SEEING INNOVATION THROUGH, FROM SUBATOMIC TO TANGIBLE MATERIALS

Paul Ohodnicki

A project is rarely “one-and-done” in the lab of Paul Ohodnicki, associate professor of mechanical engineering and materials science in the Swanson School of Engineering. His research results are often two-fold, resulting in the primary scientific findings as well as novel engineering applications.

“I’m always excited about new materials engineering and new physics concepts,” he says, but he has observed a disconnect between the research materials scientists are performing and the needs of electrical engineers. Ohodnicki’s research bridges that gap. 

“I’m excited when new materials can be used in a device or a system that people actually use,” he says. 

A typical project may start on a subatomic scale, probing materials to understand why they have certain properties. But Ohodnicki’s work can also begin at the end, so to speak, with requests for materials with specific properties.  

“It could be an electrical engineer saying, ‘I don’t have a material that allows me to shrink the size of my system,’” he says. At that point, Ohodnicki’s work becomes less exploratory and more problem solving.

The two ways of working complement each other and engage his students. Whether they are trying to develop something for a specific application, or they discover something they are working on happens to have sought-out properties, “that’s what gets them excited,” Ohodnicki says.

His work benefits the greater Western Pennsylvania area as the power landscape evolves. The Advanced Magnetics for Power and Energy Development (AMPED) Consortium at the Swanson School of Engineering was awarded a $1.2 million grant from the Henry L. Hillman Foundation to expand its capabilities. The consortium, of which Ohodnicki is director, is working to prepare the region to provide new materials for our increasingly electrified future. 

In 2023, he also spun off a company, Sensible Photonics, which develops sensors reliant on light to detect and measure qualities of the physical environment. In this case, the sensors would keep tabs on power grid equipment and energy storage systems. 

Ohodnicki is preparing both the grid and his students for the future. He teaches undergraduate classes in the materials science program, but he also mentors students and teaches graduate classes in mechanical engineering and electrical engineering. “The students I mentor are usually thinking about a few disciplines,” he says. “If you can bridge those gaps between disciplines, there are a lot of innovations and advances to be made.”