This summer, the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at Missouri University of Science and Technology welcomed three new faculty members who bring a wide range of expertise spanning biomaterials, mechatronics, and advanced composite materials.
Dr. Fateme Fayyazbakhsh
Dr. Fateme Fayyazbakhsh is currently an Assistant Professor at the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering in Missouri S&T. She received her Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering from Amirkabir University of Technology (Tehran, 2017). Dr. Fayyazbakhsh has over 15 years of experience in biomaterials design, fabrication, and characterization for tissue engineering and drug delivery with extensive knowledge in biological evaluation, animal surgery, clinical study, and health care product development. She is a member of BMES, WHS, AMSUS, and TERMIS.
Dr. Nilay Kant
Dr. Nilay Kant served as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Michigan State University from January 2023 to July 2025. He earned his B.Tech. in Mechanical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi in 2015 and completed his Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering at Michigan State University (MSU) in 2020. During his doctoral studies, he was a visiting student researcher at the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. Dr. Kant received the Outstanding Graduate Student Award in 2020 at MSU for his doctoral research. After completing his Ph.D., Dr. Kant worked in industry as a Senior Mechatronics and Control Engineer at Nexteer Automotive in Saginaw, Michigan, and later as a Senior Controls Engineer at Mainspring Energy in Menlo Park, California. Drawing from his dual experience in research and industry, he integrates foundational theory with applied engineering practice in both his teaching and research. At Michigan State, he taught undergraduate courses and mentored graduate students. He has published over 20 peer-reviewed papers in top journals and conferences, and his doctoral research was recognized with the Outstanding Graduate Student Award at Michigan State University.
Dr. Arief Yudhanto
Dr. Arief Yudhanto is an Assistant Professor in the Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Department at Missouri University of Science and Technology. He has over 20 years of experience in advanced composite materials. His laboratory focuses on experimental and computational methods to reveal fundamental aspects in the mechanics and damage mechanisms in composite structures. Dr. Yudhanto has worked at Baylor University (Waco, Texas), KAUST (Saudi Arabia), TMU (Japan), Hitachi GST/IBM HDD (Singapore), DSI A*STAR (Singapore), and ITB (Indonesia). He actively published scientific articles in renowned journals and received the SABIC Recognition Award for university-industry collaboration. He earned his Ph.D. in Aerospace Engineering (Experimental Mechanics) from Tokyo Metropolitan University, Japan, after conducting research at JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency). He also holds a master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering (Computational Solid Mechanics) from the National University of Singapore and a bachelor’s degree in Aeronautics & Astronautics (Lightweight Structures and Materials) from Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB). He has led interdisciplinary projects and trained students from diverse backgrounds/nationalities. He enjoys outdoor sports, movies, history, music, writing, and traveling.
“We are thrilled to welcome Drs. Fayyazbakhsh, Kant, and Yudhanto to our faculty,” says Dr. David Bayless, chair of mechanical and aerospace engineering at Missouri S&T. “Each brings exceptional expertise and diverse experiences that will enrich our department’s research, educational offerings, and innovation into meaningful new fields of engineering.”