Rate My Professor Tommaso Magrini

Tommaso Magrini is an Assistant Professor in the Mechanics of Materials section of the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Eindhoven University of Technology, where he has been since 2024 and leads the Group Magrini. He earned his BSc in Materials Engineering from Politecnico di Milano, Italy. Magrini then advanced his studies at ETH Zurich, Switzerland, obtaining an MSc in Materials Science. For his master's thesis, he investigated mother-of-pearl inspired materials and composites using Raman spectroscopy to track local stresses, in collaboration with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He completed his PhD in Materials Science at ETH Zurich in 2021, with a thesis entitled ‘Tough and Transparent Nacre-like Functional Composites’. Following his doctorate, he served as a postdoctoral researcher in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the California Institute of Technology, supported by an SNSF Postdoc Mobility fellowship.

Magrini’s research focuses on the multiscale design, fabrication, and characterization of architected materials and composites, with bioinspiration at its core. He replicates the internal structures of biological materials, such as nacre—which is 95% brittle yet highly fracture-resistant—and fruit pericarps, to engineer synthetic materials with exceptional mechanical performance and multifunctionality. His developments include transparent nacre-like composites combining optical transparency, high strength, and fracture resistance three times that of glass, suitable for mobile phone displays, as well as irregular two-phase networks for controllable interlocking and enhanced impact resistance in applications like car bumpers. Key publications encompass ‘Control of Mechanical and Fracture Properties in Two-Phase Materials Reinforced by Continuous, Irregular Networks’ (Advanced Materials, 2024), ‘Designing Complexity: Virtual Growth Algorithms for Non-Periodic Bioinspired Material Architectures’ (JOM, 2026), ‘Controllable Interlocking from Irregularity in Two-Phase Composites’ (Matter, 2025), ‘Tailoring the Fracture Response of Two-Phase Network Reinforced Composites through Irregularity’ (International Journal of Solids and Structures, 2025), and ‘4D Printing of Natural Materials: A Review’ (Sustainable Materials and Technologies, 2025). He received the Silver Graduate Student Award from the Materials Research Society during his PhD. At TU/e, his work leverages advanced manufacturing facilities and fosters industry collaborations for real-world impact.