PICS Faculty
The PICS faculty consists of a cross-section of world class researchers from across the wide range of disciplines represented at the University of Pennsylvania. All PICS faculty members share an interest in the application of state-of-the-art computational tools and platforms to their individual disciplines.
Leadership
PICS Director

Associate Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
Research Interests:
- Energy
- Chemistry of Materials
- Catalysis
- Fuel Cells
- Molecular Modeling
Aleksandra’s research focuses on theoretical and computational-driven materials design. The lab uses computational frameworks to obtain fundamental understanding of surface and interface properties of complex materials that can be used to develop theoretical models for chemical transformations and energy conversion. These models have, for example, been used to predict new catalyst materials for several chemical reactions which have been experimentally synthesized and tested, validating the desired properties of the computationally predicted catalyst material.
Education:
PhD Physics 2010 – Chalmers University of Technology – Sweden
MS Physics 2004 – Lund University – Sweden
PICS Core Faculty & Steering Committee
- Rachleff Professor Computer and Information Science
- Director, Center for Digital Visualization (ViDi)
- Director and Faculty Advisor: DIGITAL MEDIA DESIGN Undergraduate SEAS BSE Degree
- Co-Director: Computer Graphics and Game Technology Masters (MSE) Degree
Research Interests:
- Virtual embodied human agents
- Fast motion generators
- Parameterized Action Representation
- Parameterized Behavior Trees
- Functional crowd simulation
- Ph.D. in Computer Science, University of Toronto, 1975. Dissertation title: “Temporal Scene Analysis: Conceptual Descriptions of Object Movements.”
- MSc. in Mathematics, University of Toronto, 1971.
- BA (with highest honors) in College of Creative Studies, emphasis in Mathematics; University of California, Santa Barbara, 1966-1970.
Norman I. Badler is the Rachleff Professor of Computer and Information Science at the University of Pennsylvania. He received his BA in Creative Studies Mathematics from the University of California Santa Barbara in 1970, his MSc in Mathematics from the University of Toronto in 1971, and his PhD in Computer Science from the University of Toronto in 1975. He served as the Senior Co-Editor for the Journal Graphical Models for 20 years and presently serves on the Editorial Boards of several other Journals including Presence. His research involves developing software to acquire, simulate, animate and control 3D computer graphics human body, face, gesture, locomotion, and manual task motions, both individually and for heterogeneous groups. He has supervised or co-supervised 62 PhD students, many of whom have become academics or researchers in the movie visual effects and game industries. He is the founding Director of the SIG Center for Computer Graphics, the Center for Human Modeling and Simulation, and the ViDi Center for Digital Visualization at Penn. He has served Penn as Chair of the Computer & Information Science Department (1990-94) and as the Associate Dean of the School of Engineering and Applied Science (2001-05).
Office Location: Levine 304
Email
Phone: 215-898-5862
- Richard H. and S.L. Gabel Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics
Research interests:
- Biomechanics
- Computational mechanics
- Mechanics of materials
- PhD Engineering 1978 – Harvard University
- MS Applied Mechanics 1975 – Lehigh University
- BS Mechanical Engineering 1973 – Lehigh University
John applies his expertise in atomic-level properties of continuum mechanics in order to model mechanical and mechano-chemical behavior of nano-structured materials. His research group explores concepts to control the formation of patterned nanostructures in the solid state and investigates the interplay between mechanics and adhesion, with applications to MEMS/NEMS devices and living cells. John has developed models for elastic and inelastic behavior, and failure at the nanoscale, including interfaces and other complex defects in crystalline materials and thin films.
- Assistant Professor, Electrical and Systems Engineering & Computer and Information Science
Research Interests
- Machine Learning and Computer Vision: Deep Learning
- Statistical Physics
- Stochastic Processes
- Robotics and Control: Urban Autonomous Navigation
- Motion Planning
- PhD Computer Science 2018 – University of California, Los Angeles
- MS Aeronautics & Astronautics 2014 – Massachusetts Institute of Technology
- BTech Aerospace Engineering 2010 – Indian Institute of Technology Bombay
Pratik brings his passion for machine learning, robotics and computer vision to the forefront of his research. He hopes to bring the dream of cybernetics closer to reality, with an emphasis on Embodied Intelligence. The ability to perceive and control the environment is the hallmark of such intelligence and their interplay is at the core of his research. In a nutshell, he would like to build embodied autonomous agents that are intelligent not just in the sense of a chess-playing program but also intelligent in the sense of a dog. Much of Pratik’s focus is on applications in home robotics, personal healthcare and autonomous driving.
