New Faculty
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John Hart, Associate ProfessorDuring his six years at the University of Michigan, Associate Professor John Hart established a leading research group focused on creating new manufacturing technologies for micro- and nanostructured materials, and for their assemblage and integration at larger scales. Most notably, his research group made signature innovations toward the scalable manufacturing of materials incorporating aligned carbon nanotubes (CNTs). Their groundbreaking understanding of how CNTs can be manipulated into 3D shapes by capillary forces enables robust and repeatable assembly of CNTs for use in micromechanical devices and as a platform for the engineering of textured surfaces and high-performance interfaces. Moreover, working with graduate students and undergraduate design teams, Professor Hart has led the realization of several award-winning machines and instruments, including those for efficient roll-to-roll chemical vapor deposition, high-speed manufacturing of nanocomposite thin films, and micro-scale 3D printing of colloids. His work has been recognized by two R&D 100 Awards, a CAREER Award from the NSF, and Young Investigator Awards from DARPA, the Air Force, and the Navy. |
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Mathias Kolle, Assistant ProfessorAssistant Professor Mathias Kolle earned his PhD in physics at the Cavendish Laboratories at Cambridge University in 2010, followed by work as a postdoctoral researcher at Harvard University in the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences. His past research was focused on the manufacture of novel photonic structures, optical instrumentation and modeling, biological light manipulation strategies, and material science. In his current research, he explores biological photonic systems and the engineering and application of bio-inspired dynamic photonic materials. His scientific background and interests include bioimaging, optical sensing technologies, nanophotonics, photovoltaics, x-ray nanotomography, and plasmonic materials. Professor Kolle’s dissertation was published in the Springer series “Springer Theses: Recognizing Outstanding PhD Research.” He also received the dissertation prize from the German Physical Society for the best PhD in the field of condensed matter (2010) and the Salje Medal of Clare Hall College, Cambridge, for the best PhD in the sciences. |
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Themis Sapsis, American Bureau of Shipping Career Development Assistant ProfessorAssistant Professor Themis Sapsis graduated from the National Technical University of Athens where he earned his diploma in naval architecture and marine engineering in 2005. He began his graduate studies at MIT in 2006, earning his PhD in mechanical engineering in 2010 under the supervision of Professors Pierre Lermusiaux and George Haller. Professor Sapsis’s research is in the areas of stochastic dynamics with applications to the general area of ocean engineering, including uncertainty quantification of engineering flows, probabilistic prediction of extreme events in nonlinear waves, passive protection configurations for mechanical systems, and energy harvesting from ambient vibrations. As an MIT student, he was named the George and Marie Vergottis MIT Presidential Fellow. Professor Sapsis has also twice received the European Union’s Marie Curie Fellowship, and he received the Best Paper Award for Young Scientists at the Chaotic Modeling and Simulation Conference in 2009. |