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People

Tal Cohen

Tal Cohen
  • Title Associate Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering; Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering; Postdoctoral Affairs Officer
  • Email talco@mit.edu
  • Faculties Sustainable Materials & Infrastructure
  • Address Room 1-271
  • Telephone 617.253.8069
  • Research Website https://tal-cohen.mit.edu/
  • Assistant Jeanette Marchocki | jmmarch@mit.edu


Education

  • Ph.D., 2014, Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Technion, Israel
  • M.Sc., 2011, Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Technion, Israel
  • B.Sc., 2007, Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Technion, Israel

Research Interests

Nonlinear Solid Mechanics, Material Growth, Material Instabilities

Teaching Interests

  • Introduction to Civil and Environmental Engineering Design (1.101)
  • Structural Dynamics (1.058/1.158/2.06/16.221)

Awards and Honors

  • MIT Arthur C. Smith Award, 2024
  • Eshelby Mechanics Award for Young Faculty, 2023
  • NSF CAREER Award, 2020
  • ONR Young Investigator Award, 2020
  • ARO Young Investigator Award, 2019
  • MIT – Technion Post-Doctoral Fellowship, 2013 & 2014
  • Zonta International Amelia Earhart Fellowship, 2011 & 2012

Selected Publications

  1. Chockalingam, S. and Cohen, T., 2024. A large deformation theory for coupled swelling and growth with application to growing tumors and bacterial biofilms. Journal of the Mechanics and Physics of Solids, 187, p.105627.
  2. Li, X. and Cohen, T., 2024. Mechanical forces quench frontal polymerization: Experiments and theory. Journal of the Mechanics and Physics of Solids, 183, p.105517.
  3. Varner, H.M., Naghibzadeh, S.K., Spaeth, K.C., Klein, A. and Cohen, T., 2025. Evolving properties of biological materials captured via needle-based cavity expansion method. Experimental Mechanics, 65(1), pp.141-155.
  4. Henzel, T., Nijjer, J., Chockalingam, S., Wahdat, H., Crosby, A.J., Yan, J. and Cohen, T., 2022. Interfacial cavitation. PNAS Nexus, 1(4), p.pgac217.
  5. Li, J., Kothari, M., Chockalingam, S., Henzel, T., Zhang, Q., Li, X., Yan, J. and Cohen, T., 2022. Nonlinear inclusion theory with application to the growth and morphogenesis of a confined body. Journal of the Mechanics and Physics of Solids, 159, p.104709.
  6. Chockalingam, S., Roth, C., Henzel, T. and Cohen, T., 2021. Probing local nonlinear viscoelastic properties in soft materials. Journal of the Mechanics and Physics of Solids, 146, p.104172.
  7. Kothari, M. and Cohen, T., 2020. Effect of elasticity on phase separation in heterogeneous systems. Journal of the Mechanics and Physics of Solids, 145, p.104153.
  8. Abi-Akl, R., Abeyaratne, R. and Cohen, T., 2019. Kinetics of surface growth with coupled diffusion and the emergence of a universal growth path. Proceedings of the Royal Society A, 475(2221), p.20180465.
  9. Raayai-Ardakani, S., Earl, D.R. and Cohen, T., 2019. The intimate relationship between cavitation and fracture. Soft matter, 15(25), pp.4999-5005.
  10. Ringoot, E., Roch, T., Molinari, J.F., Massart, T.J. and Cohen, T., 2021. Stick–slip phenomena and Schallamach waves captured using reversible cohesive elements. Journal of the Mechanics and Physics of Solids, 155, p.104528.