. M. Frocht, M. Hetényi, P. S. Theocaris, SEM President 2019-20
Prof. Lambros received a B.Eng. degree in Aeronautical Engineering from the Imperial College of Science and Technology of the University of London in 1988, an M.S. degree in Aeronautics from Caltech in 1989, and a Ph.D. degree also in Aeronautics from Caltech in 1994. After a year as a postdoctoral researcher, he joined the Mechanical Engineering department of the University of Delaware as an Assistant Professor in 1995 and moved to the Aerospace Engineering department of the University of Illinois in 2000, where he is currently a Professor. He is a Fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, the Society for Experimental Mechanics, and the American Academy of Mechanics. He has served as an Associate Editor for Experimental Mechanics (1999-2005) and the ASME Journal of Applied Mechanics (2011-2014). He has also served on the Executive Board of the SEM (2008-2010) and recently completed one term as Associated Head for Graduate Studies in the Aerospace Engineering Department at Illinois (2011-2016). Over his 20-year career he has received numerous honors and awards for both research and teaching achievements including an NSF CAREER Award (1999), the SEM Hetényi (2012) and Frocht (2015) Awards, and the UIUC Campus Award for Excellence in Graduate and Professional Teaching (2015).
Last Updated: 10/20/2020
Arto Lehtovaara
Tampere University, Finland (retired)
SEM Awards: D. R. Harting
Arto Lehtovaara, Dr. Tech., is Emeritus Professor at the Tampere University, Finland (retired in 2022). He led the Tribology and Machine Elements research group and provided corresponding education in the faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences. He has published more than 80 peer-reviewed scientific papers mainly in the areas of fretting wear and fatigue occurring in combustion engines and lubricated gear and bearing contacts; the application areas include mineral crushers and gear drives in wind turbines and marine applications. He was a long-term member of the Nordic advisory board on the NORDTRIB symposium series and holds a status of honor member at Finnish Society for Tribology. He had six-year experience in the industry before the academic position, which gave a basis on active R&D related industrial co-operation.
Last Updated: 05/14/2024
Nuno Lopes
Society for Experimental Mechanics
Nuno Lopes is the Managing Director of the Society for Experimental Mechanics where he is responsible for day-to-day operations including the Society’s three archival peer-reviewed journals. Nuno oversees staff and reports to the Executive Director. He has been with SEM since 2013.
His 14 years at IBM provided experience working with executives and leading a team. Nuno earned a Bachelor of Business Administration in Management (B.B.A.) from the Ancell School of Business at Western Connecticut State University, an Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) accredited Business School.
Nuno was born Portugal. He has a passion for languages, architecture and learning.
His 14 years at IBM provided experience working with executives and leading a team. Nuno earned a Bachelor of Business Administration in Management (B.B.A.) from the Ancell School of Business at Western Connecticut State University, an Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) accredited Business School.
Nuno was born Portugal. He has a passion for languages, architecture and learning.
Last Updated: 01/05/2021
Hongbing Lu
University of Texas at Dallas
SEM Awards: B. J. Lazan
Dr. Hongbing Lu is a mechanical engineering professor and the Louis A. Beecherl Jr. Chair affiliated with materials science and engineering, and chemistry at University of Texas at Dallas. He specializes in the mechanics of time-dependent materials. He has made theoretical and experimental contributions to viscoelastic nanoindentation to determine the viscoelastic properties at nanoscale. He has developed an accelerated life testing technique widely used for the design and reliability testing for cardiac rhythm management devices. He has invented a slitting technique for converting an aluminum web into narrower sheets when the two rotary slitting blades form a cant angle to generate a local tension to provide clean shearing while significantly extending the blade life; the technique has been widely used in aluminum industry. He has invented porous nanostructured materials (aerogels) for drastic noise attenuation, mitigating shock wave, and acceleration reduction under impact. Dr. Lu received his PhD in aeronautics from Caltech in 1997, his MS degree in engineering mechanics from Tsinghua University, and his BS degree in Solid Mechanics from Huazhong University of Science & Technology. He has published 150 journal articles, written 6 book chapters, and received five US patents. He is a fellow of SEM and ASME. He is editor-in-chief of Mechanics of Time-Dependent Materials, and an associate technical editor of Experimental Mechanics.
Last Updated: 12/05/2023
Mike Mains
University of Cincinnati
Michael Mains received his B.S and M.S in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Cincinnati in 1990 and 1994, respectively.
Mike is currently a 14-year member of Society of Experimental Mechanics (SEM), preparing to serve at the Upcoming International Modal Analysis Conference (IMAC) as the Conference Director. He is also serving as the chair of the Modal Analysis and Dynamic Systems Technical Division and has been a member of SEM’s executive board. He has also been active in the “Basics of Modal Analysis for the New/Young Engineer” sessions at IMAC, a series of lectures, tutorials and vendor presentations designed for first time IMAC attendees and those attendees returning from an extended absence from IMAC.
Mike joined Brüel & Kjær as a Senior Software Developer in the winter of 2004. During his employment with Brüel & Kjær he has had the opportunity to work on many software projects related to Structural Dynamics, Modal Analysis Modal Vector Correlation and Signal Processing.
This fall Mr. Mains joined the faculty of the University of Cincinnati as an Adjunct Professor, teaching Automotive Design I & II. This is a Senior Level Design course sequence that supports the UC Formula SAE Team, a continuation of the Bearcat Motorsports activity that began in the early 1990s.
Mike is currently a 14-year member of Society of Experimental Mechanics (SEM), preparing to serve at the Upcoming International Modal Analysis Conference (IMAC) as the Conference Director. He is also serving as the chair of the Modal Analysis and Dynamic Systems Technical Division and has been a member of SEM’s executive board. He has also been active in the “Basics of Modal Analysis for the New/Young Engineer” sessions at IMAC, a series of lectures, tutorials and vendor presentations designed for first time IMAC attendees and those attendees returning from an extended absence from IMAC.
Mike joined Brüel & Kjær as a Senior Software Developer in the winter of 2004. During his employment with Brüel & Kjær he has had the opportunity to work on many software projects related to Structural Dynamics, Modal Analysis Modal Vector Correlation and Signal Processing.
This fall Mr. Mains joined the faculty of the University of Cincinnati as an Adjunct Professor, teaching Automotive Design I & II. This is a Senior Level Design course sequence that supports the UC Formula SAE Team, a continuation of the Bearcat Motorsports activity that began in the early 1990s.
Last Updated: 10/21/2020
Zhu Mao
Worcester Polytechnic Institute
SEM Awards: Sage Publishing Young Engineer Lecture, D. J. DeMichele Scholarship, J. W. Dally Young Investigator
Zhu Mao is currently an Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, and before that, he worked at the University of Massachusetts Lowell from 2015 to 2021. He received his B.S. from Tsinghua University and M.S. and Ph.D. from the University of California San Diego. He has published over 100 journal and conference papers and was the Past Chair of the MVUQ Technical Division at SEM. He is currently on the IMAC Advisory Board and serving as the technical editor of Experimental Techniques. He is the recipient of 2011 D. J. DeMichele Scholarship Award and the 2019 SAGE Publishing Young Engineer Lecture Award from SEM. He is also the recipient of 2018 AFOSR Young Investigator Program Award.
Last Updated: 03/31/2022
Tim Marinone
ATA Engineering, Inc.
Tim Marinone is a Project Engineer in the Advanced Test Group at ATA Engineering, Inc. in San Diego, California. His expertise is in modal and vibration testing of complex structures for defense, commercial, and aerospace industries. Tim received his B.S. and M.S. degrees in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Massachusetts Lowell in 2010 and 2012, respectively, while working in the Structural Dynamics and Acoustic Systems Laboratory (SDASL). Tim has been involved in IMAC since IMAC 29, serving in various roles, including presenting at the “Basics of Modal Analysis for the New/Young Engineer” session and writing numerous papers.
Last Updated: 10/22/2020
Randall Mayes
Sandia National Laboratories (retired)
SEM Awards: SEM Fellow, D. J. DeMichele
Randy Mayes began his structural dynamics career as a finite element analyst using NASTRAN in 1979 at Sandia National Laboratories. He moved into the modal testing group in 1989 where he worked until retirement in 2020. He has always enjoyed the friendly IMAC conference of SEM. An ElliptiGO stand-up bicycle and a classical guitar provide great hobbies. His favorite paraphrased scripture from the book of James is “Count it a joyous opportunity when you have an interruption or obstacle to your plans. As you patiently watch God work it out, He will change you into a fantastic person”.
