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