Aerospace & Defense
Cutting-edge navigation, sensing, and secure communications
UConn researchers are advancing technologies that strengthen the nation’s aerospace and defense capabilities—from quantum materials and ultrafast sensing to adaptive structures and secure communications. Their work integrates physics, engineering, and materials science to power next-generation navigation, detection, and control systems, translating fundamental discoveries into innovations for industry, defense, and national security applications.
Alexander Balatsky
Professor, Physics
Balatsky is a theorist in quantum and topological materials, advancing understanding of Dirac systems, electron dynamics, and emergent quantum phases. At UConn, he studies defects and impurities in quantum materials, mentors graduate students in modeling, and collaborates with industry and national labs on next generation quantum materials research.
Osama Bilal
Assistant Professor, Mechanical, Aerospace & Manufacturing Engineering
Bilal directs the We-Xite Lab at UConn, where his team develops programmable materials and adaptive structures. His research spans materials design, soft robotics, and advanced manufacturing, creating responsive systems. He mentors graduate students and collaborates with industry to translate innovative materials and technologies into practical applications.
Necmi Biyikli
Associate Professor, Electrical & Computer Engineering
Biyikli leads research in atomic-layer deposition to create advanced nanoscale semiconductors and electronic/opto-electronic devices for next-generation electronics. His team develops precision-engineered tunable materials enabling thin-film transistors, photodetectors, environmental sensors, and wearable/implantable devices that power smarter technologies, while engaging students and collaborating with industry to accelerate innovation in materials and device design.
Simone Colombo
Assistant Professor, Physics
Colombo leads research in ultracold atoms, quantum information, and precision sensing, exploring light–matter interactions at the quantum level as a unifying platform for advancing quantum technologies. At UConn, he mentors students in experimental quantum physics and develops quantum-enhanced sensors and simulators that advance measurement science and quantum information processing.
Gayanath Fernando
Professor, Physics
Fernando applies computational many-body and condensed-matter theory to study correlated electron systems, topological materials, and quasi–two-dimensional structures. He mentors graduate students and connects theoretical insights to materials modeling, fundamental condensed-matter discoveries, and aspects of quantum sensing explored through light–matter interactions.
Lea Ferreira dos Santos
Professor & Associate Department Head, Physics
Santos studies complex quantum systems, focusing on many-body quantum dynamics, quantum chaos, thermalization, localization, and control. She investigates how coherence, entanglement, and correlations emerge, evolve, and decay, applying these insights to quantum sensing, novel phases of matter, and molecular simulations. Her projects engage undergraduate and graduate students and postdocs, training the next generation of researchers in quantum science.
Ali Gokirmak
Professor, Electrical & Computer Engineering
Gokirmak leads research in nanoelectronics, focusing on phase-change memory, electronic and thermoelectric transport and electro-thermal processes at small scales, and materials for emerging electronics. His expertise are in nanoscale and microscale device fabrication, electrical characterization at high and low temperatures, and finite element multi-physics modeling of devices and materials. His primary interest is on fundamental studies related to practical leading edge electronic devices such as memory and logic devices, and Josephson junctions. He mentors students and collaborates with industry to translate discoveries and innovations in electronic device technologies into practical applications.
James N. Hohman
Assistant Professor, Chemistry / Institute of Materials Science
Hohman’s research focuses on next-generation materials and interfaces, employing big-data, AI, and nanomaterial approaches to enable scalable materials discovery and industrial deployment. He mentors students and bridges foundational science with applied materials engineering to advance practical material solutions.
Faquir Jain
Electrical & Computer Engineering / Institute of Materials Science
Jain’s research in materials engineering spans nanostructures, sensors, electronic platforms, quantum dot superlattice-based multi-state logic, and memory devices. He guides students and works with industry to apply engineering solutions, translating materials science insights into innovative devices and system-level technologies.
Menka Jain
Professor, Physics / Institute of Materials Science
Jain studies functional metal-oxide materials, including dielectric, ferroelectric, magnetoelectric, and multiferroic systems as well as quantum materials, to develop variety of sensors, memory, tunable microwave, and energy harvesting devices. Her lab integrates synthesis (thin films, nanocomposites, bulk/nano powders, single crystals), microstructure control, and characterizations, mentoring students and pursuing industrial translation of materials discoveries into device applications.
Bahram Javidi
Board of Trustees Distinguished Professor and SNET Endowed Chair, Electrical & Computer Engineering
Javidi is a leading researcher in multidimensional optical imaging, sensing, and information security. His work in 3D imaging, digital holography, and information optics has applications in biomedical diagnostics, cybersecurity, and industrial sensing. He has received major awards and holds patents licensed for industry use.