Last Updated: 01/04/2022
Stephan Nickell
ZEISS - Oberkochen, Germany
SEM Awards: M. Hetényi
Stephan Nickell earned his Diploma degree in Physics from the University in Heidelberg and his doctoral degree from the Technical University in Munich. In his studies he turned towards optics and electron microscopy. He was working as a group leader at the Max Planck Institute of Biochemistry in Munich where he contributed to the development of cryo electron microscopy and structural biology. In 2011, Stephan Nickell joined ZEISS in Oberkochen, Germany. Stephan Nickell is currently Head of Product Management Academia & Other Industry for the ZEISS MultiSEM.
Last Updated: 05/15/2024
Hae Young Noh
Stanford University
Hae Young Noh is an Associate Professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Stanford University. Her research focuses on indirect sensing and physics-guided data analytics to enable low-cost non-intrusive monitoring of human-structure systems. She is particularly interested in developing structures to be self-user-, and surrounding-aware to improve users’ quality of life and provide safe and sustainable built environments. The results of her work have been deployed in a number of real-world applications from trains, to the Amish community, to eldercare centers, to pig farms. Before joining Stanford, she was a faculty member at Carnegie Mellon University. She received her Ph.D. and M.S. degrees in Civil and Environmental Engineering and her second M.S. degree in Electrical Engineering at Stanford University. She earned her B.S. degree in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at Cornell University. She received several awards, including the Google Faculty Research Awards (2013, 2016), the Dean’s Early Career Fellow (2018), the NSF CAREER Award (2017), and various Best Paper Awards from ASCE, ASME, ACM, IEEE, and SEM conferences.
Last Updated: 06/14/2023
Anders Nord
Volvo Group Trucks Technology, Gothenburg, Sweden
SEM Awards: D. R. Harting
Dr. Anders Nord is the current acting global feature leader for durability within Volvo Group Trucks Technology, situated in Gothenburg, Sweden. He has been with the Volvo group for three years. Prior to that, he was an Assistant Professor at Chalmers University of Technology in Gothenburg. His research interests include model calibration, dynamic substructuring and system identification.
Last Updated: 04/14/2020
Geir Olafsson
University of Bristol
I joined the University of Bristol in September 2020 after completing my PhD at the University of Southampton, where I specialized in Non-Destructive Evaluation (NDE) techniques. My research has been particularly focused on NDE and the development of continuous monitoring systems for composites and bonded joints. I have developed new continuous monitoring approaches alongside adapting existing NDE methodologies. I also have extensive industrial experience having previously worked in the oil and gas sector as well as in offshore wind industries. Additionally, I am a Chartered Engineer with the Institute of Mechanical Engineers.
Last Updated: 01/21/2024
Aydogan Ozcan
California NanoSystems Institute, UCLA
Dr. Aydogan Ozcan is the Chancellor’s Professor and the Volgenau Chair for Engineering Innovation at UCLA and an HHMI Professor with the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. He is also the Associate Director of the California NanoSystems Institute. Dr. Ozcan is elected Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors (NAI) and holds >85 issued/granted patents in microscopy, holography, computational imaging, sensing, mobile diagnostics, nonlinear optics and fiber-optics, and is also the author of one book and the co-author of >1000 peer-reviewed publications in leading scientific journals/conferences. Dr. Ozcan received major awards, including the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE), International Commission for Optics ICO Prize, Dennis Gabor Award (SPIE), Joseph Fraunhofer Award & Robert M. Burley Prize (Optica), SPIE Biophotonics Technology Innovator Award, Rahmi Koc Science Medal, SPIE Early Career Achievement Award, Army Young Investigator Award, NSF CAREER Award, NIH Director’s New Innovator Award, Navy Young Investigator Award, IEEE Photonics Society Young Investigator Award and Distinguished Lecturer Award, National Geographic Emerging Explorer Award, National Academy of Engineering The Grainger Foundation Frontiers of Engineering Award and MIT’s TR35 Award for his seminal contributions to computational imaging, sensing and diagnostics. Dr. Ozcan is elected Fellow of Optica, AAAS, SPIE, IEEE, AIMBE, RSC, APS and the Guggenheim Foundation, and is a Lifetime Fellow Member of Optica, NAI, AAAS, SPIE and APS. Dr. Ozcan is also listed as a Highly Cited Researcher by Web of Science, Clarivate.
Last Updated: 10/16/2024
H. Nevzat Özgüven
Middle East Technical University
Dr. H. Nevzat Özgüven (PhD, The University of Manchester) is a Professor Emeritus of Mechanical Engineering at METU (Türkiye) with over 40 years of experience in mechanical vibrations. His primary research interests include gear dynamics, machine tool dynamics, and both linear and nonlinear structural dynamics. His work on nonlinear systems has focused particularly in the areas of identification of nonlinearity, analytical and experimental nonlinear modal analysis, and nonlinear substructuring. Dr. Özgüven has been a Visiting Fulbright Professor at The Ohio State University for two years and a TUM Global Visiting Professor at the Technical University of Munich. His extensive administrative experience includes serving as Vice President of The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Türkiye for over five years and as Vice President of METU for eight years. He is an ASME Fellow and is a member of the Science Academy (Türkiye).
Last Updated: 09/05/2024
Benjamin Pacini
Sandia National Laboratories
Benjamin Pacini is a Principal Member of Technical Staff at Sandia National Laboratories where he has been working since 2011 after receiving his B.S and M.S. degrees in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs and Oklahoma State University, respectively. In 2013 he joined the Experimental Structural Dynamics Department and has conducted modal tests on a variety of structures ranging from Saguaro cactus to aerospace structures. His research interest has been, and will always be, nonlinear structural dynamics with a particular focus on bolted joints. With three young boys at home, his free time is filled with chasing them around, whether in a back yard soccer game or on a hiking trail in the mountains.
Last Updated: 09/04/2024
Garrett Pataky
Clemson University
SEM Awards: J. W. Dally Young Investigator
Dr. Garrett J. Pataky is an Associate Professor at Clemson University in Clemson, SC, USA. He obtained his Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Florida, and his Master’s and PhD degrees in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He is currently the chair of the Fracture and Fatigue technical division and secretary for the Society for Experimental Mechanics Education Foundation. He serves as an Associate Technical Editor for Experimental Mechanics. His technical and teaching accomplishments are noted by several awards including the Clemson College of Engineering, Computing, and Applied Science’s (CECAS) Byars Prize Award for Excellence in Teaching, the CECAS Murray Stokely Award, the NSF CAREER Award, and PCI Journal George D. Nasser Award. His research is supported by NSF, DOE, NASA, and industrial partners. His research interests focus on understanding material behavior and fracture and fatigue mechanisms using multiscale experiments.
Last Updated: 01/06/2025
Fabrice Pierron
University of Southampton
SEM Awards: G. A. Brewer, SEM Fellow
Dr. Fabrice Pierron has been a Professor of Solid Mechanics at the University of Southampton since 2012. He is a specialist in the integration of image-based deformation mapping (like digital image correlation) with inverse identification (like the Virtual Fields Method) to design the next generation of mechanical tests. He has published more than 150 journal articles. He was Editor-in-Chief of the journal Strain (Wiley) for ten years and is a co-founder of the company MatchID NV (Ghent, Belgium), for which he now also works as R&D Director since 2021. Prof. Pierron is a Fellow of the Society for Experimental Mechanics (SEM).
Last Updated: 11/06/2023
Tresa Pollock
University of California, Santa Barbara
SEM Awards: M. Hetényi
Tresa Pollock is the Alcoa Professor of Materials at the University of California, Santa Barbara. Pollock’s research focuses on the mechanical and environmental performance of materials in extreme environments, unique high temperature materials processing paths, ultrafast laser-material interactions, alloy design and 3-D materials characterization. Pollock graduated with a B.S. from Purdue University in 1984, and a Ph.D. from MIT in 1989. She was employed at General Electric Aircraft Engines from 1989 to 1991, where she conducted research and development on high temperature alloys for aircraft turbine engines and co-developed the single crystal alloy René N6 (now in service). Pollock was a professor in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at Carnegie Mellon University from 1991 to 1999 and the University of Michigan from 2000 - 2010. Her recent research has focused on development of new femtosecond laser-aided 3-D tomography techniques, damage detection and modeling by resonant ultrasound spectroscopy, thermal barrier coatings systems, new intermetallic-containing cobalt-base materials, nickel base alloys for turbine engines, lightweight magnesium alloys, Heusler-based thermoelectrics and bulk nanolaminates. Professor Pollock was elected to the U.S. National Academy of Engineering in 2005, the German Academy of Sciences Leopoldina in 2015 and is a Fellow of TMS and ASM International. She serves as Editor in Chief of the Metallurgical and Materials Transactions family of journals and was the 2005-2006 President of The Minerals, Metals and Materials Society.
