Overview

Pradeep R. Guduru is Professor of Engineering at Brown University, where he has been a faculty member since 2002. He received his bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering from Sri Venkateswara University, India, and his master's degree in Aerospace Engineering from the Indian Institute of Science. He earned his Ph.D. in Aeronautics, with a minor in Materials Science, from the California Institute of Technology in 2001, under the supervision of Professor Ares J. Rosakis. Following his doctoral studies, he joined Brown University as a postdoctoral research associate with Professor L. B. Freund and subsequently joined the faculty in Solid Mechanics as an Assistant Professor of Engineering in 2002. He was promoted to Associate Professor in 2008 and Professor in 2014. He held the James R. Rice Early Career Faculty Chair in Engineering from 2009 to 2016. He has held visiting academic appointments at the University of California, Berkeley (2008–2009), Stanford University (2015–2016), and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (2026).

Professor Guduru's research is centered on the mechanics of materials and structures, with particular emphasis on understanding the physical mechanisms governing deformation, fracture, interfacial interactions, and material behavior under coupled physical fields and extreme loading conditions. His research philosophy emphasizes the complementary roles of carefully designed experiments, innovative measurement techniques, fundamental mechanics, and predictive modeling in revealing physical phenomena and establishing principles for materials design.

His contributions span several areas of fundamental and applied mechanics. In contact mechanics, his work has advanced the understanding of adhesion and friction, particularly the influence of surface geometry and mechanical instabilities on interfacial behavior. At the interface of mechanics and chemistry, his research has elucidated the roles of mechanical stress in electrochemical energy-storage materials and heterogeneous catalysis. His group has developed experimental techniques and mechanistic frameworks for understanding stress evolution, degradation, and fracture in battery materials, and more recently demonstrated how controlled compressive stresses can influence lithium dendrite propagation in solid electrolytes. These efforts have helped establish mechanics as an important consideration in the design and reliability of electrochemical energy technologies.

Another major thrust of his research concerns the dynamic deformation and failure of materials subjected to extreme loading, including high strain rates and shock waves. His work has investigated dynamic fracture, adiabatic shear localization, and the roles of material heterogeneity and microstructure in governing failure. A distinguishing feature of this research is the development of advanced experimental diagnostics and scientific instrumentation, including high-speed optical and infrared microscopy, ultrafast thermal imaging, and plate-impact experimental techniques, to resolve transient physical processes at previously inaccessible spatial and temporal scales. His recent research explores architected and heterogeneous materials as a means of controlling deformation, damage, and instability, integrating experimental mechanics, computational modeling, and emerging physics-guided inverse-design approaches.

Professor Guduru has led several major interdisciplinary research programs spanning solid mechanics, materials science, electrochemistry, and energy technologies. His research has been recognized with the B. J. Lazan Award from the Society for Experimental Mechanics (2026), the James R. Rice Medal from the Society of Engineering Science (2020), the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE, 2007), and the National Science Foundation CAREER Award (2006). His earlier honors include the William F. Ballhaus Prize for outstanding doctoral dissertation in Aeronautics (Caltech, 2001), the Ernest E. Sechler Memorial Award for contributions to teaching and research (Caltech, 1998), the Donald W. Douglas Fellowship (Caltech, 1994), the Senate Commendation for academic excellence (Indian Institute of Science, 1994), and the Jayant Dalal Scholarship and Ivaturi Prize (Sri Venkateswara University).

Professor Guduru has contributed extensively to professional leadership and service in the mechanics community. He served on the Executive Committee of the Applied Mechanics Division of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) from 2017 to 2022, including as Division Chair in 2021–2022, and on the Board of Directors of the Society of Engineering Science. He serves on the editorial board of the Journal of the Mechanics and Physics of Solids. He co-chaired the 50th Annual Technical Meeting of the Society of Engineering Science and the joint ASME Applied Mechanics Division Summer Conference in 2013, and chaired the Mechanics of Solids, Structures and Fluids Track at IMECE 2019. He has also organized numerous scientific symposia and workshops sponsored by federal research agencies, including NSF, ARO, and DOE.

Brown Affiliations

• Engineering