Paul V. Braun

Prof. Paul V. Braun is the Director of the Materials Research Laboratory, the Grainger Distinguished Chair in Engineering, and Professor of Materials Science and Engineering, Chemistry, Mechanical Sciences and Engineering, and Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, and is a part-time faculty member of the Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. The Braun group synthesizes and studies materials with unique optical, electrochemical, thermal, mechanical, and transport properties, properties that often emerge from the carefully crafted 3D nano- and mesoscale architectures of these materials. Recent priority research areas include materials for electrochemical energy storage, advanced optics, chemical sensing and the control of the transport of heat and matter, and self-healing and responsive materials.

Prof. Braun received his B.S. degree with distinction from Cornell University, and his Ph.D. in Materials Science and Engineering from the University of Illinois.

Following a postdoctoral appointment at Bell Labs, Lucent Technologies, Prof. Braun joined the faculty of the University of Illinois in 1999. Prof. Braun has co-authored a book, about 350 peer-reviewed publications, been awarded multiple patents, and has co-founded four companies.