Last Updated: 04/06/2020
Barton Prorok
Auburn University
SEM Awards: S. Nemat-Nasser, M. Hetényi
Barton C. Prorok, Professor and Chair of Materials Engineering at Auburn University, has made impactful contributions to experimental mechanics, focusing on understanding material behavior and developing innovative experimental methods. His research spans a broad range of materials including thin films, composites, ceramics, functional materials, biomineralized structures, natural materials, and, more recently, additively manufactured metals. An SEM member since 2002 and a 2005 M. Hetényi awardee, his work has been featured in a live CNN interview and on the front page of the Wall Street Journal as well as the cover of industrial periodicals such as Additive Manufacturing Magazine. He is a dedicated mentor, fostering the next generation of engineers through his leadership and commitment to education.
Last Updated: 01/06/2025
Oliver Rantalainen
Tampere University
SEM Awards: D. R. Harting
MSc. Oliver Rantalainen studied mechanical engineering in Tampere University (formerly Tampere University of Technology). His Master’s thesis project, carried out in the Materials Science and Environmental Engineering unit in Tampere University, focused on the mechanical design of the large-scale Rotating Beam Fatigue Machine discussed in the awarded paper. After obtaining his degree, Rantalainen has continued working as mechanical designer for different industry sectors including paper machinery, forestry and robotics.
Last Updated: 05/13/2024
Suraj Ravindran
University of South Carolina
SEM Awards: R. E. Peterson
Suraj Ravindran is currently a postdoctoral scholar at the Graduate Aerospace Laboratories, California Institute of Technology (GALCIT), working on the high-pressure dynamic behavior of materials. He received his Ph.D. in mechanical engineering from the University of South Carolina in 2018. During his Ph.D. research, he developed a novel experimental technique to measure the local strain and temperatures at high spatiotemporal resolution. His research interests are in the mechanics of materials under extreme pressure, strain rate, and temperature.
Last Updated: 04/21/2021
Emily Retzlaff
US Naval Academy
SEM Awards: R. E. Peterson
Emily Retzlaff is currently an Associate Professor in the Mechanical and Nuclear Engineering Department at the US Naval Academy. She received her PhD from Johns Hopkins University, advised by Dr. K.T. Ramesh. Her dissertation focused on temperature and dynamic strain rate effects on aluminum alloys. Dr Retzlaff then completed a post doc at the Army Research Lab, advised by Dr. Brian Schuster and Dr. Dan Casem. While at ARL she developed an optically instrumented miniature Kolsky bar. Dr Retzlaff has been a member of SEM since 2008 and is Chair of the Additive and Advanced Manufacturing technical division.
Last Updated: 05/21/2024
Phillip Reu
Sandia National Laboratories
SEM Awards: G.A. Brewer, SEM Fellow, International Symposium on MEMS and Nanotechnology – Best Paper
Dr. Phillip L. Reu is a Distinguished Member of Technical Staff at Sandia National Laboratories. He has received an MS in biomedical engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and an MS and PhD in mechanical engineering from the University of Wisconsin – Madison (2002). Phillip specializes in developing novel full-field measurement techniques in previously un-measurable regimes often using digital image correlation (DIC) or coherent optical measurement techniques. He was awarded the Brewer award for outstanding experimentalist from SEM in 2016. Current research efforts in DIC are focused on uncertainty quantification. Phillip is the author of the “Art and Application of DIC” article series in the journal of Experimental Techniques, international instructor in DIC techniques for “Metrology beyond colors”, chair of the DIC Challenge, president of the international digital image correlation society (iDICs), author of more than 30 peer reviewed journal articles, and pater familias to 6 kids.
Dr. Phillip L. Reu earned a Master’s of Science in biomedical engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and a Master’s of Science and a PhD in mechanical engineering from the University of Wisconsin – Madison. Phil specializes in developing novel full-field measurement techniques in previously un-measurable regimes often using digital image correlation (DIC) or coherent optical measurement techniques. He has been instrumental in the popularization and wide-spread adoption of full-field and optical measurement techniques both at Sandia and globally. Phillip is the founding Vice President & current President of the International Digital Image Correlation Society (iDICs), and an international instructor in DIC techniques and best practices, training over 90 Sandians as well as researchers at LANL, AWE and the DoD. Phil’s leadership and technical contributions in developing and deploying these techniques, have been critical in proving that digital high-speed cameras can be used to make quantitative measurements with an understanding of the uncertainty, enabling their widespread use at the labs today.
Dr. Phillip L. Reu earned a Master’s of Science in biomedical engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and a Master’s of Science and a PhD in mechanical engineering from the University of Wisconsin – Madison. Phil specializes in developing novel full-field measurement techniques in previously un-measurable regimes often using digital image correlation (DIC) or coherent optical measurement techniques. He has been instrumental in the popularization and wide-spread adoption of full-field and optical measurement techniques both at Sandia and globally. Phillip is the founding Vice President & current President of the International Digital Image Correlation Society (iDICs), and an international instructor in DIC techniques and best practices, training over 90 Sandians as well as researchers at LANL, AWE and the DoD. Phil’s leadership and technical contributions in developing and deploying these techniques, have been critical in proving that digital high-speed cameras can be used to make quantitative measurements with an understanding of the uncertainty, enabling their widespread use at the labs today.
Last Updated: 03/04/2020
Paul Reynolds
FSD Active Ltd.
SEM Awards: F. G. Tatnall
Paul Reynolds had a distinguished 23-year academic career at the Universities of Sheffield and Exeter, during which time he carried out world-leading research into vibration serviceability of civil engineering structures and structural vibration control, with more than 160 publications in this field. In January 2022, Paul moved out of academia to take up the position of CEO of FSD Active Ltd, a company he founded in 2020 to commercialise active mass damping technology for building floors and other structures. Paul has also been a founding director of Full Scale Dynamics Ltd since 2008, a specialist consultancy carrying out testing, monitoring analysis and design work in the area of civil engineering vibration, and he remains an Honorary Professor at University of Exeter.
Paul has been an active member of SEM for more than two decades, serving on the Editorial Boards of Experimental Techniques since 2008 and Experimental Mechanics since 2011, also serving as Editor-in-Chief of Experimental Techniques from 2016-2020. He has also served on the Honors Committee, Applications Committee and as a Member At Large of the Executive Board.
Professor Reynolds is also a regular consultant to industry in vibration serviceability and related areas, including dynamic testing and monitoring of a number of UK sports stadia and examining solutions to the London Millennium Bridge problem. He is also a Director of Full Scale Dynamics Limited, a University spin-off company that was established in 2008.
Paul has been an active member of SEM for more than two decades, serving on the Editorial Boards of Experimental Techniques since 2008 and Experimental Mechanics since 2011, also serving as Editor-in-Chief of Experimental Techniques from 2016-2020. He has also served on the Honors Committee, Applications Committee and as a Member At Large of the Executive Board.
Professor Reynolds is also a regular consultant to industry in vibration serviceability and related areas, including dynamic testing and monitoring of a number of UK sports stadia and examining solutions to the London Millennium Bridge problem. He is also a Director of Full Scale Dynamics Limited, a University spin-off company that was established in 2008.
Last Updated: 11/08/2023
Mark Richardson
Vibrant Technology, Inc.
SEM Awards: SEM Fellow
Dr. Mark Richardson co-founded Vibrant Technology, Inc. in 1991, and is currently its President and CEO. Vibrant is the developer of the MEscope™ software family of post-test noise and vibration analysis tools.
Mark received a BSME degree in 1964, MSME degree in 1966, and PhD in Mechanical Engineering in 1969, all from the University of Notre Dame in South Bend, Indiana.
In 1991, Mark and another engineer from GenRad founded Vibrant Technology, Inc. Vibrant developed a new Operating Deflection Shape (ODS) and modal analysis software package called MEscope™. The primary function of MEscope™ is the animated display of ODS’s and mode shapes in slow, amplified motion on a 3D model of a test article. MEscope™ is sold worldwide through a network of resellers along with other vibration-related products like multi-channel acquisition hardware, accelerometers, hammers, and shakers.
Mark received a BSME degree in 1964, MSME degree in 1966, and PhD in Mechanical Engineering in 1969, all from the University of Notre Dame in South Bend, Indiana.
In 1991, Mark and another engineer from GenRad founded Vibrant Technology, Inc. Vibrant developed a new Operating Deflection Shape (ODS) and modal analysis software package called MEscope™. The primary function of MEscope™ is the animated display of ODS’s and mode shapes in slow, amplified motion on a 3D model of a test article. MEscope™ is sold worldwide through a network of resellers along with other vibration-related products like multi-channel acquisition hardware, accelerometers, hammers, and shakers.
