School of Engineering Welcomes First Director of Tufts Epsilon Materials Institute

The School of Engineering is excited to welcome Laurent Pilon this fall as the inaugural Director of the Tufts Epsilon Materials Institute (TEMI) and as the Epsilon Energy Materials Innovation Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering. Pilon brings extensive expertise in interfacial and transport phenomena, radiative heat transfer, and materials science, advancing technologies that improve sustainable energy conversion, storage, and efficiency.

Pilon comes to Tufts from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), where he served as a professor from 2002 to 2026 in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering. He also served as Associate Director for Technology and Program Director at the U.S. Department of Energy's Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E), where he led programs focused on building materials, superconductors, advanced manufacturing, and circularity within the battery supply chain. He also created the ARPA-E IGNIITE Award program, which empowers early-career innovators to pursue disruptive and unconventional ideas across the nation’s most critical energy technology priorities. 

Pilon's work has resulted in 220 archival journal publications, six book chapters, and seven patents. In addition, he has advised 32 Ph.D. students, 22 M.S. students, and five postdoctoral scholars and has received numerous honors, including the National Science Foundation CAREER Award, the Bergles-Rohsenow Young Investigator Award in Heat Transfer, and the American Society of Mechanical Engineers’ Heat Transfer Memorial Award. He has also received the Viskanta Fellowship and Purdue University’s Outstanding Mechanical Engineering Award. Pilon received a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree in applied physics from the Grenoble Institute of Technology, France, and earned his Ph.D. in mechanical engineering from Purdue University.  

Tufts Epsilon Materials Institute is an interdisciplinary initiative established with a sponsorship from Epsilon Group, a global leader in advanced battery materials and sustainable manufacturing. The institute brings together academic and industry leaders to accelerate discoveries in materials science and engineering, addressing some of the world's most urgent challenges in clean energy, sustainability, and the circular economy. As the inaugural TEMI director, Pilon will lead interdisciplinary research, foster collaborations across the university, and strengthen partnerships with government, industry, and the broader materials research community.

As TEMI continues to grow, the institute will be recruiting two tenure-track assistant professors. These faculty members will help expand Tufts' strengths in materials research and contribute to the institute's mission and vision. Additional information about these opportunities will be shared as it becomes available. 

Pilon looks forward to meeting members of the Tufts community and discussing how TEMI can support and advance innovative materials research across the university. Faculty, staff, and other stakeholders interested in learning more about TEMI or exploring opportunities for interdisciplinary research or industry engagement are encouraged to connect with him at temi@tufts.edu.