Dr. Wilkerson's research and teaching interests lie at the interface of solid mechanics, material science, and physics. He enjoys working on a range of topics across the length and time scales, from the ultra-fast atomistic mechanisms governing deformation and failure in materials to the evolution of asteroids in our Solar System over billions of years. He is fascinated with understanding and exploiting nonequilibrium phenomena to unravel some of the mysteries of nature and to improve the human condition. 

 

In 2017, Dr. Wilkerson joined the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Texas A&M University as an assistant professor and the James J. Cain Faculty Fellow II. Prior to returning to A&M, he was an assistant professor in the at the University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA). He also spent one year as a Donald D. Harrington Faculty Fellow with the Department of Aerospace Engineering and Engineering Mechanics at the University of Texas at Austin. Wilkerson obtained his B.S. with highest honors from Texas A&M University followed by an M.S.E and Ph.D. from Johns Hopkins University, where he worked with the Hopkins Extreme Materials Institute (HEMI). 

 

Dr. Wilkerson's academic achievements have been recognized and supported by a number of honors and awards, including the National Science Foundation CAREER Award, Harrington Faculty Fellowship, the AFOSR Young Investigator (YIP) Award, the Ralph E. Powe Junior Faculty Award, the National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship, the National Defense Science and Engineering Graduate (NDSEG) Fellowship, and the Ammon S. Andes Award presented annually to recognize the nation's top aerospace engineering graduate.