Carnegie Mellon’s Alan McGaughey Receives Young Investigator Award For Developing Computational Tools for Nanoscale Heat Transfer
April 27, 2010
Contact: Chriss Swaney
Carnegie Mellon University
412.268.5776
PITTSBURGH—Carnegie Mellon University's Alan McGaughey has received a three-year, $358,846 grant from the Air Force Office of Scientific Research to develop theoretical and computational tools for monitoring heat generation and transfer in devices ranging from high-power electronics to turbine blades.
McGaughey, an
assistant professor of mechanical engineering, said his work will help the Air
Force better understand how to reduce heat generation in operating electronics
and control the operating temperature of mechanical systems.
"I am extremely
excited about this work because what I find will be useful to both the academic
and industrial sectors," McGaughey said.
McGaughey was one
of 38 engineers and scientists nationwide to receive research funding from the
Air Force's Young Investigator Research Program (YIP), which allocated a total
of $14.6 million in grants. The YIP is open to scientists and engineers at
research institutions across the United States who have received a Ph.D. or
equivalent in the last five years, and show exceptional ability and promise for
conducting basic research. The program received more than 200 research proposals
for this latest round of grants.
The program's
objective is to foster creative basic research in science and engineering,
enhance early career development of outstanding young investigators, and
increase opportunities for the young investigators to recognize the Air Force
mission and the related challenges in science and engineering.
McGaughey received
his bachelor's degree in engineering in 1998 at McMaster University, a master's
degree in mechanical engineering in 2000 from the University of Toronto and a
Ph.D. in mechanical engineering in 2004 from the University of Michigan. He was
the 2009 recipient of the Struminger Junior Faculty Fellowship for his
contributions to the undergraduate mechanical engineering heat transfer class.