People

Faculty

Matthias Ihme

Matthias is a Professor of Mechanical Engineering, of Photon Science and, by courtesy, of Energy Science and Engineering at Stanford University. Prof. Ihme is a leading researcher in combustion science and propulsion systems, with a focus on developing predictive models for turbulent combustion, energy conversion, and multi-physics simulations. His work aims to enhance understanding and innovation in sustainable energy technologies and high-efficiency propulsion systems.

email | stanford profile | google scholar

Staff

Guillaume Vignat
Research Engineer
Ph.D., Universite Paris-Saclay, 2020
Diplôme d’Ingénieur, Ecole Centrale des Arts et Manufactures, 2016

Guillaume focuses on developing novel combustor concepts for carbon-free fuels like ammonia and hydrogen, with a strong emphasis on fuel flexibility. His current research centers on two main areas: matrix-stabilized flames in open-cell ceramic foams and the active control of combustion using reinforcement learning. Additionally, Guillaume is engaged in fire safety research, specifically investigating fires caused by liquid fuel leaks in high-temperature enclosures.

email | google scholar

Postdoctoral Fellows

Karl Toepperwien
Postdoctoral Scholar in Mechanical Engineering
Ph.D. CentraleSupélec, Université Paris-Saclay 2022
M.S. RWTH Aachen University, 2017
B.S. RWTH Aachen University, 2015

Karl’s primary research interests include simulation and modeling of wildfires, multi-phase flows in jet-engine combustors, and reduced-order modeling and sampling of pollutant emissions in the atmosphere. Outside of lab, he enjoys surfing and playing beach volleyball .

email | google scholar

Jen Zen Ho
Postdoctoral Scholar in Mechanical Engineering
Ph.D. Melbourne, 2023
M.S. Melbourne, 2017
B.S. Melbourne, 2015

Jenzen’s primary research interests include sustainable fuels, computational reactive flows, and applying machine learning techniques in these areas. Outside of lab, he enjoys hiking and boardgames.

email | google scholar

Taekeun Yoon
Postdoctoral Scholar in Mechanical Engineering
Ph.D. Seoul National University, 2023
B.S. Seoul National University, 2017

Taekeun’s research focuses on using X-ray diagnostics to investigate molecular dynamics for sustainable energy applications. In his free time, he enjoys hiking in the mountains.

email | google scholar

Ph.D. Students

Arijit Majumdar
Doctoral Candidate in Mechanical Engineering
M.Tech. Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur, 2020
B.Tech. Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur, 2020

Arijit’s research interest include atomic scale simulations, statistical mechanics and ultrafast X-ray measurement techniques. In his free time, Arijit likes working out and gaming.

email | google scholar

Bassem Akoush
Doctoral Candidate in Mechanical Engineering
M.Sc. Cairo University, 2020
B.Sc. Cairo University, 2018

Bassem specializes in high-fidelity numerical modeling, physics-informed machine learning, and data-driven modeling for fluid mechanics and combustion.

email | google scholar

Khaled Younes
Doctoral Candidate in Mechanical Engineering
M.A.Sc. University of Waterloo, 2021
B.A.Sc. University of Waterloo, 2017

Khaled focuses on integrating machine learning approaches into X-ray scattering experiments to enhance the understanding of underlying chemistry.

email | google scholar

David D. Wu
Doctoral Candidate in Aeronautics & Astronautics
M.S. Stanford University, 2023

David’s research interests lie at the intersection of fluid mechanics and machine learning, with the objective of improving model performance while minimizing compute costs. His work leverages physical principles, fuses multi-modal data, and interprets models to effectively attend to this objective.

email | google scholar

James Hansen
Doctoral Candidate in Aeronautics & Astronautics
M.S. Stanford University, 2023
B.S.E. Arizona State University, 2021

James’ primary research interests include data assimilation, detonations, and high-speed propulsion systems. Outside of lab, he enjoys backpacking and watching single-seater racing.

email

Benyamin Krisna
Doctoral Candidate, Department of Mechanical Engineering
M.S. Stanford University, 2024
B.Sc. RWTH, RWTH Aachen University, 2021

Ben’s research interests revolve around numerical methods for turbulence, multiphase flows, and aeroacoustics. He spends his free time mostly cooking, exploring new food, and lifting weights.

email | google scholar

Yitong Li
Doctoral Candidate in Civil and Environmental Engineering
B.Sc. Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, 2023

Yitong advances data-driven predictive modeling for environmental and energy systems. She’s a HAI graduate fellow with a love for live music.

email | google scholar

Blake Andersen
Doctoral Student in Mechanical Engineering
M.S. University of California San Diego, 2024
B.S. University of California San Diego, 2024

