Harold Park

Harold S. Park is a Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science & Engineering at Boston University. He leads research in computational nanomechanics, focusing on nanowire mechanics, soft materials, and coupled electromechanical phenomena. Park earned his PhD from Northwestern University in 2004 and has held faculty positions since 2007. His work bridges atomistic simulations and continuum mechanics, addressing challenges in nanoscale material behavior and energy conversion.

• Education:
  • PhD, Northwestern University (2004)
  • MS, Northwestern University (2001)
  • BS, Northwestern University (1999)

Research Interests: Park’s lab explores topological mechanics, phononic metamaterials, and machine learning-driven materials design. Key areas include surface-dominated plasticity in nanomaterials, flexoelectricity in 2D materials, and energy harvesting via crumpling mechanics. His team develops multiscale models to predict mechanical behavior across length scales.

Publications: Over 150 peer-reviewed articles span topics like nanowire deformation mechanisms, nanoresonator dynamics, and topology-optimized metamaterials. Recent work highlights include enhancing nanowire Q-factors via strain tuning and designing non-reciprocal elastic systems.

• Awards:
  • NSF CAREER Award (2007)
  • DARPA Young Faculty Award (2008)
  • ASME Fellow (2016)
  • John Argyris Award (2016)

Advising & Teams: Park mentors graduate students and postdocs in experimental and computational mechanics. Notable advisees include Dr. Penghui Cao (UC-Irvine faculty) and Dr. Saman Seifi. His lab collaborates with industry partners on nanomaterials for sensors and energy systems.

Labs: Affiliated with the Materials by Design Center at BU, focusing on computational and experimental nanomechanics. Active in editorial roles for journals like Journal of Applied Mechanics and Nano Letters.