Jeongho Kim
Professor, Civil & Environmental Engineering; Director, Connecticut Manufacturing Simulation Center
Kim leads computational manufacturing and materials processing research, focusing on multiscale simulation, process optimization, and infrastructure resilience. He directs the Connecticut Manufacturing Simulation Center, translating simulation tools to industry through workforce training, pilot deployments, and collaborations with state and commercial partners.
Anh-Thu Le
Assistant Professor, Physics
Le is an AMO theorist studying attosecond and strong-field physics, high-harmonic generation, and light-matter interactions, including nonclassical light — foundational areas for quantum control and measurement. He contributes to outreach and advanced training in ultrafast and quantum optics.
Chang Liu
Assistant Professor, Mechanical, Aerospace, and Manufacturing Engineering
Liu studies fluid dynamics, nonlinear systems, control theory, and optimization, with a focus on turbulence. He develops interdisciplinary methods for reduced-order modeling and explores quantum computing techniques for hydrodynamic stability, connecting advanced computational approaches with fundamental and applied fluid dynamics research.
George Lykotrafitis
Professor, Mechanical, Aerospace & Manufacturing Engineering / Biomedical Engineering / Institute of Materials Science
Lykotrafitis applies computational and experimental mechanics to cellular and soft-matter systems, with expertise in biomechanics, multiscale modeling, AFM techniques, and super-resolution microscopy. In parallel, he is developing hardware and software for underwater drones and applying quantum computing techniques to swarm robotics and biomechanics problems. His work bridges foundational modeling and biomedical and materials-engineering applications, supporting translational opportunities for industry partners.
Tomoyasu Mani
Associate Professor, Chemistry
Mani’s research bridges chemical dynamics, electron and energy transfer, spin chemistry, and quantum information science. His group integrates chemical synthesis, spectroscopy, and theory to advance quantum sensing and spin-level control, aiming toward practical quantum technologies.
Daniel McCarron
Assistant Professor, Physics
McCarron’s research centers on using ultracold atomic and molecular gases to realize strongly interacting many-body systems for quantum simulation and controlled organic chemistry. His group develops new techniques and technologies to cool molecules using cryogenics and lasers, recently receiving funding from the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR).
Sanjeev Nayak
Research Scientist, Materials Science & Engineering
Nayak applies quantum many-body theory and defect physics to design smart materials and coordinates the UConn Quantum Alliance. His work advances quantum materials, computing, communications, and sensing, bridging first-principles quantum modeling with device translation for real-world applications.
Georges Pavlidis
Assistant Professor, Mechanical, Aerospace & Manufacturing Engineering
Pavlidis leads research in nanoscale investigation of devices and materials for next generation electronics and energy systems. His expertise spans nanometer and nanosecond optical, structural and electrical metrology with focus on thermal transport in wide bandgap power and RF electronics, phase change memory and memristors.
Ilya Sochnikov
Associate Professor, Physics
Sochnikov investigates quantum and nanoscale materials and instrumentation, developing tools such as a “Quantum Metrology Microscope” through the UConn Quantum Technologies Translation Award. He translates quantum-aware materials science into prototype devices with practical applications in advanced instrumentation.
Steven Suib
Board of Trustees Distinguished Professor, Chemistry; Director, Institute of Materials Science
Suib’s prolific research in materials chemistry covers nanoporous materials, catalysis, coatings, ceramics, and sensing with extensive publications, patents, and licensed technologies. He leads large interdisciplinary teams and advanced materials and sensing platforms with industrial translation pathways for environmental and energy applications.
Carlos Trallero
Professor & Associate Department Head, Physics
Trallero leads research in ultrafast laser and strong-field molecular spectroscopy, achieving attosecond control of quantum electron dynamics and higher-harmonic generation studies. His lab, supported by DoE and AFOSR funding, mentors graduate researchers in quantum-scale optical experiments and coherent control techniques that link atomic and molecular phenomena to quantum measurement applications. Trallero is also the founder of two startup companies, QueHot: Exciton Computing and Plasmonic Reactor Systems.
Pavel Volkov
Assistant Professor, Physics
Volkov focuses on strongly correlated and topological quantum materials, including superconductors and 2D materials. He uses analytical and computational many-body methods to reveal novel quantum phases and study tehir properties. His work on twisted superconductor interfaces drives quantum materials design with device implications.
Baris Yavas
Research Scientist, Materials Science & Engineering
Yavas conducts advanced materials and characterization research based on electron microscopy techniques, focusing on microstructural development in extreme environments, failure analysis of jet engine materials, and alloy design for novel manufacturing techniques. Supported by AFRL, Pratt & Whitney, and Collins Aerospace projects, his work advances next-generation manufacturing solutions for the aerospace industry, investigates failure mechanisms in titanium alloys used in jet engines, and explores the development of novel alloys for aerospace applications through advanced manufacturing methods.