Soft Matter & Nanoscale Materials
Faculty in the Department of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science conduct research focused on computational discovery of new materials, the creation of materials on the nanoscale, and the nanoscale investigation of physical phenomena and properties of polymers, soft-wet, and nanomaterials.
Research Areas
- Bio-inspired materials
- Nanoscale materials
- Nanomechanics
- Nanocomposites
- Nanotribology
- Polymers
- Proteins
- Soft matter
- Soft-wet materials
Major Centers & Initiatives
We foster strong and growing multidisciplinary connections with faculty across Duke University and beyond that include:
Related Study Opportunities
PhD
Specializations include:
Master of Science (MS) or Master of Engineering (MEng)
Concentrations include:
Further Options at Duke
Duke University Program in Materials Science and Engineering
The program offers a general materials science and engineering (MSE) curriculum and degree title. Learn more »
Associated Faculty
Gaurav Arya
Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science
Research Interests: Molecular modeling, molecular simulations, statistical mechanics, coarse-graining, machine learning, polymer and colloidal physics, polymer-nanoparticle composites, chromatin biophysics, DNA nanotechnology, viral DNA packaging, single-molecule force spectroscopy, nanoscale...
Matthew L Becker
Hugo L. Blomquist Distinguished Professor of Chemistry
Research Interests: Polymer chemistry; bioconjugate chemistry; molecular imaging and additive manufacturing; materials for bone, soft tissue, neural and vascular tissue engineering; drug and protein delivery; degradable materials for flexible electronics
L. Catherine Brinson
Sharon C. and Harold L. Yoh, III Distinguished Professor
Research Interests: Study of advanced material systems and developing new methods to characterize and to model material behavior. Her lab’s research objective is to characterize and model advanced materials systems, at scales spanning the range of molecular interactions, micromechanical and...
Olivier Delaire
Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science
Research Interests: Olivier Delaire investigates atomic dynamics in materials, focusing on problems at the interface of Materials Science, Physics and Chemistry. His research group utilizes a range of experimental and computational approaches, including neutron and x-ray scattering techniques,...
Ken Gall
Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science
Research Interests: Materials science, mechanical properties, metals and polymers. Specialties: Shape memory materials, biomaterials, 3D printing.
Po-Chun Hsu
Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science
Research Interests: Smart multifunctional textiles, camouflage fabrics, stimuli-responsive polymer, wearable electronics, photon management, radiation heat transfer, solar desalination and water harvesting, electrochemical devices, electrospinning and fiber fabrication
Piotr E. Marszalek
Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science
Research Interests: Investigating relationships between structural and mechanical properties of biopolymers (polysaccharides, DNA, proteins), at a single molecule level.
David Needham
Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science
Research Interests: Combining the fields of materials science with colloid and surface chemistry to focus on biological and other soft wet materials
Xiaoyue Ni
Assistant Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science (beginning November 1, 2020)
Research Interests: Flexible electronics, precision measurement, non-destructive testing, deformation physics of random media, mechanical metamaterials, robotic materials and smart structures, machine learning
Christine K. Payne
Yoh Family Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science
Research Interests: Molecular mechanisms by which cells interact with materials, specifically nanoparticles and conducting polymers, with applications in nanomedicine and environmental exposure
Michael Rubinstein
Aleksandar S. Vesic Distinguished Professor
Research Interests: Polymer theory and computer simulations
Shyni Varghese
Professor of Biomedical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering & Materials Science and Orthopaedics
Research Interests: Musculoskeletal tissue repair, disease biophysics and organ-on-a-chip technology
Jennifer L West
Fitzpatrick Family University Distinguished Professor of Engineering
Research Interests: Biomaterials, nanotechnology and tissue engineering that involves the synthesis, development, and application of novel biofunctional materials, and the use of biomaterials and engineering approaches to study biological problems.
Stefan Zauscher
Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science
Research Interests: Nano-mechanical and nano-tribological characterization (elasticity, friction, adhesion) of materials including organic thin films; self-assembled monolayers, polymeric gels, and cellulosics; Fabrication of polymeric nanostructures by scanning probe lithography; Colloidal probe...
Ashutosh Chilkoti
Alan L. Kaganov Distinguished Professor of Biomedical Engineering
Research Interests: Focused on biomolecular materials and biointerface science and emphasizes the development of applications that span the range from bioseparations, biosensors, biomaterials, and targeted drug delivery.
Dennis Onyeka Frank-Ito
Associate Professor in Head and Neck Surgery and Communication Sciences
Research Interests: Modeling the effects of human airway anatomy on respiratory airflow patterns, deposition of inhaled gases and particle transport using computational fluid dynamics.
Shivanand Lad
Associate Professor of Neurosurgery
Research Interests: Neurotrophin biology, neuroregeneration, medical device design
Benjamin J. Wiley
Professor of Chemistry
Research Interests: In the Wiley Group, we make new nanomaterials by controlling the assembly of atoms in solution, and explore applications for nanomaterials in medicine, catalysis, plasmonics, and electronics. Our goal is to precisely control the size, shape, and composition of materials on the...