Blake’s primary research interests include computational fluid mechanics, reactive flows, and modeling for novel energy production and propulsion systems. In his free time, he enjoys finding new music and exploring the outdoors.

email | google scholar

Sho Wada
Doctoral Candidate in Mechanical Engineering
M.S. Kyoto University, 2024
B.S. Kyoto University, 2022

Sho’s primary research interests include the development of numerical algorithms for real fluid flows and higher-order numerical methods. Outside of lab, he plays golf and enjoys skiing and playing Call of Duty.

email | google scholar

Shivansh Chaturvedi
Doctoral Student in Mechanical Engineering
B.Tech. Indian Institute of Technology (BHU) Varanasi, 2023

Shivansh works on combustion diagnostics and ammonia-hydrogen blends. He loves photography and enjoys cooking.

email | google scholar

Nathan Laing
Doctoral Candidate in Mechanical Engineering
B.S. Georgia Institute of Technology, 2024

Nathan’s research focuses on reduced-order model development for high-speed combustion applications, computational fluid mechanics, and high-performance computing. In his free time, he enjoys playing violin, classical music, and weightlifting.

email

Michelle Winham-Gee
Doctoral Student in Mechanical Engineering
M.S. Oregon State University, 2024
B.S. Oregon State University-Cascades, 2022

Michelle studies physics-based and reduced-order modeling for wildland fire. In her free time, she enjoys rock climbing and playing video games.

email | google scholar

Mehmet Kagan Adiguzel
Doctoral Student in Mechanical Engineering
M.S. Istanbul Technical University, 2025
B.S. Istanbul Technical University, 2023

Mehmet’s primary research interests include combustion and computational fluid dynamics. Outside of lab, he enjoys inline skating and calisthenics.

email

Liu Deng
Doctoral Student in Mechanical Engineering
B.Sc. Xi’an Jiaotong University, 2025

Liu is interested in research on X-ray and supercritical fluids, and enjoys archery and go-karting in her spare time.

email

Sourav Das Suvro
Doctoral Student in Mechanical Engineering
B.Sc. Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology, 2024

email | google scholar

Rotation, Visiting, and Undergraduate Students

Krissh Chawla
Undergraduate Researcher

Krissh is an undergraduate student studying computer science and mathematics. He is passionate about numerical methods and machine learning algorithms with applications to fluid dynamics and fire modeling. He spends his free time reading sci-fi and going on hikes.

email

Alumni

Latest known position is indicated.

Postdoctoral Scholars

• Jingcun Fan (2025)
• Haoyuan Li (2025), Associate Scientist at SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory
• Davy Brouzet (2024), Founding Researcher at Spinoza Labs
• Pushan Sharma (2024), Principal Product Engineer at Cadence Design Systems
• Thorsten Zirwes (2022), Deputy Director, Institute of Reactive Flows, University of Stuttgart
• Narendra Singh (2022), Assistant Professor at Texas A&M University
• Alexander Späh (2021), Physicist at Elekta Instrument AB
• Changxiao Shao (2021), Professor at Harbin Institute of Technology
• Quentin Douasbin (2020), Senior Researcher at CERFACS
• Alireza Ostadhossein (2019), Staff Cell Materials Modeling Engineer at Tesla
• Dong Li (2019), Associate Professor at Beijing Institute of Technology
• Michael Dodd (2019), Senior Software Engineer at iRacing
• Jeff Labahn (2018), Staff Software Engineer at Intuitive
• Thomas Jaravel (2018), Research Scientist at CERFACS
• Muralikrishna Raju (2017), Staff Engineer at Samsung Semiconductor
• Daniel Thomas Banuti (2017), Professor at Karlsruhe Institute of Technology
• Jeonglae Kim (2017), Assistant Professor at Arizona State University
• Luca Magri (2016), Professor at Imperial College London
• Lucas Esclapez (2016), Research Software Engineer, Utecht University
• Benedetta Giulia Franzelli (2015), CNRS Senior Researcher at Université Paris-Saclay
• Aymeric Vié (2015), Professor at CentraleSupélec, Université Paris-Saclay
• Mehdi B. Nik (2015), Senior Staff Software Engineer at Samsung Semiconductor
• Jean-Pierre Hickey (2014), Associate Professor at University of Waterloo