Last Updated: 11/19/2024
Daniel Rittel
Technion, IIT
SEM Awards: W. M. Murray Lecture, B. J. Lazan
Prof. Daniel Rittel, formerly the Zandman Chair in Experimental Mechanics and head of the Materials Mechanics Center, is an emeritus professor in the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering at Technion. D. Rittel was the Clark B. Millikan Visiting Professor in Aeronautics (2007) at Caltech where he holds a Visiting Associate position. He was the incumbent of a Catedra de Excellencia at UC3M (Madrid) in 2012 and 2019, where he is now Honorary Professor. Throughout the years, D. Rittel has developed expertise in many experimental aspects of dynamic failure, including fracture mechanics, constitutive behavior, dynamic failure mechanisms and numerical modeling, and more recently dental biomechanics and soft matter. D. Rittel’s interest is in the thermomechanics and physics of dynamic failure, specifically dynamic fragmentation, fracture, adiabatic shear banding and hysteretic heating. In 2015, D. Rittel, ASME and SEM Fellow, was awarded the prestigious Gili Agostinelli Prize (Torino Academy of Sciences, Italy) for his work on adiabatic shear localization, and in 2018, he was awarded the B. J. Lazan Award from the SEM. He was recently elected member of Academia Europae and European Academy of Arts and Sciences. As of today, he has co-authored 230 scientific publications.
Last Updated: 01/06/2025
Daniel Rixen
Technical University of Munich (Germany)
SEM Awards: SEM Past President (2020-21), D. R. Harting
Professor Rixen, (b. 1967) received his engineering degree from the University of Liège (ULg, Belgium) and an MSc degree in Aerospace Vehicle Design from the College of Aeronautics in Cranfield (UK). He obtained his doctorate degree from ULg in 1997, supervised by Professor Géradin. After a research assistantship at the Center for Aerospace of the University of Colorado (USA), he became in 2000 full professor at Delft University of Technology (The Netherlands) as Chair of Engineering Dynamics. Since 2012 he is heading the Department of Applied Mechanics at TUM. His field of interest includes theoretical, numerical and experimental aspects of the dynamics of structures and mechatronical systems.
Last Updated: 05/17/2023
Jon Rogers
Sandia National Laboratories
SEM Awards: F. G. Tatnall Award, SEM Fellow
Dr. Rogers received his B.S., M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Engineering Mechanics from Iowa State University in 1980, 1984 and 1986, respectively. Jon joined Sandia in the fall of 1986 in the Vibration Testing Division. In the test organization, he worked as the test engineer for vibration and shock testing on a number of systems. Jon was the project leader for the VIBRAFUGE development project which placed a 4000 lb force rated shaker on the 29-foot underground centrifuge, and for the Acoustic Test Facility development project. This resulted in the construction of the 16,000 cu. ft., high-level chamber with combined acoustic and vibration test capabilities.
Jon moved to Systems Studies in the fall of 1992. He has worked on a variety of studies including Advanced Manufacturing, the Impact of Technology on the Economy, and many studies involving the weapons program and Underground Facilities. Jon was made a Distinguished Member of Technical Staff in the fall of 2002 and was promoted to manager in the fall of 2003. He is currently the manager of the Strategic Weapons Studies Department which focuses primarily on nuclear and conventional weapons related issues.
Jon has been an active member of the Society for Experimental Mechanics since 1981. He has served many roles for the Society, including: Member of the Executive Board, Chairman of the Technical Program for the Annual Meeting (4 times), President of the Society, Associate Technical Editor of Experimental Techniques, Chairman of the Editorial Council, and Treasurer of the Society.
Jon moved to Systems Studies in the fall of 1992. He has worked on a variety of studies including Advanced Manufacturing, the Impact of Technology on the Economy, and many studies involving the weapons program and Underground Facilities. Jon was made a Distinguished Member of Technical Staff in the fall of 2002 and was promoted to manager in the fall of 2003. He is currently the manager of the Strategic Weapons Studies Department which focuses primarily on nuclear and conventional weapons related issues.
Jon has been an active member of the Society for Experimental Mechanics since 1981. He has served many roles for the Society, including: Member of the Executive Board, Chairman of the Technical Program for the Annual Meeting (4 times), President of the Society, Associate Technical Editor of Experimental Techniques, Chairman of the Editorial Council, and Treasurer of the Society.
Last Updated: 10/20/2020
Daniel Rohe
Sandia National Laboratories
SEM Awards: SAGE Publishing Young Engineer Lecture
Dr. Daniel Rohe is a Principal Member of the Technical Staff at Sandia National Laboratories. Dan works in the Experimental Structural Dynamics department where he specializes in dynamic characterization testing using non-contact diagnostics and MIMO vibration control. His current research focus is in incorporating radiographic measurements into modal tests.
Last Updated: 08/28/2024
Andrew Ruggiero
University of Cassino and Southern Lazio, Italy
SEM Awards: R. E. Peterson
Andrew Ruggiero is Associate Professor of Machine Design at the University of Cassino and Southern Lazio and Scientific Director of the Engineering Design Laboratory, Department of Civil and Mechanical Engineering. Research interests: Impact Dynamics (characterization and modeling of the mechanical behavior of conventional and advanced materials subject to extreme loading conditions) and Continuum Damage Mechanics (development and implementation of damage models for failure prediction even in structured materials with specific attention to the multiscale approach). Member of: Italian Scientific Society of Mechanical Engineering Design; American Physical Society - Shock Compression of Condensed Matter Group.
Last Updated: 06/01/2023
Tuomo Saarinen
Sandvik Mining and Construction Oy, Tampere, Finland
SEM Awards: D. R. Harting
MSc. Tuomo Saarinen works as a chief metallurgist in Sandvik Mining and Construction Oy, Tampere, Finland. He is responsible for the selection, development and process optimization of high strength materials used in the critical components of high-performance mining equipment. Previously he has worked several years as a metallurgist in a steel plant as well as research scientist at the former Tampere University of Technology. He has a long track record of carrying out systematic industry-driven research and development work in close collaboration with academia. His current research interests involve improving the performance of load bearing components by applying systematic statistical analysis-based metrics throughout the process chain.
Last Updated: 05/14/2024
Maren Scheel
University of Stuttgart, Germany
SEM Awards: D. R. Harting
Maren Scheel is a research associate and PhD student at the University of Stuttgart, Germany. Her research interests include nonlinear modal analysis, nonlinear system identification and dynamic substructuring.
Last Updated: 04/14/2020
Tyler Schoenherr
Sandia National Laboratories
Tyler Schoenherr is currently a member of the staff at Sandia National Laboratories in the structural dynamic analysis and testing organizations. His work is centered around the merriment of experimental and analytical tools and techniques. He received his MS in Mechanical Engineering at Michigan Technological University in 2010. In addition to his employment at Sandia National Laboratories, Tyler managed the testing laboratory complex for a small combustion engines manufacturer. Tyler has been active in SEM since 2012 and helped co-found the Dynamic Environments Testing Technical Division. In his spare time, he enjoys playing volleyball, coaching youth soccer, and camping with his family.
Last Updated: 12/19/2024
Meredith Silberstein
Cornell University
SEM Awards: M. Hetényi, Wolfgang Knauss Young Investigator Award
Meredith Silberstein is an Associate Professor in the Sibley School of Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering at Cornell University and Director of the Engineered Living Materials Institute. She received her PhD in June 2011 from the MIT Department of Mechanical Engineering. Afterward, she served as a postdoctoral fellow at the Beckman Institute at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. She has received the NSF CAREER (2017), DOE CAREER (2018), and DARPA young investigator (2020) awards. Meredith Silberstein's Mechanics for Materials Design Lab is devoted to using mechanical experiments and modeling methods in material design, with particular focus on multifunctional, active, and polymeric materials.
Last Updated: 06/12/2024
Raman Singh
Oklahoma State University (OSU)
SEM Awards: SEM Past President (2023-24)
Dr. Raman P. Singh serves as the Associate Dean for Engineering at OSU-Tulsa and as the Head of the School of Materials Science and Engineering in the College of Engineering, Architecture and Technology at Oklahoma State University (OSU). He also serves as the Director of the Helmerich Advanced Technology Research Center on the OSU-Tulsa campus and is appointed as the Helmerich Family Endowed Chair Professor of Engineering.
Raman holds M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Mechanical Engineering and Ap-plied Mechanics from the University of Rhode Island, and a B.Tech. degree in Mechanical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology–Kanpur, India. Prior to joining OSU in 2006 he was a faculty member at the State University of New York at Stony Brook, and before that a post-doctoral scholar at the California Institute of Technology.
