Former Members

Former Members

Former Graduate Students, 2000-present

Ehsan Hajiesmaili email: hajiesmaili@g.harvard.edu
PhD 2022 (Harvard)    
"Shape-Morphing Dielectric Elastomer Devices"
Current Position: Visiting Researcher, Meta Reality Labs

Kezi Cheng email:  kezi@flomaterials.com
PhD 2021 (Harvard)    
“Photo-Dynamic Elastomer Networks for Actuator Applications”
Current Position: Activate Fellow, FLO Materials

Pavida Charoen-Rajapark email:  pavida.pam@gmail.com
PhD 2021 (Harvard)    
“Studies of Electric-Field Induced Surface Instabilities using Confocal Microscopy”
Current Position: PhD Analyst, L.E.K. Consulting, Boston, MA

Yukun Xia email:  yukunx@andrew.cmu.edu
Current Position: Masters Student, Carnegie Mellon University, The Robotics Institute

Mihai Duduta email:  duduta@mie.utoronto.ca
PhD 2019 (Harvard)    
“Dielectric Elastomer Actuators as Artificial Muscles for Soft Robotic Applications”
Current Position: Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering, University of Toronto

Mary Gurak  email: marygurak@gmail.com
PhD 2017 (Harvard)    
“Studies of the Yttrium Tantalate - Zirconium Oxide Quasi-Binary”
Current Position: Senior Materials Engineer, Pratt & Whitney Aircraft Engines, East Hartford, CT

William Bonificio    
PhD 2015 (Harvard)    
“Bacterial Approaches to the Recovery of Scarce Metals”    

Xin Liang  email:  liangxin@binn.cas.cn
PhD 2013 (Harvard)    
“Structure and Thermoelectric Properties of ZnO Based Materials”
Current Position:  Professor and Principal Investigator, Beijing Institute of Nanoenergy and Nanosystems, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing

Taylor Sparks   email:  sparks@eng.utah.edu
PhD 2012 (Harvard)    
Thesis: “Oxide Thermolectrics: The Role of Structure, Crystal Field and Spin on Thermopower in Strongly Correlated Spinels”
Current Position: Associate Professor of Materials Science and Engineering; Director, Materials Characterization Laboratory, University of Utah

Roger Diebold    email: info@solchroma.com
PhD 2012 (UCSB)    
Thesis: “The effect of chemical functionality on interfacial dielectric breakdown in filled silicone elastomer composites”
Current Position: President, Solchroma Technologies, Somerville, MA

Matthew D. Chambers    
PhD 2009 (UCSB)    
Thesis: “Luminescence of High Temperature Materials for Thermometry and Crystallographic Studies”
Current Position: Raytheon Goleta

Jenny Andrew    email: jandrew@mse.ufl.edu
PhD 2008 (UCSB)    
Thesis: “Ferroelectric Polymer-Based Nanocomposites: Towards Multiferroic Materials”
Current Position:  Professor, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Florida

LiGuo Chen
PhD 2008 (UCSB)
Thesis:“Heat Transport Through Thermal Barrier Coatings”

Jesse Williams  email: jwilliams@liminnovations.com 
PhD 2008 (UCSB)    
Thesis: “Nano-Dispersion Strengthened Gold Films for MEMS Electrical Contacts”
Current Position: Chief Scientific Officer, LIM Innovations (Medical Devices industry)

Michael Winter
PhD 2006 (UCSB)    
Thesis: “Next Generation Thermal Barrier Coatings: Identification of Novel Materials with Low Thermal Conductivity”
Current Position: Member of the Technical Staff, Sandia National Laboratories

Brian Naughton    
PhD 2006(UCSB)    
Thesis: “Magnetic Nanoparticles for Power Electronics”
Current Position: Senior Member of the Technical Staff, Sandia National Laboratories

Molly Gentleman    
PhD 2006 (UCSB)    
Thesis: “High Temperature Sensing of Thermal Barrier Materials by Luminescence”

Vanni Lughi    email:  vlughi@units.it
PhD 2006 (UCSB)
Thesis: “Aluminum Nitride Thin Films for MEMS Resonators: Growth and Characterization”
Current Position: Assistant Professor in Materials, University of Trieste-Italy

Edward Etzkorn    
PhD 2005 (UCSB)    
Thesis: “Cracking in GaN Films Grown by Hydride Vapor Phase Epitaxy”
Current Position: Program Examiner for International Development Assistance and Climate Change at the Office of Management and Budget

Adam Pzyzna    
PhD 2004 (UCSB)    
Thesis: “Thermal Oxidation-Induced Strain in Silicon Nanobeams”
Current Position: IBM Research, NY

John Nychka    email:  jnychka@ualberta.ca
PhD 2004 (UCSB)    
Thesis: “Quantifying Outward Cation Diffusion in Thermally Grown Alumina Scales”    
Current Position: Associate Professor, University of Alberta

