Title: Applied Experimental Mechanics from Microelectronics to Biofilms

Abstract: Early work on the reliability of microelectronic interfaces led to curious and competing effects of surface roughness and surface chemistry on interfaces. By shrinking the size scale down to a single layer of interfacial molecules, we demonstrated control over both interfacial adhesion and thermal conductance. Currently, my lab uses the fundamentals of thin film mechanics developed while studying microelectronic interfaces to address imminent challenges associated with the adhesion of biological films. Adhesion is critical to biofilm-forming infections, particularly at implant sites, and contributes to disease progression. Biofilm formation is a significant problem within the American healthcare system, accounting for 17 million infections, 550,000 deaths, and an estimated cost of billions of dollars annually. We have adapted the laser spallation technique to determine dominant parameters that promote strong biofilm adhesion and are establishing a novel Adhesion Index - a ratio of mammalian cell adhesion to biofilm adhesion. With these new tools, we investigate the role of biofilm mechanics towards the propensity to develop medical device infections

Biography:

Prof. Martha E. Grady (Meg) is an Associate Professor at the University of Kentucky in Lexington, KY, USA. She obtained a Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Central Florida, master's and Ph.D. degrees in Theoretical and Applied Mechanics from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and spent two years at the University of Pennsylvania as a Postdoctoral Fellow before beginning her faculty appointment in 2016. She is a past chair of the Biological Systems and Materials technical division for the Society for Experimental Mechanics, where she is a very active member. She was awarded the UCF MAE Alumni Young Engineer Award in 2015, the NSF CAREER Award in 2021, and the UK College of Engineering Excellence in Research Award in 2022. Her research is supported by NSF, NIH, and NASA. Her research interests lie at the intersection of materials, deformation mechanics, and medical interfaces.