Alan I. Taub
Robert H. Lurie Professor of Engineering
Professor Alan Taub is a distinguished faculty member, holding joint appointments in the Mechanical Engineering, Macro Engineering, and Materials Science and Engineering Departments. Professor Taub joined the University of Michigan after retiring from his role as Vice President of Global R&D at General Motors, where he worked for 11 years. He is a member of the National Academy of Engineering and a Fellow of TMS and SME.

Research Scientists

Dandan Zhang
Assistant Research Scientist – Mat. Science & Eng. (joined June 2023)
Dandan Zhang is currently involved in two research projects. One project focuses on ‘Designing and optimization of periodic porous metastructure materials for broadband electromagnetic (EM) wave absorption’, while another project investigates ‘Enhancement of mechanical properties in natural fibers via supercritical fluids treatment: Implication for structural polymer composites’. Outside of academia she enjoys running, citiwalk, reading and playing sports.
Graduate Students

Jonathan Goettsch
Doctoral candidate – Mat. Science & Eng. (joined Fall 2020)
Jon’s research is currently focused on investigating the solidification behavior of phases in the presence of an electric current and on the fabrication of metal matrix nanocomposites via in situ synthesis in castings and additive manufacturing applications. Outside of academia he enjoys playing sports, biking, and reading.

Loulou Batta
Doctoral candidate – Mat. Science & Eng. (joined Summer 2022)
Loulou’s research focus is on the modification of natural fibers via carbon based nanoparticles for usage in textiles and composites. Outside of academia Loulou enjoys playing and coaching volleyball and singing in a band.

Jaime Perez Coronada
Doctoral candidate – Mat. Science & Eng. (joined Fall 2022)
Jaime’s research delves into understanding the solid/liquid interface interaction with particles in metal matrix nanocomposites and immiscible systems. Outside of academia Jaime enjoys playing soccer and videogames.

Steven Mamolo
Doctoral candidate – Aero. Eng. (joined Fall 2023)
Steven’s research is focused on the design, optimization, and testing of composite metamaterials for electromagnetic interference (EMI) absorption. Outside of academia Steven enjoys rock climbing, skiing, and exploring the outdoors.

Joshua Willwerth
Doctoral precandidate – Mat. Science & Eng. (joined Fall 2022)
Josh joined the group as an undergraduate senior before entering into the SUGS program and then continuing on for his PhD. Josh’s research is focused on predictive alloy thermodynamics and metal additive manufacturing. Outside of academia he enjoys gaming, weightlifting, performing in a cover band, and volunteering.

Gabrielle Grey
Doctoral precandidate – Mat. Science & Eng. (joined Fall 2023)
Gabi’s research focus is on the implementation of polymer matrix based nanocomposite materials for the creation of chemically and mechanically robust low density conductors. Outside of academia Gabi enjoys reading, music, yoga, spending time outside, and coffee drinking.

Raylan Jiao
Masters student – Mat. Science & Eng. (joined Fall 2024)
Raylan is focusing on materials synthesis and exploring new materials systems for designing of broadband EM absorber. Outside of academia Raylan enjoy drawing, gaming, photography, and playing music.

Pulkit Gupta
Masters student – Mat. Science & Eng. (joined Fall 2023)
Pulkit’s research is focused on optimizing the mechanical and microstructural properties of industrial aluminum alloys through the application of external electric currents during solidification. Outside of academia Pulkit enjoys cooking, watching cricket, and playing board games.

Yiheng Xiao
Masters student – Mat. Science & Eng. (joined Winter 2023)
Yiheng’s research focuses on EM absorber material synthesis and optimization. Outside of academia he is an amateur badminton player and likes watching games of other sports, also enjoys watching movies, listening to music.
Undergraduate Students

Amiya Johnson
Undergraduate student – Mat. Science & Eng. (joined Spring 2024)
Amiya works on the effects of supercritical fluid and chemical treatments on the properties of flax and hemp fibers and their composites. Outside of academia, Amiya enjoys playing ultimate frisbee, listening to music, and being outdoors.

Angelo Ciarelli
Undergraduate student – Mech. Eng. (joined Fall 2024)
Angelo works on the mold designing and manufacturing using machining methods, and sample preparation for the EM absorber project. Outside of research, he enjoys playing sports, reading, and spending time with friends.

Austin Shepley
Undergraduate – Physics (joined Fall 2024)
Austin is a freshman participating in the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP). He assists with the synthesis and characterization of polymer composite metamaterials for applications in electromagnetic (EM) absorption. In his free time, Austin enjoys playing pickup volleyball and learning about different fields of physics.

Grace Fantozzi
Undergraduate – Biochemistry (joined Winter 2025)
Grace is a sophomore studying biochemistry who works on the effects of nanoparticles on the strength and durability of polymer composites. Outside of research, she enjoys listening to music, playing tennis, and playing the saxophone.

