Group Members

Group Leader: Dr. Corinne E. Packard

Email: cpackard@usc.edu
– Curriculum vitae
– Publications

Dr. Packard standing in in the plaza in front of a building with a "USC Viterbi School of Engineering" sign

Dr. Corinne Packard is a Professor at the University of Southern California in the Mork Family Department of Chemical Engineering & Materials Science. From 2010-2024, Packard progressed through the professorial ranks in the George Ansel Department of Metallurgical and Materials Engineering at the Colorado School of Mines while simultaneously jointly appointed at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. Prior to appointment at Mines, Packard earned her Ph.D. in Materials Science & Engineering from MIT.

Packard researches fundamental and applied mechanics of materials, with a focus on ceramics for solar energy, electronics, and aerospace. Her research has elucidated principles and mechanisms of deformation behavior in brittle materials at the micro- and nanoscales. Specific examples include determining the role of chemistry in controlling the deformation behavior in rare-earth orthophosphate ceramics; engineering fracture in photovoltaic semiconductors to enable dramatic cost reduction through wafer reuse; and high-throughput materials discovery and optimization to design for durable thin film coatings. The thread that ties these diverse projects together is a deep interest in understanding how complex stress state can be controlled to yield desirable mechanical behavior in materials.

Notable awards include the Acta Materialia Silver Award, AIME Robert Lansing Hardy Award, a National Science Foundation Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Award, and the Colorado School of Mines Faculty Excellence Award. She has an impactful research portfolio with more than 60 archival publications and 4 issued patents; leads outreach with women and disabled children; and is a devoted teacher, developing diverse and highly trained professionals for STEM careers and leadership in industry and academia.

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Graduate Students

Henry Afful

PhD Student
Location: Colorado School of Mines

Email: hafful@mines.edu

graduate student Henry Afful poses casually on a bridge

Henry joined the group in August, 2020 and is working towards his PhD in Materials Science. He is currently investigating the use of rare earth orthophosphates in Thermal Barrier Coating applications. Henry received a Master’s degree in Materials Engineering from Southern University and A&M College, where he researched self-healing polymer composite materials for aerospace applications. Prior to this, he obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in Materials Engineering from Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, in Ghana. While there, he gained some research experience in polymeric coating materials.

Nicholas Yoo

PhD Student
Location: Colorado School of Mines and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory

Email: nyoo@mines.edu

graduate student Nicholas Yoo playfully holds his dog up in his kitchen

Nicholas joined in January 2023 and is working towards a PhD in Chemical Engineering. He is working on optimizing all aspects of the controlled spalling project. It is focused on reducing the area and severity of river line defects in Ge wafers by optimizing the electroplating process, the actual spalling process, and eventually the growth process. Nicholas had his undergraduate degree at Villanova University, with a BS in Chemical Engineering.

Prospective Group Members are encouraged to contact current and former group members to learn more about the group.

Group Alumni