Raman’s academic interests are in student mentorship, development, and re-tention with a focus on new pedagogical methods. His research interests are in the mechanics of advanced materials, with an emphasis on the investigation of modern engineered materials and development of new techniques for mechanical characterization at highly localized length scales. His research has been funded by the National Science Foundation, NASA, the Oklahoma Center for the Ad-vancement of Science & Technology, the Oklahoma Transportation Commission, the US Army Research Office, the Department of Energy, and industry. He has authored or co-authored several archival journal publications and conference proceedings and holds two patents. He is an active member of the Society of Experimental Mechanics (SEM) and serves as an Associate Technical Editor for Experimental Mechanics. He is also a member of the Materials Research Society and the American Society of Mechanical Engineers. Besides academia, Raman enjoys travel, backpacking, photography, and spending time with his two daughters.
Raman holds M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Mechanical Engineering and Ap-plied Mechanics from the University of Rhode Island, and a B.Tech. degree in Mechanical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology–Kanpur, India. Prior to joining OSU in 2006 he was a faculty member at the State University of New York at Stony Brook, and before that a post-doctoral scholar at the California Institute of Technology.
Raman’s academic interests are in student mentorship, development, and re-tention with a focus on new pedagogical methods. His research interests are in the mechanics of advanced materials, with an emphasis on the investigation of modern engineered materials and development of new techniques for mechanical characterization at highly localized length scales. His research has been funded by the National Science Foundation, NASA, the Oklahoma Center for the Ad-vancement of Science & Technology, the Oklahoma Transportation Commission, the US Army Research Office, the Department of Energy, and industry. He has authored or co-authored several archival journal publications and conference proceedings and holds two patents. He is an active member of the Society of Experimental Mechanics (SEM) and serves as an Associate Technical Editor for Experimental Mechanics. He is also a member of the Materials Research Society and the American Society of Mechanical Engineers. Besides academia, Raman enjoys travel, backpacking, photography, and spending time with his two daughters.
Last Updated: 12/21/2020
Janko Slavič
University of Ljubljana (UL)
SEM Awards: D. J. DeMichele
Janko Slavič is a Professor at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, University of Ljubljana (UL). He received his PhD from UL in 2005 and was a Fulbright postdoctoral fellow at the University of Texas at Austin (2005–2006). After his postdoctoral fellowship, he returned to UL and was promoted to full professor in 2018.
Dr. Slavič is active in three research fields. The first is vibration fatigue research, where he works at the intersection of structural dynamics, signal processing, and material fatigue. After nearly 15 years of research, he co-authored the Elsevier monograph titled "Vibration Fatigue by Spectral Methods" in 2020. The second field is high-speed camera-based research, where he is particularly focused on identifying subtle motions hidden within camera noise and relating the camera based measurements to structural dynamics identification. The third research field is smart, 3D-printed structures created in a single process.
As of 2024, Dr. Slavič has supervised 20 completed PhD projects.
Dr. Slavič is active in three research fields. The first is vibration fatigue research, where he works at the intersection of structural dynamics, signal processing, and material fatigue. After nearly 15 years of research, he co-authored the Elsevier monograph titled "Vibration Fatigue by Spectral Methods" in 2020. The second field is high-speed camera-based research, where he is particularly focused on identifying subtle motions hidden within camera noise and relating the camera based measurements to structural dynamics identification. The third research field is smart, 3D-printed structures created in a single process.
As of 2024, Dr. Slavič has supervised 20 completed PhD projects.
Last Updated: 11/20/2024
Nancy R. Sottos
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
SEM Awards: SEM Fellow, M. M. Frocht, M. Hetényi, B. J. Lazan, W. M. Murray Lecture, C. E. Taylor
Nancy Sottos holds the Maybelle Leland Swanlund Endowed Chair and is Head of the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at the University of Illinois Urbana Champaign. She is leader of the Autonomous Materials Systems (AMS) group at the Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology. Inspired by autonomous function in biological systems, the Sottos group develops polymers and composites capable of self-healing and regeneration, self-reporting, and self-protection to improve reliability and extend material lifetime. Her current research interests focus on new bioinspired methods to manufacture these complex materials. Sottos’ research and teaching awards include the ONR Young Investigator Award, Scientific American's SciAm 50 Award, the Hetényi Best Paper Award in Experimental Mechanics, Fylde Best Paper Award in the journal Strain, the M. M. Frocht, the B. J. Lazan and the Charles Taylor Awards from the Society for Experimental Mechanics, the Daniel Drucker Eminent Faculty Award, the IChemE Global Research Award, and the Society of Engineering Science Medal. She is a member of the National Academy of Engineering (NAE), a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), Society for Experimental Mechanics (SEM) and the Society for Engineering Science (SES).
Last Updated: 05/03/2021
Jim Steedman
Navcon Engineering
Jim Steedman (BSME, MSME) studied at the University of Cincinnati where he focused on modal testing, acoustic intensity and structureborne noise radiation. He has consulted in the field of noise and vibration measurement, analysis and control since 1978 working in both the commercial and military sectors. Jim has traveled worldwide, consulting and presenting trainings and seminars on modal testing and analysis, acoustic intensity, environmental noise, and noise & vibration control. Jim has also served as an Expert Witness in numerous law suits involving noise and vibration impact, personal injury and property damage.
Last Updated: 10/22/2020
Jean-Charles Stinville
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
SEM Awards: M. Hetényi
Dr. Jean-Charles Stinville holds a Ph.D. in Solid Mechanics, Materials Science, and Mechanical Engineering and an aerospace engineering degree from a French Grande Ecole. In 2012, he joined the Materials Department at the University of California Santa Barbara and became a Research Specialist in 2015. As a Research Specialist, he has led efforts around the experimental development of in-situ characterization techniques. In 2021, he joined the Materials Science and Engineering Department at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign as an assistant professor. He was awarded the NSF Career Award in 2024. His group develops in-situ characterization techniques and designs sustainable and high-performance alloys for applications in extreme environments.
Last Updated: 05/20/2024
Ghatu Subhash
University of Florida
SEM Awards: W. M. Murray Lecture
Professor Ghatu Subhash obtained his PhD from the University of California San Diego (1991) and conducted his post-doctoral research at California Institute of Technology (1992). He joined Michigan Technological University as an Assistant Professor in 1993 and moved to University of Florida (UF) in 2007. He is currently the Newton C Ebaugh Professor in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering department. His research focuses on static and dynamic multiaxial behavior of advanced materials. His pioneering contributions in deciphering the complex deformation mechanisms in ceramics have been summarized in high impact journals such as Progress in Materials Science and in a monograph Dynamic Response of Advanced ceramics. Thus far, his research has resulted in 220 peer-reviewed journal articles, 85 conference proceedings, 2-books, and 8 book chapters. These publications have garnered more than 10,800 citations (in Google Scholar) and an h-index of 58.
Thus far, Prof. Subhash’s innovative research has resulted in 7 patents on novel experimental techniques and processing methods. He has pioneered the concept of dynamic indentation hardness (2 patents) for rapid assessment of rate sensitivity of materials. His recent innovation on ‘Millipede Stress Waveguide’ has applications in design of machine tools, compact testing equipment, and efficient jack hammers (patented and licensed). For contributing to the fundamental understanding of the behavior of ceramics, he was recognized by the 2024 James I. Mueller Memorial Award and conference plenary lecture at the ICACC (Jan 2024) of the American Ceramic Society (ACerS). For his outstanding contributions to Experimental Mechanics, he received the 2021 Lazan Award from the Society for Experimental Mechanics (SEM). In addition, he also received the UF Technology Innovator Award (twice) and UF Research Foundation Professorship (twice). For development of rapid processing method for fabrication of net shaped UO2 ceramic fuel pellets he received ‘Significant Contribution Award’ from the American Nuclear Society.
Prof. Subhash has mentored 8 postdoctoral fellows and advised 41 PhD and 16 MS students. For his outstanding scholarship and mentorship of graduate and undergraduate students, he was awarded the University of Florida Doctoral Dissertation Advisor/Mentoring Award (2021). He has served on the National Research Council’s National Academies of Engineering, Science and Medicine Panel, as the Chair of the SEM 75th Anniversary Program, Chair of the SEM ‘Committee of Fellows’, member of the ‘ASME Spirit of St. Louis Award’ committee, the ‘ACerS Sosman Award’ committee, and the SEM Executive committee. His commitment to education was recognized by the SEM ‘Frocht Award’ for outstanding achievements as an educator, UF College of Engineering ‘Teacher/Scholar of the Year’, ASME Student Section Advisor Award, ‘SAE Ralph R. Teetor Educational Award’, ‘ASEE Outstanding New Mechanics Educator’ award, and ‘Commendation Letters’ from the Michigan Legislature and the Governor. He has delivered 2-day specialized technical courses for practicing engineers/scientists on ‘Dynamic Response of Materials’ at General Motors, Johns Hopkins University, and ACerS. His research was showcased in a PBS documentary “Secrets of Spanish Florida” in the Series “Secrets of the Dead” (aired nationwide in Dec 2017) where he unraveled the mystery behind the impact-resistance of Coquina (the material with which the oldest fort in the USA – the Castillo de San Marcos, St. Augustine, FL, was built) against cannon ball impacts during the seize by the British army in the 1702.
