Graduate Group Chair

Jennifer Lukes

Jennifer Lukes, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics

Dr. Lukes' research focuses primarily on understanding the unusual thermal transport phenomena that emerge in nanostructures and nanostructured materials, such as single wall carbon nanotubes, superlattices, nanowires, ultrathin films, and nanocomposites. She also investigates confinement effects on fluid and mass transport on the nanoscale. Her expertise is in atomistic computer modeling of transport phenomena using molecular dynamics simulation. Applying a combination of modeling and experimental techniques, her group is developing innovative approaches to design materials with desired structures and thermophysical properties. Learn more.

Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics Master's Program

The icon of mechanical engineering at Penn today is just as likely to be a cell, a nanotube, or a surgical robot as it is to be a gear or an engine. What distinguishes our graduate program in Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics from those of our peers is that we know no boundaries in exploring the connections between engineering and fields such as science, the life sciences, and business.

Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics includes nanotechnology, robotics and bioengineering

Program Highlights: Access to the General Robotics Automation Sensing and Perception (GRASP) Lab; Laboratory for Research on the Structure of Matter (LRSM); Institute for Medicine and Engineering (IME); Nanotechnology Institute (NTI); Nano-Bio Interface Center (NBIC).

The master's program in Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics (MEAM) is innovative, unique, and nationally recognized for its excellence. We are at the forefront in preparing students for leadership careers by providing opportunities to work in emerging and interdisciplinary areas that are fueling exciting advances in technology. The program can be tailored and customized to meet individual needs under the guidance and approval of an academic advisor.

Established in 1872, the Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics program continues its tradition of excellence in research and education. The MSE degree program is managed by a Graduate Group which, in addition to MEAM faculty, consists of prominent faculty members from diverse disciplines such as Materials Science, Bioengineering, Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Electrical and Systems Engineering, Computer and Information Science, School of Design, and The Wharton School. The Graduate Group structure provides an ideal environment for interdisciplinary research and education tailored to meet the complex technological challenges of this millennium.

Graduates of our program are in high demand in every field that requires advanced understanding of mechanical engineering principles. They can be found in industry, laboratory facilities, and government agencies, or pursuing doctoral studies at Penn and other major universities.

Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics MSE Curriculum

Students are required to complete ten courses:

5 MEAM core courses*
2 engineering mathematics courses
3 electives
Seminar requirement (full-time students only)

*Students may substitute research for up to three MEAM core courses.

Areas of Concentration

Design and Manufacturing
Mechanical Systems: Robotics, and Microelectromechanical Systems (MEMS)
Heat Transfer and Fluid Mechanics with applications in energy production, material
processing, and the electronics industry
Mechanics of Materials
Biomechanics

(Opportunities are also available for students to customize their program with the guidance and approval of their academic advisor.)

All graduate students in MEAM are members of the Mechanical Engineering Graduate Association (MEGA). MEGA is a student-run organization focused on enriching the academic and social experience within the department and the university. To this end, MEGA sponsors student activities, arranges career oriented lectures, selects representatives to serve on various campus-wide student organizations, and serves as a liaison between students and faculty.

For more detailed information, visit the Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics MSE website.