Isaac Fraga Albuja
Undergraduate – Chemical Engineering (joined Winter 2025)
As a chemical engineering undergraduate, Isaac’s academic and research interests lie in developing sustainable materials as well as pharmaceuticals. He is currently working on the cultivation of flax plants and synthesis of natural composites from flax fibers. In his free time, Isaac enjoys listening to music, being outdoors, and learning about motorsports.
Lab Alumni
Dr. Kanat Anurakparadorn (PhD, 2024)
Kanat Anurakparadorn’s research focuses on the design and fabrication of polymer nanocomposites-based metamaterials as electromagnetic absorbers. For this research, the group works in cooperation with Professor Eric Michielssen from the Electrical Engineering and Computer Science department. Periodic porous structures are designed by computational EM wave modeling with optimization techniques. Combined magnetic nanoparticles with conductive fillers are synthesized and dispersed in polymer matrices to achieve desired micro morphologies. Fused deposition modeling is used to fabricate the designed structures as macro morphology. Unique EM absorber characteristics such as wide operational bandwidth, polarization insensitive, incident angle independent, and high level of absorption are the targets of the design.
Dr. Amy Langhorst (PhD, 2023)
Amy Langhorst’s research focused on methods to improve the mechanical properties of natural fiber composites, including the creation of natural fiber – nanoparticle hybrid composites and fiber pre-treatment. Amy is performing this work in collaboration with Ford Motor Company.
Dr. Anita Luong (PhD, 2023)
Anita Luong’s research focused on degradation of sealing materials in the automotive fuel cell environment. This work is supported by General Motors Fuel Cell Activities.
Dr. Anshul Singhal (PhD, 2022)
Anshul Singhal’s research focuses on reducing natural plant fibers damage and variability occurring during various steps in their extraction process, thus, making natural fibers suitable for structural composite applications at industrial scale. Current work involves controlling chemical parameters of the initial extraction step through enzymatic retting and optimizing the design of later mechanical extraction steps through finite element modeling. This work is in collaboration with Ford Motor Company and also a part of The Global CO2 Initiative at University of Michigan.
Dr. Randy Cheng (PhD, 2022)
Randy Cheng’s research focused on implementing ultrasonic vibrations in incremental sheet metal forming. The added vibration offers lower flow stress, improvement in dimensional accuracy, and surface roughness. Material microstructure and texture are also characterized after forming.
Dr. Aaron Gladstein (PhD, 2022)
Aaron Gladstein’s research involved the production and characterization of in-situ metal matrix nanocomposites, with a focus on metal-based polymer pyrolysis to create strengthening particles within the metal matrix. Some characterization techniques he uses include SEM, synchrotron radiation imaging, and various polymer characterization techniques (TGA, DSC, FTIR, etc.).
Dr. Ankush Anjnikumar Bansal (PhD, 2021)
Dr. Caleb Reese (PhD, 2020)
Caleb Reese’s defense title: “In Situ Metal Matrix Nanocomposites: Towards Understanding Formation Mechanisms and Microstructural Control”. His postdoctoral research focused on understanding the formation mechanisms and processing-microstructure-property relationships governing aluminum-based metal matrix nanocomposites (MMNCs) fabricated via in situ methods (e.g., combustion synthesis, flux-assisted reaction synthesis). His work was based primarily on investigating the effect of alloying elements and impurities (e.g., silicon) on in situ MMNC reaction pathways, as well as the development of synchrotron X-ray methods to facilitate real-time visualization of MMNC processing.
Dr. Avi Bregman (PhD, 2019)
Avi Bregman’s research focused on the multiscale design of polymer nanocomposites for electro magnetic interference(EMI) shielding. Using magnetic and shear alignment inside of a UV curable matrix, advanced control of carbonaceous filler orientation is achieved and then instantly cured to combine unique microstructure with macrostructures that cannot currently be achieved.
Xingkang She (Masters)
Xingkang’s research focused on the alignment of CNTs for carbon-fiber structural composites. The aim of the research is to improve the mechanical properties of the composites by the alignment of CNTs under electric fields.
Dr. Yipeng He (PhD, 2019)
Yipeng He’s research includes the real-time characterization of the carbon nanotube (CNT) alignment in polymer matrices and the relevant kinetics study. The current focus is the CNT alignment in a shear flow and its comparison with an electric field.
Dr. Maya Nath (PhD, 2019)
Maya Nath’s research focused on the characterization of microstructure, texture and surface finish of aluminum alloys undergoing large deformations. This work will be used to optimize the mechanical properties of the resulting components, specifically for tensile and fatigue applications.
Dr. Wesley Chapkin (PhD, 2017)
Dr. Wesley Chapkin’s research involved the analysis of nanoparticle dispersion and alignment via electric fields on the resulting properties of polymer nanocomposites. The utilization of such techniques as UV-vis and polarized Raman spectroscopy allows for an in situ, real time investigation of the evolution of a system under an applied electric field.
Dr. Xun Liu (Postdoc , 2017)
Dr. Xun Liu formerly held the position of postdoc in the Taub group. Her projects included microstructure characterization of cast aluminum nanocomposites produced from an in-situ gas-liquid reaction process. The size, distribution and composition of the nanoparticles in the aluminum matrix are analyzed and related to the enhanced mechanical properties. Xun was also involved in the project of incremental forming process and studies the forming force, forming mechanisms, dimensional and geometrical accuracy, formability and surface roughness for different formed geometries under various process conditions.
Erika Salem (Masters , 2017)
Erika Salem’s project focused on the study of the mechanics of deformation during processing both experimentally and using finite element analysis.
Steel Nagila Cardoza (Masters, 2019)
Steel Cardoza’s research automated the custom wedding veil manufacturing process by utilizing additive manufacturing techniques with a novel adhesive-surface combination. Tulle, the nylon mesh used in wedding veils, is too delicate a material for conventional high temperature ‘bedazzling’ techniques, requiring individual crystals to be placed by hand until now. Project sponsor is Dr. Taub’s daughter Ariel Taub who operates her own custom wedding veil company.