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Prof. Siddhartha Das, Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Maryland. |
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Siddhartha Das, professor of mechanical engineering at the University of Maryland (UMD), has been elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, which for more than two centuries has worked to spur human advancement and address societal challenges.
Formally known as the Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures, and Commerce, the organization was founded in 1784 by the inventor William Shipley and later granted the appellation “Royal” by King Edward VII.
Fellows of the RSA have included Benjamin Franklin, Adam Smith, Charles Dickens, Dame Judi Dench, David Attenborough, and many other celebrated scientists, inventors, authors, and thinkers.
“I am deeply grateful to the Society for electing me as a Fellow,” Das said. “Belonging to this storied organization provides a connection to great minds of the past as well as to those who will shape the world in the future. It’s a tremendous recognition of the work being done by my team, reflecting not only my own efforts but those of the graduate students and postdoctoral researchers that I’m privileged to work with.”
Das is internationally known for his pioneering use of atomistic simulations and machine learning to study the nanoscale behavior of polymer brushes, formed from charged polymer chains grafted onto solid surfaces. First-of-kind research by Das and his team has revealed how they interact with surrounding water molecules and ions, with potential applications ranging from medicine and pharmaceuticals to batteries and oil transport.
A member of the UMD Department of Mechanical Engineering since 2014, Das is also a Fellow of the Institute of Physics and the Royal Society of Chemistry, both based in the United Kingdom. Last October, he was elected as a Fellow of the American Physical Society, a very rare honor for a mechanical engineer. He was also the department's first recipient of the UMD A. James Clark School of Engineering Junior Faculty Outstanding Research Award. Among additional honors, he has received the recipient of the American Electrophoresis Society's Mid-Career Award.
For more information about his research, contact Das at sidd@umd.edu.
September 28, 2026
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