Philip Tavernier    email:  philip.r.tavernier@intel.com
PhD 2002 (UCSB)    
Thesis: “Piezoelectricity and Growth Polarization in III-V Nitrides”
Current Position: Intel Components, Portland, Oregon

Chong-yang Luo
PhD 2001 (UCSB)    
Thesis: “Thermal Conductivity Studies on GaN Films and Thermal Resistive Superlattice Structures by Thermal Wave Techniques”

Former Postdoctoral Researchers

Zoey Davidson  email:  zoey@zsdavidson.com
Post-doctoral Fellow, Harvard University
Current Position: Soft Matter Scientist, Seurat Technologies

Alex Chortos  email:  achortos@purdue.edu
Post-doctoral Fellow, Harvard University
Current Position: Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering, Purdue University

Volodymyr Korolovych  email: 
Post-doctoral Fellow, Harvard University

Mihai Duduta  email: duduta@mie.utoronto.ca
Post-doctoral Fellow, Harvard University
Current Position: Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering, University of Toronto

Min-Woo Han  email:  mwhan1009@gmail.com
Post-doctoral Fellow, Harvard University
Current Position: Assistant Professor, Dongguk University, Seoul, Korea

Quentin Flamant  email:  quentin.flamant@saint-gobain.com
Post-doctoral Fellow, Harvard University
Current Position: Research Scientist, Saint-Gobain

Xiaofei Guan  email:  guanxf@shangheitech.edu.cn
Post-doctoral Fellow, Harvard University
Current Position: Assistant Professor, Shanghai Tech University

Aftab Hussain  email: aftab.hussain@iiit.ac.in
Post-doctoral Fellow, Harvard University
Current Position: Assistant Professor, International Institute of Information Technology (IIIT), Hyderabad, India

Samuel Shian 
Post-doctoral Fellow, Harvard University
Current Position:  Solchroma Technologies, Somerville, MA

Mor Baram   email:  baramm@mcmaster.ca
Post-doctoral Fellow, Harvard University (2010-2013)
Current Position: Application Engineering at Applied Materials, Israel

Sebastien Dreypondt email:  dryepondtsn@ornl.gov
Post-doctoral Fellow, University of CA Santa Barbara
Current Position: Research Staff, Oak Ridge National Laboratory

Giuliano Gregori  email:  g.gregori@fkf.mpg.de
Post-doctoral Fellow, University of CA Santa Barbara (2003-2006)
Current Position: Staff, Max Planck Institute, FKF, Stuttgart

Andi Limarga
Post-doctoral Fellow, UCSB and Harvard University (2009-2011)
Current Position:  Apple

Qing Ma (deceased)
Postdoctoral Fellow, UCSB (1991-1994)
was Sr. Technologist at Intel

Samuel Margueron
Post-doctoral Fellow, University of CA Santa Barbara (2004-2006)
Current Position:  Professor, Diluted and Condensed Matter, Université de Lorraine

Yang Shen
Postdoctoral Fellow, UCSB and Harvard University (2007-2010)
Current Position: Professor, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China

Vladimir Tolpygo
Postdoc, University of CA Santa Barbara (1995-2006)
Current Position:  Principal Engineer, Honeywell Aerospace

Former Visiting Researchers

Shreya Malkurthi  email: shreya.malkurthi@research.iiit.ac.in
Fellow (9/2022 - 12/2022), Harvard University
Current Position: Graduate Student, International Institute of Information Technology, Hyderabad, India

Matthias Kollosche  email: kollosch@iastate.edu
Fellow (7/2019 - 7/2022), Harvard University
Current Position: Professional and Scientific Staff, Civil, Construction & Environmental Engineering, Iowa State University

Giovanni Pisaturo  email: pisaturog@gmail.com
Fellow (3/2021- 10/2021), Harvard University
Current Position: Graduate Student, ETH Zurich, Switzerland

Rico Felber  email: felberri@student.ethz.ch
Fellow (3/2020-12/2020), Harvard University
Current Position: Graduate Student, ETH Zurich, Switzerland

Jie Mao  email: maojie@nxu.edu.cn
Fellow (1/2019-1/2020) and Associate (1/2020-1/2021), Harvard University
Current Position: Assistant Professor, Ningxia University, China

Florence Bergeron
Fellow, Harvard University (2019)
Current Position: Masters Student, Ecole Polytechnique, Montreal, Canada

Jing Feng
Visiting Scientist, Harvard University (2012-2014)
Current Position: Professor of Physics, Kunming University, China

Eder Guidelli
Visiting Fellow, Harvard University (2013-2014)
Current: Post-doctoral Fellow, University of Sao Paulo

Laetitia Laversenne   email:  Laetitia.laversenne@neel.cnrs.fr
Visiting Scholar, Harvard University (2012-2015)
Research Officer, Institut NEEL CNRS

Alexsander Gurlo email:  Gurlo@ceramics.tu-berlin.de
Visiting Scientist, Harvard University (2010-2011)
Current:  Professor, Fachgebiet Keramische Werkstoffe, Technische Universität Berlin