Prof. Subhash is a Fellow of ASME, SEM, and ACerS, and serves as the Editor-in-Chief of ‘Mechanics of Materials’.
Thus far, Prof. Subhash’s innovative research has resulted in 7 patents on novel experimental techniques and processing methods. He has pioneered the concept of dynamic indentation hardness (2 patents) for rapid assessment of rate sensitivity of materials. His recent innovation on ‘Millipede Stress Waveguide’ has applications in design of machine tools, compact testing equipment, and efficient jack hammers (patented and licensed). For contributing to the fundamental understanding of the behavior of ceramics, he was recognized by the 2024 James I. Mueller Memorial Award and conference plenary lecture at the ICACC (Jan 2024) of the American Ceramic Society (ACerS). For his outstanding contributions to Experimental Mechanics, he received the 2021 Lazan Award from the Society for Experimental Mechanics (SEM). In addition, he also received the UF Technology Innovator Award (twice) and UF Research Foundation Professorship (twice). For development of rapid processing method for fabrication of net shaped UO2 ceramic fuel pellets he received ‘Significant Contribution Award’ from the American Nuclear Society.
Prof. Subhash has mentored 8 postdoctoral fellows and advised 41 PhD and 16 MS students. For his outstanding scholarship and mentorship of graduate and undergraduate students, he was awarded the University of Florida Doctoral Dissertation Advisor/Mentoring Award (2021). He has served on the National Research Council’s National Academies of Engineering, Science and Medicine Panel, as the Chair of the SEM 75th Anniversary Program, Chair of the SEM ‘Committee of Fellows’, member of the ‘ASME Spirit of St. Louis Award’ committee, the ‘ACerS Sosman Award’ committee, and the SEM Executive committee. His commitment to education was recognized by the SEM ‘Frocht Award’ for outstanding achievements as an educator, UF College of Engineering ‘Teacher/Scholar of the Year’, ASME Student Section Advisor Award, ‘SAE Ralph R. Teetor Educational Award’, ‘ASEE Outstanding New Mechanics Educator’ award, and ‘Commendation Letters’ from the Michigan Legislature and the Governor. He has delivered 2-day specialized technical courses for practicing engineers/scientists on ‘Dynamic Response of Materials’ at General Motors, Johns Hopkins University, and ACerS. His research was showcased in a PBS documentary “Secrets of Spanish Florida” in the Series “Secrets of the Dead” (aired nationwide in Dec 2017) where he unraveled the mystery behind the impact-resistance of Coquina (the material with which the oldest fort in the USA – the Castillo de San Marcos, St. Augustine, FL, was built) against cannon ball impacts during the seize by the British army in the 1702.
Prof. Subhash is a Fellow of ASME, SEM, and ACerS, and serves as the Editor-in-Chief of ‘Mechanics of Materials’.
Last Updated: 02/22/2024
Michael Sutton
University of South Carolina
SEM Awards: William M. Murray Lecture, M. M. Frocht, M. Hetényi, B. J. Lazan, R. E. Peterson, F. G. Tatnall, C. E. Taylor, P. S. Theocaris, SEM Fellow, SEM Honorary Member
Michael A. Sutton received his Ph.D. in 1981 from the Department of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics at the University of Illinois under the direction of Prof. Charles E. Taylor (NAE, 1979). In 1982, Dr. Sutton joined the faculty in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the University of South Carolina and was awarded a Carolina Distinguished Professorship in 1992. He is currently a Research Professor and Director of the State Center for Mechanics, Materials and NDE, while also serving as the Chief Science Officer for Correlated Solutions, Incorporated, the only US-based DIC R&D company and provider of digital image correlation measurement systems.
Prof. Sutton, a Fellow and Past-President of the Society for Experimental Mechanics (SEM), a Fellow of American Society for Mechanical Engineering (ASME) and the founding President of the International Digital Image Correlation Society, has received numerous national and international honors for his contributions in the fields of experimental mechanics, computer vision in solid mechanics and fracture mechanics. In 2020, he was elected to the National Academy of Engineering and in 2021 he was elected to the Slovenian National Academy of Engineering. Prof. Sutton has published over two hundred and fifty archival articles. As one of the inventors of the digital image correlation (DIC) methods, he has co-authored the only book on image correlation methods, written eight research book chapters, a chapter for a well-known textbook and given numerous national and international presentations.
Prof. Sutton’s current areas of research interest include 3D computer vision for deformation measurements in civil infrastructure (train rails and ties, bridges, roofing systems), measurements and modeling for composite bonding during manufacturing, including measurement of traction-separation laws for prediction of defect formation during manufacturing.
Prof. Sutton married Elizabeth Ann Severns in 1973. They have two daughters (pediatric dentist and high school science teacher) and six grandchildren. They continue to reside near Columbia, SC on a 12.5-acre urban nature preserve and farm.
Prof. Sutton, a Fellow and Past-President of the Society for Experimental Mechanics (SEM), a Fellow of American Society for Mechanical Engineering (ASME) and the founding President of the International Digital Image Correlation Society, has received numerous national and international honors for his contributions in the fields of experimental mechanics, computer vision in solid mechanics and fracture mechanics. In 2020, he was elected to the National Academy of Engineering and in 2021 he was elected to the Slovenian National Academy of Engineering. Prof. Sutton has published over two hundred and fifty archival articles. As one of the inventors of the digital image correlation (DIC) methods, he has co-authored the only book on image correlation methods, written eight research book chapters, a chapter for a well-known textbook and given numerous national and international presentations.
Prof. Sutton’s current areas of research interest include 3D computer vision for deformation measurements in civil infrastructure (train rails and ties, bridges, roofing systems), measurements and modeling for composite bonding during manufacturing, including measurement of traction-separation laws for prediction of defect formation during manufacturing.
Prof. Sutton married Elizabeth Ann Severns in 1973. They have two daughters (pediatric dentist and high school science teacher) and six grandchildren. They continue to reside near Columbia, SC on a 12.5-acre urban nature preserve and farm.
Last Updated: 10/17/2024
Addis Tessema
University of South Carolina
SEM Awards: R. E. Peterson
Addis Tessema is a PhD candidate at the University of South Carolina in the Department of Mechanical Engineering. He received his B.S. and M.S. degrees in Mechanical Engineering from the Addis Ababa University. His research studies focus on the local damage formation and progressive failure mechanisms in composites, image based experimental mechanics and characterizing the thermal and mechanical behavior of nanocomposite.
Last Updated: 04/07/2020
Damien Texier
Institut Clément Ader in France
SEM Awards: M. Hetényi
Damien Texier is a CNRS research scientist at the Institut Clément Ader (ICA) since 2017. He obtained his PhD in material sciences from Institut National Polytechnique Toulouse (2013). He continued his research at Pprime Institute (2013), University of California, Santa Barbara (2014), and École de technologie supérieure (2015-2017). He has developed experimental tools for the micromechanical characterization of materials, including digital image correlation techniques, to understand, identify and quantify deformation localization at the microstructure scale. His current research at ICA focuses on the mechanical behavior, surface reactivity and durability of structural materials for transport/aerospace applications in complex environments.
Last Updated: 10/17/2024
Rachael C. Tighe
School of Engineering – Te Kura Mata-Ao, University of Waikato, New Zealand
Dr Rachael C. Tighe is a Senior Lecturer (equivalent to Associate Professor) and Programme Leader of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Waikato, New Zealand. She is a current Royal Society Te Apārangi, New Zealand Marsden Fund (Fast Start) recipient. Her work focusses on quantitative non-destructive evaluation and full field inspection techniques, particularly thermographic methods, applied to a variety of materials, components and structures for improved damage and defect characterisation.
Rachael obtained her MPhys degree in Physics and MSc degree in Environmental Technology from Lancaster University. She then completed her PhD in Engineering from the University of Southampton in 2014. Rachael has worked as a Research Fellow in the Faculty of Engineering at the University of Southampton and for the UK Ministry of Defence before emigrating to New Zealand and joining the University of Waikato.
