Huajian Gao
Professor of Engineering:
Engineering
Phone: +1 401 863 2626
Huajian_Gao@brown.edu
Professor Gao's research group is generally interested in understanding the basic principles that control mechanical properties and behaviors of both engineering and biological systems. Current research includes studies of how metallic and semiconductor materials behave in thin film and nanocrystalline forms, and how biological materials such as bones, geckos, and cells achieve their mechanical robustness through structural hierarchy.
Biography
Professor Huajian Gao is the Walter H. Annnenberg University Professor at Brown University. He received his B.S. degree from Xian Jiaotong University of China in 1982, and his M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Engineering Science from Harvard University in 1984 and 1988, respectively. He served on the faculty of Stanford University between 1988 and 2002, where he was promoted to Associate Professor with tenure in 1994 and to full Professor in 2000. He was appointed as Director and Professor at the Max Planck Institute for Metals Research in Stuttgart, Germany between 2001 and 2006. He joined Brown University in 2006. Professor Gao has a background in applied mechanics and engineering science. He has more than 20 years of research experience with 200+ publications.
Interests
Concepts and methods in continuum, atomistic and statistical mechanics are being developed to model nanoscale and hierarchical materials systems in engineering and biology. Systems and phenomena of interest include hierarchical structures of bone and gecko, cell adhesion, endocytosis, thin films, dynamic fracture, carbon nanotubes, and biomolecules. Fundamental concepts under study include diffusion, dislocations, fracture, grain boundary, stiffness, toughness, contact, adhesion, viscoelasticity, convergent evolution, flaw tolerance, size effects, shape optimization, self-assembly, and bottom-up hierarchical materials design. Applications of research include microelectronic and optoelectronic devices, nanotechnology, nano- and hierarchical materials engineering, biomimetics, bio-sensing, and gene/drug delivery systems. Professor Gao is a receipient of numerous academic awards including the American Society of Mechanical Engineers Best Achievement Award for Young Investigators in Applied Mechanics, the Society of Engineering Science Young Investigator Award, the Chang Jiang Guest Chair Professorship of Tsinghua University, the Outstanding Oversea Young Investigator Award by the Ministry of Education of China. the Humboldt Research Fellowship, the NSF Young Investigator Award, the Guggenheim Memorial Fellowship, the IBM Faculty Development Award, and the Alcoa Science Award. He is Fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.
Degrees
PhD
Awards
Midwestern Mechanics Lecturer, 2005-2006.
Wissenschaftspreis des Stifterverbands (Research innovation award), Max Planck Society, 2005.
Society of Engineering Science, Board of Directors, 2005.
Young Investigator Award, Society of Engineering Science, 2005.
Fellow, Institute of Physics (Great Britain), 2004.
George Wallace Melville Medal, American Society of Mechanical Engineering, 2004.
Fellow, American Society of Mechanical Engineering, 2003-.
Oversea Director, Shenyang Center for Interfacial Materials, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 2003-
Scientific Member (Director), Max Planck Society, 2001-.
Outstanding Young Investigator Award, National Science Foundation of China, 2000.
Chang Jiang Guest Chair Professor at Tsinghua University, Chinese Ministry of Education, 2000-2005
Special Achievement Award for Young Investigators in Applied Mechanics, American Society of Mechanical Engineers, 1999.
Humboldt Fellowship, 1997.
Alcoa Science Award, 1996.
Guggenheim Memorial Fellowship Award, 1995.
NSF Young Investigator Award, 1993-1998.
IBM Faculty Development Award, 1992-1993.
Schlumberger Fellowship, 1988.
Harvard University Graduate Scholarship, 1984.
Xian Jiaotong University, ''SAN HAO XUE SHENG'' medal, 1979-1982.
Xian Jiaotong University Scholarship, 1978-1982.
Affiliations
Fellow, American Society of Mechanical Engineers;
Fellow, Institute of Physics;
Life Member, American Geophysical Union;
Member, Materials Research Society;
Member, American Physical Society;
Member, American Association for the Advancement of Science.
