Rajiv Naik

Professor in Residence

School of Mechanical, Aerospace and Manufacturing Engineering

Dr. Naik joined the University of Connecticut in 2020. Prior to that, Dr. Naik worked at Pratt & Whitney where he led the characterization and modeling of polymer matrix and ceramic matrix composite materials. He received his B.S. degree from the Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay, India (1979), M.S. from University of Maine, Orono, Maine (1982) and Ph.D. from Old Dominion University, Norfolk, Virginia (1986) in mechanical engineering.

Over the past 35 years, he has worked in the development of innovative computational materials modeling tools for both metallic and advanced composite materials. His research interests are in the areas of composite materials behavior, characterization and modeling, including micromechanics, fatigue life and durability prediction, and fracture mechanics of polymeric matrix, metal matrix, and ceramic matrix composite materials. He has published over 75 papers and received several best paper awards. He holds several patents in the area of advanced composite materials. He is an elected member of the Connecticut Academy of Science and Engineering (CASE) since 2019. He has been an active member of the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) and an Associate Fellow of the American Institute for Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) for many years. He is currently Chair of the Ceramic Matrix Composites Data Review Working Group of the CMH-17 Composite Materials Handbook, that is the authoritative worldwide source for information and guidance on the design, testing and fabrication of composite materials and structures. Dr. Naik is a founding member of the Composites Engineering Graduate Certificate Program at the University of Connecticut and has developed new courses on Behavior of Composites, Advanced Composites, Mechanics of Composite Materials, Fatigue and Fracture of Composites and Textile Structural Composite Materials for this program.