Rachael has been a member of the Society of Experimental Mechanics since 2011, and has served as the Chair, Vice-Chair and Secretary of the Thermomechanics and Infrared Imaging Technical Division. She has previously sat on the British Society for Strain Measurement National Council and the Conference Committee for Manufacturing, Design and Entrepreneurship New Zealand.
Rachael obtained her MPhys degree in Physics and MSc degree in Environmental Technology from Lancaster University. She then completed her PhD in Engineering from the University of Southampton in 2014. Rachael has worked as a Research Fellow in the Faculty of Engineering at the University of Southampton and for the UK Ministry of Defence before emigrating to New Zealand and joining the University of Waikato.
Rachael has been a member of the Society of Experimental Mechanics since 2011, and has served as the Chair, Vice-Chair and Secretary of the Thermomechanics and Infrared Imaging Technical Division. She has previously sat on the British Society for Strain Measurement National Council and the Conference Committee for Manufacturing, Design and Entrepreneurship New Zealand.
Last Updated: 06/18/2024
Gregory Tipton
Sandia National Laboratories
Dr. Gregory Tipton is a Distinguished Member of the Research and Development Staff at Sandia National Laboratories in Albuquerque, New Mexico. He’s been at Sandia since 1994 and has held a variety of positions in both the systems engineering and engineering mechanics organizations. Since 2000 he has worked in the Engineering Sciences Center conducting research in the areas of computational mechanics, structural dynamics, and experimental model validation. His current work focuses on the design and qualification of flight systems, including the computational simulation of aerodynamic loads and resulting structural dynamic response, as well as the development of new ground test techniques to mimic flight conditions. Testing techniques that combine multiple environments are a focus of Greg’s research, including various combinations of acceleration, shock, vibration, and temperature. He has a PhD in mechanical engineering from the University of New Mexico.
Last Updated: 10/20/2020
Michael Todd
University of California San Diego
SEM Awards: SEM Fellow
Michael Todd received his Ph.D. from Duke University’s Department of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science. Since 2003 he has been with the Structural Engineering Department at the University of California San Diego, where he serves as Distinguished Professor and Chair. His research interests are in ultrasonic and fiber optic structural health monitoring/NDE and decision analytics for SHM/NDE. He has published over 550 journal papers and proceedings. He was the 2005 SHM Person-of-the-Year Award, the 2016 SEM DeMichele Award, the 2021 SHM Lifetime Achievement Award, and the 2023 NDE Lifetime Achievement Award. He is the Managing Editor of Structural Health Monitoring.
Last Updated: 01/10/2024
Valéry Valle
University of Poitiers
SEM Awards: M. Hetényi
Valéry Valle is an experimental solid mechanician, Professor at the University of Poitiers, and researcher at the Pprime Institute. Valéry obtained his Ph.D. on the development of an optical measurement technique adapted to high strain rates, under the supervision of A. Lagarde and M. Cottron. Recruited in 1997, he specialized in adapting optical methods for measurements in dynamic regimes and in the presence of discontinuities in kinematic fields. Recently, Valéry has developed an extended DIC method, suitable for measurements in the presence of cracks and for analyzing slip bands appearing during the plasticity of metallic materials.
Last Updated: 05/15/2024
Kendra Van Buren
Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL)
Kendra Van Buren has been a staff member in the Computational Physics Division at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) since 2015. She completed her Ph.D in Civil Engineering at Clemson University in 2012 before going to LANL as a post-doctoral research associate in the Engineering Institute. During her post-doc, she contributed to international collaborations by spending one month as a visiting researcher at the Engineering Institute-Korea in Chongbuk, South Korea and seven months at the Université de Franche-Comté in Besançon, France. Her research contributes to verification, validation and uncertainty quantification research efforts for the Advanced Simulation Computing program. Kendra has been active participant at IMAC, most recently serving as the historian for the Model Validation and Uncertainty Quantification (MVUQ) technical division. She received a FY14 U.S. Department of Energy Defense Programs Award of Excellence for her contributions to Physical Uncertainty Bounds (PUBs). In 2015, Kendra was one of two postdoctoral research associates at LANL (out of approximately 450) to receive a Postdoctoral Distinguished Performance Award. In FY18, Kendra was awarded an Early Career Research project from LANL’s competitive Laboratory Directed Research and Development (LDRD) program. She currently serves on the Scientific Advisory Council for LANL’s Information Science and Technology Institute (ISTI) and she was the Assistant Chair for LANL’s 2019 LDRD Information Science and Technology Science Advisory Panel.
Last Updated: 10/20/2020
Maarten van der Seijs
VIBES.technology
During my studies Mechanical Engineering at TU Delft (2005-2011) I was greatly inspired by Prof. Daniel Rixen and Dennis De Klerk to pursue a career in structural dynamics. I started my PhD in 2011, as a collaboration project between TU Delft, TU München and BMW Group, and have been visiting IMAC conferences since 2012. During that time, I have specialized in Experimental Dynamic Substructuring and Transfer Path Analysis, with application in automotive noise and vibration engineering.
Along with receiving my PhD in 2016, I co-founded VIBES.technology, a Dutch start-up company with a mission to bring these methods into industry. As VIBES has grown into a softwarefocused company and a breeding ground for innovation, I find that our research interests align well with the activities of SEM. In my role as head of software and technology, I have a strong interest in bringing researchers and industrial parties closer together and make sure that promising substructuring and TPA technology finds its way into standard R&D processes.
Along with receiving my PhD in 2016, I co-founded VIBES.technology, a Dutch start-up company with a mission to bring these methods into industry. As VIBES has grown into a softwarefocused company and a breeding ground for innovation, I find that our research interests align well with the activities of SEM. In my role as head of software and technology, I have a strong interest in bringing researchers and industrial parties closer together and make sure that promising substructuring and TPA technology finds its way into standard R&D processes.
Last Updated: 06/14/2023
Carlos E. Ventura
University of British Columbia
Prof. Ventura is a Civil Engineer with specializations in structural dynamics and earthquake engineering. He has been a faculty member of the Department of Civil Engineering at the University of British Columbia (UBC) in Canada since 1992. He is a registered professional engineer in British Columbia, California and Guatemala. He is currently the Director of the Earthquake Engineering Research Facility (EERF) at UBC, and is the author of more than 650 papers and reports on earthquake engineering, structural dynamics and modal testing. He is a member of several national and international professional societies and advisory committees. Prof. Ventura has conducted research for more than thirty-five years in the dynamic behavior and analysis of structural systems subjected to extreme dynamic loads, including severe ground shaking. His research work includes experimental studies in the field and in the laboratory of structural systems and components.
Last Updated: 08/28/2024
Piyush Wanchoo
University of Rhode Island
SEM Awards: Michael Sutton International Student Paper
Piyush Wanchoo is pursuing a PhD at the University of Rhode Island's Dynamic Photo Mechanics Laboratory under Dr. Arun Shukla's supervision, focusing on blast mitigation techniques using polymeric composites and high strain rate material characterization of materials involved. He holds a master's from the Indian Institute of Science, with expertise in experimental fracture mechanics, and has extensive industrial experience in water flow and oil/gas solutions. He's slated to commence his postdoc at Johns Hopkins University's Hopkins Extreme Mechanics Institute in September 2023.
Last Updated: 09/06/2023
Junlan Wang
University of Washington
SEM Awards: A.J. Durelli, M.M. Frocht, M. Hetényi
Junlan Wang is a Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Washington. Her research focuses on mechanics of thin films/multilayers, biological and bioinspired materials, high strain rate phenomena, and additively manufactured materials. She received her B.S. (1994) and M.S. (1997) in Mechanics and Mechanical Engineering from the University of Science and Technology of China, and Ph.D. (2002) in Theoretical and Applied Mechanics from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. After a year of postdoctoral research at Brown University, she joined the Mechanical Engineering department of University of California, Riverside in 2003 as an Assistant Professor (later promoted to Associate Professor) and moved to UW in December 2008.
She has received a number of research and teaching awards, including an NSF CAREER Award (2008), SEM Hetenyi (2004) and Durelli (2016) Awards from the Society for Experimental Mechanics (SEM), Beer and Johnston Outstanding New Mechanics Educator award (2007) from the American Society of Engineering Education, and Teaching Excellence Award (2007) from Bourns College of Engineering. She has served as Secretary, Vice-Chair and Chair of the SEM Research Committee (2011-2017), organizer of Track 5 (Mechanics of Additive and Advanced Manufacturing) for the 2017 and 2018 SEM annual conference, and Associate Editor for Experimental Mechanics (2015-present). She has also served in multiple leadership roles in the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, including Chair of Applied Mechanics Division (AMD) Experimental Mechanics Committee (2008-2010), Materials Division (MD) Executive Committee (2010-2015; Chair 2014-2015), General Conference Chair of joint AMD-MD Mechanics and Materials Conference (McMat 2015), and Associate Editor for Journal of Applied Mechanics (2016-2018).
