Dr. Jin Yang, Assistant Professor at the University of Texas at Austin and faculty member of the Texas Materials Institute (TMI), has been awarded the National Science Foundation (NSF) CAREER Award, one of the most prestigious honors for early-career faculty in science and engineering. This five-year award, totaling approximately $650,000, will support Dr. Yang’s research on the fracture and material failure behavior of soft viscoelastic materials such as polymers, hydrogels, and biological under different loading rates and temperatures.
The research project will integrate multiple advanced experimental techniques across a broad spectrum of strain rates. At low loading speeds, Dr. Yang’s team will apply a variety of mechanical loading modes—such as tension, shear, and needle-induced cavitation—while utilizing confocal microscopy and Digital Image/Volume Correlation (DIC/DVC) to resolve two- and three-dimensional crack structures, along with the associated deformation (i.e., displacement and strain) fields. DIC and DVC measure a material’s deformations by using imaging tracking algorithms to compare its undeformed and deformed images. At ultra-high loading speeds, high-intensity laser pulses will be focused to induce inertial cavitation within soft materials. Ultra-high-speed imaging—capturing up to 10 million frames per second—will visualize dynamic fracture propagation in real time on the microscale. Coupled with Digital Image Correlation (DIC) from multiple perspectives, these techniques will enable 3D full-field, time-resolved measurements of deformation and crack evolution. The research will also investigate the role of temperature and quantify how rate and thermal effects can be unified to describe fracture in soft materials. In parallel, the project will develop predictive computational models to simulate crack initiation and growth under different loading conditions, aiming to establish a unified framework for understanding nonlinear fracture behaviors in soft, rate- and temperature-sensitive materials.
Beyond its scientific objectives, the CAREER award will also support a range of educational and outreach activities. These include developing a new graduate-level course materials with a focus on experimental mechanics, organizing a student research symposium, engaging in K–12 outreach activities, and collaborating with industry and medical partners to ensure the broader impact of the work.
Congratulations Dr. Yang on this outstanding achievement!
