Team
We are a diverse team of researchers united by our passion and commitment to advancing the understanding of the mechanics of soft materials.
Dr. Kshitiz Upadhyay
Lab Director and Principal Investigator
Dr. Kshitiz Upadhyay is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering at LSU. His research interests lie in the broad area of mechanics of soft materials, with emphasis on constitutive modeling, injury biomechanics, experimental solid mechanics, and data-driven methods. His research is funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF), the Louisiana Board of Regents (LABoR), and LSU. Dr. Upadhyay currently serves as an Associate Guest Editor of Frontiers in Mechanical Engineering. He has received multiple awards for his research, including the Early Career Research Award from the World Council of Biomechanics in 2022, the Best Dissertation Award from the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at the University of Florida (UF) in 2020, and the Gator Engineering Attribute Award of professional excellence from UF in 2020. Prior to joining LSU, Dr. Upadhyay worked as a Postdoctoral Fellow in the Hopkins Extreme Materials Institute at Johns Hopkins University (2020-2022). He received his Ph.D. and M.S in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Florida (2020 and 2019), and B.Tech. in Mechanical Engineering from the National Institute of Technology–Bhopal, India (2014).
Yogesh Chandrashekar
Graduate Research Assistant
Yogesh's research is on the mechanics of damage and fracture in soft materials. He completed his Masters in Advanced Manufacturing: Technische Universität Chemnitz in 2022, and B.Tech. in Mechanical Engineering from Manipal Institute of Technology, India, in 2020.
Siddarth Sriram
Graduate Research Assistant
Siddarth's research is on the mechanical characterization and modeling of the human brain. He completed his Masters in Mechanical Engineering from Auburn University in 2023, and B.Tech. in Mechanical Engineering from K.P.R Institute of Engineering and Technology, India, in 2015.
Nihar Moghe
Graduate Research Assistant
Nihar's research is on developing physics-informed data-driven constitutive models of the brain tissue for understanding biomechanics of brain injury. He completed his Bachelor's in Engineering Design and Master's in Biomedical Design from Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IITM), India in 2024.
S.M.A Anam Shovon
Graduate Research Assistant
Shovon's research is on detection and characterization of traumatic brain injury using data-driven methods. He completed his bachelor's in civil engineering from Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET), Bangladesh, in May of 2023.
Carson Cooper
Undergraduate Research Assistant
Carson's research is on the development of computational human brain models via image segmentation and processing techniques.
Braden C Hebert
Undergraduate Research Assistant
Braden's research focuses on studying the relationship between entropy and fatigue failure in soft materials. He aims to better understand the mechanisms at play, which could lead to the development of more durable and reliable materials.
Cody R Hurst
Undergraduate Research Assistant
Cody's research is to study the relationship between fatigue failure and entropy in soft materials. As a result of his research, he plans to develop further knowledge on entropy as it relates to fatigue in order to assist in developing more advanced materials