She has received a number of research and teaching awards, including an NSF CAREER Award (2008), SEM Hetenyi (2004) and Durelli (2016) Awards from the Society for Experimental Mechanics (SEM), Beer and Johnston Outstanding New Mechanics Educator award (2007) from the American Society of Engineering Education, and Teaching Excellence Award (2007) from Bourns College of Engineering. She has served as Secretary, Vice-Chair and Chair of the SEM Research Committee (2011-2017), organizer of Track 5 (Mechanics of Additive and Advanced Manufacturing) for the 2017 and 2018 SEM annual conference, and Associate Editor for Experimental Mechanics (2015-present). She has also served in multiple leadership roles in the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, including Chair of Applied Mechanics Division (AMD) Experimental Mechanics Committee (2008-2010), Materials Division (MD) Executive Committee (2010-2015; Chair 2014-2015), General Conference Chair of joint AMD-MD Mechanics and Materials Conference (McMat 2015), and Associate Editor for Journal of Applied Mechanics (2016-2018).
Last Updated: 10/20/2020
Wei-Chung Wang
National Tsing Hua University in Taiwan, Republic of China
SEM Awards: M. M. Frocht, F. G. Tatnall, F. Zandman
Professor Wei-Chung Wang received his Ph. D. degree in Engineering Mechanics from Iowa State University in 1985. He is now a professor in the Department of Power Mechanical Engineering of the National Tsing Hua University in Taiwan, Republic of China. Professor Wang is the fellow and the former President of the Society for Experimental Mechanics (SEM). His recent research interests include experimental mechanics, fracture mechanics, thermal stresses, precision optical measurement and nondestructive testing. Professor Wang has been an active participant and session/symposium organizer of various international conferences on experimental mechanics. Professor Wang is the recipient of the Pericles Theocaris Award, EURASEM in 2016. He is also the recipient of the Zandman Award and Tatnall Award of SEM in 2015. Professor Wang has successfully supervised more than 100 graduate students. They are now serving in universities as professors, in research institutes as research fellows, in companies as senior managers and engineers.
Last Updated: 06/12/2023
Bryan Witt
Sandia National Laboratories
Bryan Witt is the Technical Manager of the Structural Dynamics Department at Sandia National Laboratories which includes the Modal and System-Level Vibration teams. He has eighteen years of professional experience in the field of structural dynamics and oversees multiple research projects including non-contact diagnostics, multi-input/multi-output methods, substructuring, and nonlinear dynamics. He received a MS in Mechanical Engineering from Texas A&M University in 2011.
Last Updated: 09/03/2024
Chi Yang
University of Texas at Austin
SEM Awards: Michael Sutton International Student Paper
Chi Yang is PhD candidate at the University of Texas at Austin. His research focuses on the development of a non-contact rail damage detection system for missing fastener and broken rail detection based on laser doppler vibrometer measurement. He specializes in Finite Element Modeling, Machine Learning, and digital signal processing. Prior to starting his PhD, Chi received his master’s and bachelor’s degree at the National Cheng Kung University in Taiwan.
Last Updated: 09/06/2023
Satoru Yoneyama
Aoyama Gakuin University, Japan
SEM Awards: A.J. Durreli Award, R.E. Peterson, SEM Fellow
Satoru Yoneyama is a Professor of Mechanical Engineering at Aoyama Gakuin University, Japan. He received his B.S. and M.S. degrees in Mechanical Engineering from Aoyama Gakuin University in 1995 and 1997 respectively and Ph.D. degree from Tokyo Institute of Technology in 2000. After several years of research assistant work, he joined the faculty of Osaka Prefecture University in 2004 and returned to Aoyama Gakuin University in 2007 where he has been ever since. He was a Visiting Associate Professor at the University of Florida from 2013 to 2014 and a Visiting Professor at the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency from 2015 to 2017. He received several awards from professional societies including the R.E. Peterson Award in 2002 and A.J. Durreli Award in 2014. He was an Executive Board Member of SEM from 2014 to 2016. He has served as an Associate Technical Editor of SEM's Journal of Experimental Mechanics.
Last Updated: 03/04/2020
Kejie Zhao
Purdue University
SEM Awards: J. W. Dally Young Investigator, A. J. Durelli
Dr. Kejie Zhao is a Professor of Mechanical Engineering and University Faculty Scholar at Purdue University. He received his Ph.D. degree in Engineering Science in 2012 from Harvard University, and his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Xi’an Jiaotong University in 2005 and 2008, respectively. He worked as a postdoctoral associate at MIT in 2012-2014. He joined the faculty at Purdue in 2014 and was promoted to Professor in 2023. His group focuses on chemomechanics of electrochemically active materials using experimentation and multi-scale modeling approaches. He is a recipient of the NSF CAREER Award, EML Young Investigator Award, EnSM Young Scientist Award, James W. Dally Young Investigator Award, and B.F.S. Schaefer Scholarship.
Last Updated: 01/06/2025
Yong Zhu
North Carolina State University
SEM Awards: A. J. Durelli, JSA Young Investigator Lecture
Yong Zhu is a Professor and University Faculty Scholar in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, with joint appointments in the Departments of Materials Science and Engineering and Biomedical Engineering, at North Carolina State University. He received his PhD at Northwestern University in 2005 and did his postdoc at the University of Texas at Austin before joining NC State in 2007. His group conducts research at the intersection of solid mechanics and micro/nano-technology, including nanomechanics, interfacial mechanics, microelectromechanical systems, and nanomaterial-enabled stretchable electronics. His work has been recognized with a number of awards such as ASME/Pi Tau Sigma Gustus L. Larson Memorial Award (2019), ASME Sia Nemat-Nasser Early Career Award (2015), and SEM JSA Young Investigator Lecture Award (2013). He is currently an Associate Editor for Journal of Applied Mechanics and Experimental Mechanics.
Last Updated: 12/01/2020
Kristin Zimmerman
President of MedFor: Inc.
SEM Awards: SEM Fellow, Tatnall, Michael A. Sutton International Student Paper Competition, SEM Past President (2008-09)
Kristin Zimmerman became a member of the Society for Experimental Mechanics (SEM) in 1988. She was the inaugural Student Paper Competition Winner under the guidance of Professor Gary Cloud at Michigan State University in 1990; Chair of the Education Committee from 1991-2007; Associate Editor of Experimental Techniques from 1996-today, and Senior Editor from 2000-2007; President from 2008-2009; Assistant Treasurer 2012-2013 and appointed Treasurer in 2014. She was awarded the Tatnall award in 2014.
Dr. Zimmerman’s professional career began with the General Motors (GM) Research and Development (R&D) Center in 1993 – 1997 where she created GM’s Academic Partnerships program of over 100 Research Laboratories across the globe. From 1997-99, Zimmerman worked in the areas of advanced engineering and design and in 1999/2000, she received a Fellowship to the National Academy of Engineering to work on STEM policy. From 2000-09, Zimmerman worked in energy and environmental policy including an assignment in Beijing, China (2008-09) managing GM China’s Automotive Energy Research Center (CAERC) at Tsinghua University. She continued her energy and environmental policy work on the Chevy Volt Team, 2006-12.
Dr. Zimmerman is currently consulting full time as the President of MedFor: Inc., a translational sciences consulting firm spanning forensic medicine and engineering mechanics - founded with her husband in 1999.
Dr. Zimmerman’s educational background includes: Physics, Mechanical Engineering, and Engineering Mechanics. She holds a Ph.D. in Engineering Mechanics from Michigan State University.
Dr. Zimmerman’s professional career began with the General Motors (GM) Research and Development (R&D) Center in 1993 – 1997 where she created GM’s Academic Partnerships program of over 100 Research Laboratories across the globe. From 1997-99, Zimmerman worked in the areas of advanced engineering and design and in 1999/2000, she received a Fellowship to the National Academy of Engineering to work on STEM policy. From 2000-09, Zimmerman worked in energy and environmental policy including an assignment in Beijing, China (2008-09) managing GM China’s Automotive Energy Research Center (CAERC) at Tsinghua University. She continued her energy and environmental policy work on the Chevy Volt Team, 2006-12.
Dr. Zimmerman is currently consulting full time as the President of MedFor: Inc., a translational sciences consulting firm spanning forensic medicine and engineering mechanics - founded with her husband in 1999.
Dr. Zimmerman’s educational background includes: Physics, Mechanical Engineering, and Engineering Mechanics. She holds a Ph.D. in Engineering Mechanics from Michigan State University.
Last Updated: 03/03/2020
