Jonathan Malen

Jonathan Malen is a Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Carnegie Mellon University’s College of Engineering. His research spans nanoscale thermal transport, energy materials, and additive manufacturing, with significant contributions to thermal management in electronics and thermoelectric energy conversion.

Malen earned a Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from UC Berkeley (2009), an M.S. in Nuclear Engineering from MIT (2003), and a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Michigan (2000). He joined CMU in 2009 and has since led groundbreaking experimental work in thermal science.

His research interests include thermal transport in advanced materials such as ultrawide bandgap semiconductors (GaN, Ga₂O₃), organic-inorganic hybrids (superatomic crystals, perovskites), and high-thermal-conductivity polymers. The Malen Laboratory uses ultrafast laser spectroscopy, microfabrication, and thermal imaging to study heat transfer in electronics, additive manufacturing, and cryopreservation. Key applications include thermoelectric waste heat recovery, thermal management in microprocessors, and process monitoring in metal 3D printing.

Malen’s recent publications reveal a strong focus on thermal conductivity in polymers and composites, melt pool dynamics in additive manufacturing, and phonon transport in nanostructured materials. His work increasingly integrates machine learning for process modeling and defect prediction in metal printing. There is a clear interdisciplinary trend combining materials science, mechanical engineering, and data-driven modeling.

• Benjamin Richard Teare Teaching Award (2019)
• David P. Casasent Outstanding Research Award (2016)
• ASME Bergles-Rohsenhow Young Investigator Award in Heat Transfer
• Army Research Office Young Investigator Award (2014)
• National Science Foundation CAREER Award (2012)
• Air Force Office of Scientific Research Young Investigator Award (2010)

Malen has advised numerous PhD students, many of whom now work in industry (e.g., Intel, Northrop Grumman, Apple) or academia. His research is supported by the NSF, DoD, ARO, AFOSR, and NIH. He collaborates with Alan McGaughey (CMU), Dmitri Talapin (University of Chicago), and X. Roy (Columbia), among others. He is also involved with CMU’s Data Storage Systems Center, NextManufacturing Center, and Wilton E. Scott Institute for Energy Innovation.

The Malen Laboratory operates at the intersection of experimental thermal science and advanced manufacturing, focusing on both fundamental understanding and technological applications. The team includes postdocs and PhD students working on topics such as in-situ thermal imaging, deep learning for defect prediction, and thermoelectric cooling. The lab is known for developing innovative measurement techniques like two-color thermal imaging and frequency-domain thermoreflectance.