Office Location: Levine Hall 470
Email
Phone: 215-898-5814
- Presidential Assistant Professor, Departments of Psychiatry and Microbiology, Perelman School of Medicine
Department of Bioengineering
Research Interests
- Synthetic biology
- Computer science
- Electrical engineering
- Microbiology
- Drug development and delivery
- PhD Microbiology & Immunology 2014 – University Of British Columbia
- MSc Biotechnology 2009 – University Of Leon
- BSc Biotechnology 2009 – University of Leon
Cesar seeks to harness computational power to find molecules with antibacterial activity. He uses synthetic biology and computational tools to determine features contributing to this activity and trains computers to find— or design— candidate molecules and tweak their structures virtually. For example, Cesar worked with a team to train a computer to execute a fitness function that selects structures that interact with bacterial membranes, thus converting several HDPs into the first artificial antimicrobials that kill bacteria both in vitro and in animals. By investigating these exciting possibilities, Cesar aims to build machine-made antibiotics to combat infectious diseases and develop clinical applications for autonomously generated synthetic molecules. Cesar believes that computer-made drugs may help to replenish our arsenal of effective drugs and outpace the evolution of antibiotic resistance.
Office Location: Robert Wood Johnson Pavilion, Room 303C
Email
@delafuenteupenn
Phone: 215-746-6083
- Alfred G. and Meta A. Ennis Professor Bioengineering, Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
Research Interests
- Cellular engineering
- Bioengineered therapeutics
- Devices and drug delivery
- Cell mechanics
- PhD Chemical Engineering 1987 – University of Pennsylvania
- MSE Chemical Engineering 1985 – University of Pennsylvania
- BSE Chemical Engineering 1982 – Princeton University
Dan applies his research in nanometric soft matter to his studies in biology. Working with colleagues, he has forged polymersomes, membranes made of block copolymers, which are soft, vesicle-like nanoparticles for drug delivery and imaging. Dan has also developed a simulation method of adhesion of receptor-coated nanoparticles to surfaces. The method, Brownian Adhesive Dynamics, once applied to viral binding to cell surfaces, is now being used to understand selectivity and targeting in biological applications of nanoparticles. Currently, he is on the Board of Directors of the Energy Coordinating Agency of Philadelphia, having served as President for four years (2014-2017). ECA provides community-based energy efficiency services and assistance to low-income families throughout Philadelphia, the poorest of the ten largest cities in the United States.
Office Location: Towne 374
Email
@ProfDAHammer
Phone: 215-573-6761
- Professor and Masters Program Chair Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics (MEAM)
Research Interests:
- Computational mechanics
- Fluid mechanics
- PhD Aerospace Engineering 1992 – University of Minnesota
- MS Mechanics 1986 – Xian Jiaotong University in China
- BS Mechanical Engineering 1982 – Zhejiang University in China
Howard’s expertise is in computational fluid dynamics. His research focus is on modeling complex flows involving multiphase and polymeric fluids, particularly flows with solid particles, liquid drops, and gas bubbles. His group has been developing numerical techniques for simulating motions of large numbers of particles in those multiphase systems. They are engaged in understanding and controlling the particulate flows in various microfluidic applications through electrophoresis and dielectrophoresis.
Office Location: Towne 241
Email
Phone: 215-898-8504
- Professor & Director of MSE in Scientific Computing
Research Interests:
- Molecular simulation
- Transport process
- Chemical systems engineering
- PhD Chemical Engineering 1998 – Massachusetts Institute of Technology
- BSE Chemical Engineering 1991 – University of Pennsylvania
- BA Chemistry 1991 – University of Pennsylvania
Talid’s research program is broadly aimed at the theoretical and computational study of nano and microstructural evolution, particularly nucleation and growth, in condensed matter. He is currently pursuing microdefect formation in crystalline semiconductors, colloidal crystallization of micron-scale particles with tunable interactions, and platelet aggregation in blood. Talid’s lab has developed an extensive suite of simulation tools for studying these phenomena, including large-scale molecular dynamics, multiscale kinetic Monte Carlo, and continuum models.
Office Location: PICS
Email Talid
Phone:215-898-2511
Professor of Bioengineering (BE) & Electrical and Systems Engineering (ESE)
Research Interests:
- Complex Systems
- Network Science
- Computational Neuroscience
- Systems Biology
- Dynamical Systems
- Soft Materials
- Behavioral Network Science
Professor Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
- Directed Self-assembly
- Active and Soft Matter Physics
- Cell Biophysics
Office Location: PICS 526
Email John
CIS Assistant Professor, Computer and Information Science
Research Interests:
- Physics-based simulation for computer graphics
- Computational solid and fluid mechanics
- Scientific computing

