Walter H. Annenberg Professor of Engineering
School of Engineering
Brown University
610 Barus & Holley
182 Hope Street
Providence, RI 02912
Tel: (401) 215-4518
Fax: (401) 863-9025
Email: Huajian_Gao@brown.edu
EDUCATION
Ph.D. Engineering Science Harvard University 1988
M.S. Engineering Science Harvard University 1984
B.S. Solid Mechanics Xi’an Jiaotong University 1982
EXPERIENCES
7/2006-present Walter H. Annenberg Professor of Engineering
1/2006-present Professor of Engineering
9/2005-12/2005 Visiting Professor
School of Engineering
Brown University
1/2001-6/2006 Director and Professor
Max Planck Institute for Metals Research
1/2002-6/2006 Honorary Professor
Faculty of Chemistry University of Stuttgart
9/2002-8/2004 Visiting Professor
9/2000-8/2002 Professor
1/1995-8/2000 Associate Professor
9/1988-12/1994 Assistant Professor
Department of Mechanical Engineering
Department of Materials Science and Engineering (by courtesy)
Stanford University
4/1988-8/1988 Postdoctoral Research Fellow (w/ Prof. James R. Rice)
Division of Applied Science
Harvard University
6/1985-3/1988 Research Assistant (w/ Prof. James R. Rice)
Division of Applied Science
Harvard University
8/1982-8/1983 Lecturer
Department of Engineering Mechanics
Xi’an Jiaotong University
VISITING POSITIONS
1/2017-12/2019 Institute of Advanced Study (TIAS) Faculty Fellow
Department of Mechanical Engineering
Texas A&M University
1/2016-11/2017 Distinguished Visiting Chair Professor
Department of Mechanical Engineering
Hong Kong Polytechnic University
6/2012-6/2022 Visiting Professor
Center for Advanced Mechanics and Materials
Tsinghua University
2/2012-1/2017 Visiting Professor International
Center of Applied Mechanics (ICAM)
Xi’an Jiaotong University
12/2014-12/2014 Visiting Professor Soochow University
12/2011-12/2014 Kuang-piu Visiting Professor
Department of Engineering Mechanics
Zhejiang University
10/2012-11/2012 Simpson Faculty Fellow
Department of Mechanical Engineering
Northwestern University
1/2012-12/2013 Distinguished Visiting Professor
Department of Mechanical Engineering
The University of Hong Kong
7/2012-12/2012 Timoshenko Visiting Professor
Department of Mechanical Engineering
Stanford University
1/2012-6/2012 Alexander von Humboldt Visiting Professor
Department of Biophysical Chemistry
University of Heidelberg
4/2007-4/2012 VIP Visiting Professor
Institute of High Performance Computing
Agency for Science, Technology and Research of Singapore
12/2002-12/2005 Visiting Scientist
Institute of Metals Research
Chinese Academy of Sciences
8/2000-8/2005 Chang Jiang Visiting Chair Professor
Department of Engineering Mechanics
Tsinghua University
3/1998-8/1998 Alexander von Humboldt Visiting Scientist
Max Planck Institute for Metals Research
4/1996-6/1996 Visiting Professor
Department of Mechanical Engineering
Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
2/1996-4/1996 Visiting Professor
Department of Mechanical Engineering
University of Paderborn
6/1995-1/1996 Senior Visiting Scientist
Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics
University of Cambridge
ACADEMY MEMBERSHIPS
Member, National Academy of Engineering (NAE)
Member, German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina
Foreign Member, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS)
PROFESSIONAL SOCIETY MEMBERSHIPS
Honorary Fellow, International Congress on Fracture (ICF)
Fellow, American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)
Fellow, Institute of Physics, Great Britain (IoP)
Life Member, American Geophysical Union (AGU)
Life Member, Society of Engineering Science (SES)
Member, Materials Research Society (MRS)
Member, Engineering Mechanics Institute, American Society of Civil Engineers
(ASCE)
MAJOR SOCIETY RECOGNITIONS
Theodore von Karman Medal (highest medal of ASCE in engineering mechanics),
Engineering Mechanics Institute, American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE),
2017
Nadai Medal (highest medal of ASME in engineering materials), American Society
of Mechanical Engineers (ASME), 2015
William Prager Medal (highest medal of SES), Society of Engineering Science
(SES), 2015
Rodney Hill Prize in Solid Mechanics (highest international award in solid
mechanics; only one awardee every four years), International Union of
Theoretical and Applied Mechanics, 2012
Alexander von Humboldt Research Award (highest German award for
international scientists), Germany, 2012
Charles Russ Richards Memorial Award (highest joint award of Pi Tau Sigma
National Mechanical Engineering Honor Society and ASME), Pi Tau Sigma and
ASME, 2011
Guggenheim Fellowship (for exceptional scholarship or creativity; only 1-2 awards
in engineering per year), John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation, 1995
RESEARCH INTERESTS
Solid Mechanics, nanomechanics, biomechanics
Mechanics of thin films and hierarchically structured materials
Mechanics of nanostructured and nanotwinned materials
Mechanics of biological and bio-inspired materials
Mechanics of cell-nanomaterials interactions
Mechanics of energy storage materials
Mechanics of cell adhesion
Mechanics of amorphous alloys
