Brinson has been elected a Fellow of the Materials Research Society in recognition of her pioneering contributions to polymer science, shape memory alloys and the materials genome space.
Cate Brinson, the Sharon C. and Harold L. Yoh, III Professor in Thomas Lord Department of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science (MEMS), has been named to the 2026 class of Materials Research Society (MRS) Fellows.
Founded in 1973, MRS is a global organization of more than 15,000 members across 90 countries dedicated to advancing interdisciplinary materials research and technology to improve the quality of life. The society connects researchers from academia, national laboratories and industry to promote innovation across disciplines spanning physics, chemistry, biology and engineering.
The MRS Fellow distinction recognizes members for their sustained and distinguished contributions to the field of materials research. The honor is one of the most selective in the society—awarded to no more than 0.2 percent of the current regular membership each year—and represents a lifetime appointment. Fellowship recipients are recognized for international impact in research, leadership and service.
Brinson was selected for her seminal contributions to local polymer behavior near interfaces, key mechanistic understanding of phase transformation in shape memory alloys and transformational advances in the materials genome space. Her research combines computational models, data science and physical experiments to lay the groundwork for developing new materials for applications ranging from cell phones to biomedical devices. She has been lead PI of the NanoMetaMine project, a long term national consortium project most recently supported by a $5-million NSF-funded award, focused on building a data-driven framework for discovery of new polymer nanocomposites and structural metamaterials. This work has led to creation of the MaterialsMine data and tool repository, which is widely recognized as innovative and influential in shaping the use and availability of materials data. Her influential body of work has also earned her the ASME Nadai Medal, the Humboldt Foundation’s Friedrich Wilhelm Bessel Prize, the 2022 A.C. Eringen Medal, and fellow status in the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
Throughout her career, Brinson has also exemplified leadership and service to her academic community. Before joining Duke in 2017, she chaired Northwestern University’s Department of Mechanical Engineering and later served as associate dean for academic and professional initiatives at its McCormick School of Engineering. She went on to chair Duke’s MEMS Department from 2019 to early 2025, a period marked by substantial organizational strengthening and strategic growth. During her five and a half years as chair, Brinson expanded faculty hiring in priority research areas such as robotics, aerospace and energy while establishing new departmental frameworks that improved the department’s internal organization and long‑range planning. She continues her work as a leading materials scientist, advancing data‑centric methods that integrate artificial intelligence into materials discovery & design and encouraging future engineers to pursue the same.
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