Mentor Areas
Our goal is to establish a fundamental understanding of how tissue mechanics and microstructure interact, using this knowledge to accelerate new therapies that enhance tissue health in clinical practices and to develop synthetic material systems that promote material health in engineered systems.
Description:
This project focuses on quantifying how bone resists crack growth under fatigue loading using high-resolution imaging and digital image correlation (DIC). In the Tertuliano Lab, microscale beams are fabricated from human bone and tested in situ during cyclic loading to observe crack evolution in real time. The undergraduate researcher will help analyze these experiments by mapping local displacement and strain fields around crack tips using open-source DIC tools. The work involves image processing, parameter selection, and analysis of large datasets.
The students will have gained experience in experimental mechanics, scientific image analysis, and fracture mechanics, while developing data analysis and visualization skills in Python or MATLAB. The student will be closely mentored by a PhD student in the lab, with overall guidance from Prof. Tertuliano. We seek motivated undergraduates with interests in mechanical engineering, materials science, or bioengineering who are excited to learn how mechanics operates across scales in living materials. Students from all backgrounds and identities are strongly encouraged to apply.
Preferred Qualifications
We're excited to have anyone with a general enthusiasm to conduct fundamental research. The following qualifications are of interested but not necessary.
-- generally comfortable coding and learning to code
-- an interest in mechanics, materials or biology
Project Website
Learn more about the researcher and/or the project here. https://tertuliano.seas.upenn.edu
Details:
Preferred Student Year
First-year, Second-Year, Junior
Academic Term
Spring, Summer
I prefer to have students start during the above term(s).Volunteer
Yes
Yes indicates that faculty are open to volunteers.Paid
No
Yes indicates that faculty are open to paying students they engage in their research, regardless of their work-study eligibility.Work Study
No
Yes indicates that faculty are open to hiring work-study-eligible students.