He holds the B.S. and M.S. degrees in physics and a Ph.D. degree in mechanical engineering obtained from the University of Southampton, UK within the British Aerospace/Rolls-Royce University Technology Partnership. Upon completion of his Ph.D., he worked as a Postdoctoral Fellow and later as a Research Professor at Northwestern University, Ill, USA. He authored about forty archival publications, including two monographs, in the areas of multiscale materials modeling, energy harvesting and conversion at the nanometer scale, and synergistic and emerging behavior in material systems.