- Nanoscale thermal, fluid, and mass transport
- Molecular dynamics simulation
- Laser-based materials characterization
- Field-directed patterning for nanofabrication
- Flow measurement in confined geometries
- Micro- and nanoscale engineering

- How does the ocean control atmospheric pCO2 and the global climate?
- Feedbacks between climate change, the ocean carbon cycle, and ocean ecology.
- Modeling phytoplankton evolution; observing ocean biology from space

Associate Professor Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
Research Interests:
- Molecular simulation and thermodynamics
- Soft matter and complex fluids

Assistant Professor Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics
Research Interests:
- Fluid Mechanics
- Computational Mechanics
Office Location: PICS Suite 524
Email George
Raymond S. Markowitz Faculty Fellow and Professor Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics
Research Interests:
- Variational Methods
- Homogenization
- Asymptotic Analysis
- Nonlinear Composite Materials
- Multi-Scale Analysis
- Smart Materials
- Microstructure Evolution and Localization in Manufacturing Processes
- Mechanics of Polycrystalline Deformation and Texture Evolution
- Phase Transformations; Fracture Mechanics; Thermoplastic Elastomers
- Elastomeric Foams, Reinforced Rubbers; Semi-Crystalline Polymers
- Magneto-rheological Elastomers
Office Location: 235 Towne Building
Email Pedro
Assistant Professor Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics
Research Interests:
- Computational Science and Engineering
- Machine learning and Data-driven Modeling
- Design under Uncertainty
- High-performance Computing
Office Location: PICS 527
Email Paris
- Epigenetics
- Genomics
- Systems and Synthetic Bioengineering
- Experimental Neuroscience
- Molecular and Cellular Engineering

Associate Professor Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics
Research Interests:
- Mechanics of materials
- Biomechanics
- Computational mechanics
- Chair and Professor of the Bioengineering
- Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
Research interests:
- Computational biology
- Molecular systems biology
Office Location: PICS Suite 522
Email
Phone: 215-898-0487
Website

William K. Gemmill Term Assistant ProfessorMechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics
Research Interests:
- Computational Mechanics
- Mechanics of Materials
- Micro- and Nanomechanics

Assistant Professor Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
Research Interests:
- Molecular modeling
- Statistical mechanics
- Polymer glasses
Eduardo D. Glandt President’s Distinguished Professor, Materials Science and Engineering, Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics, Bioengineering
- Physical properties and growth mechanisms of 2D materials, nanocrystals and nanowires
- Mechanics of biological systems and materials
- Materials for energy
- Contact