Burak Irez

Burak Irez received his BSc in mechanical engineering from Istanbul Technical University (ITU) and his M.S. in Mechanics of Materials from Ecole Centrale Paris in 2014. In his master’s thesis, he investigated the biaxial fatigue behavior of thermoplastic composites. In 2018, he received his PhD in the field of fracture mechanics of composite materials from the Université Paris-Saclay. During his PhD, he developed, manufactured, and characterized nanographene and rubber-modified epoxy-based composites for aeronautic applications. Then, at the Ecole Normale Supérieure Paris-Saclay, he pursued postdoctoral research on the development of tissue-mimicking soft materials and their additive manufacturing. He conducted numerical modeling studies and experimental characterization of the inkjet-printed specimens. Following that, in 2020, he began working as an assistant professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at ITU. He worked on projects in a variety of sectors, including aeronautics, automotive, renewable energy, and biomedical engineering. He has advised six finished master’s theses and currently advises three master’s and one PhD student in mechanical engineering. In 2023, he was awarded a Fulbright Fellowship to do research at Carnegie Mellon University on the development of artificial skin for pre-surgery planning associated with COVID-19. His current research interests include developing novel metamaterials that mimic the material behavior of hard and soft tissues and their additive manufacturing.