Research labs at The University of Tennessee-Knoxville .

Bamin Khomami Research Group

Complex fluidsRheologyMultiscale simulation

Bamin Khomami · Distinguished University Professor

Khomami studies how complex fluids and soft materials organize, move, and respond to processing. His research combines rheology, molecular dynamics, biophysics, and multiscale simulation with the science of microstructured and nanostructured materials. Other directions explore biohybrid energy materials, printed electronics, additive manufacturing, and materials for quantum simulation. Listed work includes block-copolymer assembly and flow-induced changes in polymer solutions. The distinguishing connection is between behavior at the molecular scale and properties during manufacturing or use, with theory and simulation helping explain how structure evolves under controlled conditions.

DRIndependently curated · Unclaimed

Dacheng Ren Research Group

BiofilmsAntifouling materialsBacterial control

Dacheng Ren · Professor

Ren studies bacterial communities that make infections difficult to prevent and treat. His research examines biofilms, dormant cells, and interactions between bacteria and material surfaces. Projects develop antifouling materials, microbial-control strategies, and safer medical devices. A recent UT Knoxville report describes active surface structures designed to prevent bacteria from establishing biofilms without relying on antibiotics. The group links fundamental bacterial physiology with engineered surfaces and translational biomaterials, offering a concrete research challenge: can the material around a medical device help control infection before a persistent bacterial community takes hold?

JSIndependently curated · Unclaimed

Joshua S. Fu Research Group

Climate impactsAir pollutionEnvironmental modeling

Joshua S. Fu · Professor

Fu investigates how climate and environmental change affect systems people depend on. His research connects climate impacts with energy infrastructure, air pollution, water availability, carbon sequestration, and extreme events such as heatwaves, droughts, and floods. Human health provides another application area, while artificial intelligence and machine learning support analyses of climate, health, and atmospheric deposition. The group offers prospective researchers a broad but connected environmental-engineering direction: modeling changing conditions and tracing their consequences across infrastructure, natural resources, and populations rather than treating those impacts as isolated problems.

KPIndependently curated · Unclaimed

Katharine Page Research Group

Structural characterizationFerroelectric oxidesHigh-entropy ceramics

Katharine Page · Professor

Page investigates complex functional materials by asking how their structure explains their behavior. Her research uses advances in structural characterization to study both bulk materials and nanoscale systems. Application areas include ferroelectric oxides, energy-conversion materials, nanoscale catalysts, and high-entropy ceramics. The unifying theme is connecting the arrangement of a material’s constituents with the functions that make it useful. For prospective researchers interested in materials chemistry and crystallography, this offers a setting where improving how a structure is measured can open new questions about designing and understanding functional materials.

SMIndependently curated · Unclaimed

Steven M. Abel Research Group

Computational cell biologyImmunologyMembrane biophysics

Steven M. Abel · Associate Professor

Abel develops theoretical and computational approaches to cell biology and immunology. His group investigates how signaling networks, membranes, and the cytoskeleton interact across space and time, including antigen recognition by immune cells and intracellular transport. Research uses statistical mechanics and simulations of soft biological materials to examine spatial and stochastic effects that simpler models can overlook. Listed projects address actin organization and crowding in cell-sized compartments. The appeal is understanding cellular behavior through quantitative models that connect molecular interactions with the physical organization of a living cell.