Faculty/Researcher List

Santiago Solares

Assistant Professor
UMD - Faculty

Research

Processing, Particles, Modeling, Materials, Devices, Characterization

Multi-scale modeling combining quantum, molecular, and classical dynamics; design of AFM-based nano-manipulation systems, theoretical-experimental development of new AFM-based characterization methods (especially for delicate biomaterials), fundamental understanding of nanoscale friction.

Professor Solares obtained his B.S. & Licenciado degrees in chemical engineering from the University del Valle in Guatemala City in 1994 and 1995, respectively. He worked for Pepsi-Cola International as a technical services field engineer serving Central America during 1994 and 1995. He then obtained an M.S. degree in industrial engineering from the University of Miami, focusing on management of technology and finance, after which he relocated to California with Mars Incorporated. Between 1997 and 2002 he held various technical and management positions in R&D and manufacturing engineering, as part of which he participated in the construction and start-up of three new manufacturing facilities in the U.S., as well as in several R&D projects involving business units in North and South America, Europe, and Asia. In 2002 he returned to graduate school and obtained M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in chemical engineering from the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) in 2005 and 2006, respectively. His dissertation work (http://etd.caltech.edu/etd/available/etd-05122006-102528/) focused on the application of computational nanotechnology to the study of atomic force microscopy and surface reconstruction and functionalization processes. Since August of 2006 he serves as an assistant professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Maryland, College Park. His work combines multi-scale simulation and experiment.