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Liuchi Li is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Princeton University. His research focuses on the mechanics and physics of complex material systems, specifically concerning multi-body contact, friction, and fracture. Dr. Li explores fundamental questions regarding the role frictional contact plays in controlling the macroscopic behavior of granular media and fast crack behavior in the presence of material heterogeneity. His overarching goal is to quantitatively characterize macroscopic behaviors, understand the underlying small-scale processes, and harness this knowledge for innovative engineering applications to enhance the resilience and sustainability of the built environment. To achieve this, he develops and applies novel computational and experimental approaches that integrate concepts from computational solid and granular mechanics, soft matter physics, machine learning, optical sensing, and high-speed instrumentation. His current research areas include the physics of nonlocality in disordered granular media, mechanics design of granularity-inspired metamaterials, and multi-modal characterization of dynamic brittle fracture in civil infrastructure materials.
GRE scores are not accepted. Ph.D. is the primary degree; students are not required to hold an M.S.E. prior to admission.