Space, the final frontier! As space exploration progresses, the importance of structural health monitoring devices for satellites and craft will continue to grow. David Kunkel is an undergraduate Senior Mechanical Engineering student working in Dr. Ryu's Laboratory. David's research focuses on the implementation of mechanoluminescent materials in spacecraft and satellite safety systems. 

Characterized by the ability to emit light, a mechanoluminescent material glows when under stress. In the short video clip below, a section of material deforms, and a green light emits from the failure's location. David works alongside graduate students (Mr. George Hoover and Mr. Alfred Mongare) in Dr. Ryu's lab to deepen understanding of the multiphysics behavior of the mechanoluminet materials and broadening its engineering applications. In particular, David has focused to uncover the origin of the mechanoluminescence at molecular levels using Sandia National Lab developed LAMMPS.

In addition to material research, David aids in designing 3d sensor nodes embedded in wearables for the human body and multifunctional composites for structural systems that can provide 3D mapping of strain to monitor object systems. 

The laboratory is looking forward to the expansion of the project and the development of user-friendly applications. Interested students should reach out to Dr. Ryu, as David put it, "The more people that we have, the more diverse background and better perspective we can get on this research to push it forward and make it better." Like the ever-expanding universe, David hopes that this research will only continue to grow!