He graduated from Rutgers College as a Goldwater Scholar with highest honors in 1994 majoring in physics and mathematics. He received a PhD in 2000 in physics from Cornell University focusing on techniques for determining protein structure using nuclear magnetic resonance. From 2000 to 2001 he was a post-doctoral scientist working on physical realization of quantum computing in the Quantum Information Group at IBM's Almaden Research Center in San Jose, California. From 2001-2002 he served as a patent agent in the Boston office of Fish and Richardson P.C. He received a JD from the Yale Law School in 2005. Prior to joining Cornell Law School in 2006, he served as a law clerk to Judge Sharon Prost on the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. His research focuses on patent law.