Ph.D. Students

• Matthew Bonanni (2025), Machine Learning Engineer at Red Hat
  • Multiscale modeling of high-speed propulsion systems
• Priyanka Muhunthan (2024)
  • Investigating the structure and dynamics of supercritical fluids using X-ray techniques and atomistic-scale simulations
• Nguyen Ly (2024), Aerospace Engineer at NASA Ames
  • Modeling and analyses of complex high-pressure multispecies phase-exchange phenomena
• Wai Tong Chung (2024), Technical Staff for AGI Autonomy, Amazon
  • Overcoming small datasets in machine learning studies of multi-physics flows in propulsion
• Filip Simeski (2023), Thermal Engineer at Apple
  • Molecular simulations of adsorption, phase behavior, and reactivity in subsurface fluid-solid systems
• Jack Guo (2023), Postdoctoral Researcher at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
  • Study of wall-bounded turbulent heat transfer and flow dynamics at transcritical conditions
• Emeric Boigne (2022), Research & Develpment Scientist at Furno Materials
  • Study of wildfire and biomass combustion physics using X-ray computed tomography
• Steven Brill (2022), Computational Physicist at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
  • An enriched-basis high-order method for wall-modeled large eddy simulation
• Danyal Mohaddes (2022), Senior Research Scientist at FM Global
  • Numerical simulation of hot surface ignition and combustion of fuel sprays
• Eric Ching (2021), Research Scientist at Naval Research Laboratory
  • Development of high-order discontinuous Galerkin methods for simulations of high-speed particle-laden fluid flows
• Sadaf Sobhani (2019), Assistant Professor at Cornell University
  • Computational and experimental investigation of flow and combustion physics in porous media
• Qing Wang (2018), Software Engineer at Google
  • A regularized deconvolution method for large-eddy simulations of multiphase reacting flows
• Hao Wu (2018), Staff Software Engineer at Figure
  • Numerical simulations of turbulent reacting flows with finite-rate chemistry and combustion-model adaptation
• Peter Ma (2018), Software Engineer at Google
  • Modeling of turbulent mixing and combustion at transcritical conditions
• Kevin Grogan (2017), Machine Learning Engineer at Snapchat
  • Modeling and simulation of non-ideal combustion
• Jared Dunnmon (2017), Cofounder & Chief Scientist at Stealth Startup
  • Development of X-ray absorption diagnostics for gas-phase reacting flows
• Jeffrey O’Brien (2017), Product Design Engineer at Apple
  • Hybrid modeling of engine core noise
• Wai Lee Chan (2016), Senior Lecturer at Singapore University of Technology and Design
  • A higher-order flamelet model for turbulent combustion simulations
• Yu Lv (2016), Assistant Professor at Mississippi State University
  • Embedded entropy concept for fluid dynamic simulations with discontinuous Galerkin scheme
• Yuntao Chen (Co-Advised 2015), Technology Center Manager, American Bureau of Shipping
  • Investigation of partially premixed combustion instabilities through experimental, theoretical, and computational methods
• Yee Chee See (2014), Research Engineer at Convergent Science Inc.
  • Analysis of hydrodynamic instabilities and combustion dynamics in turbulent reacting flows
• Sean Torrez (Co-Advised 2012), Vice President at Physical Sciences Inc.
  • Design refinement and modeling methods for highly-integrated hypersonic vehicles
• Emre Sozer (Co-Advised 2009), Senior Research Scientist at NASA Ames
  • Modeling of gaseous reacting flow and thermal environment of liquid rocket injectors

Masters Students

• Yichi Ma (2024), Engineer at Mainspring Energy
• Ryan Chen (2024), F-22 Operational Test Analyst at United States Air Force
• Parker Mayhew (2024), Aerospace Engineer at Systems Engineering Group
• Pavan Govindaraju (2018), Maintainer at SplitFXM

Past visitors

• Ibrahim Beniffou, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (2026)
• Claudio Muñoz-Herrera, Universidad Técnica Federico Santa María (2025)
• Joel Tomas Pimentel, Imperial College London (2025)
• Abhishek Pillai, Kyoto University (2024)
• Timoteo Dinelli, Politecnico di Milano (2024)
• Younghwa Cho, Hokkaido University (2024)
• Nozomu Hashimoto, Hokkaido University (2023)
• Hiroshi Terashima, Hokkaido University (2023)
• Alvin Lee, Stanford University (2022)
• Ethan Li, Stanford University (2020)
• Haiyue Li, Peking University (2019)
• Jili Wei, Tsinghua University (2019)
• Nikolaos Perakis, Technical University of Munich (2019)
• Wenwen Xie, Tsinghua University (2019)
• Zhilong Cheng, Xi’an Jiaotong University (2018)
• Jackie Chan, Stanford University (2017)
• Xinyi Huang, Tsinghua University (2017)
• Alessandro Stagni, Politecnico di Milano (2015)
• Michael Evans, University of Adelaide (2015)
• Milan Pelletier, Ecole Centrale Paris (2014)
• Franziska Hunger, TU Freiberg (2013)