Prof. Rao received his bachelors in Materials Science and Engineering from the University of Florida and his Ph.D. in Materials Engineering from the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB). Following graduation, he accepted a position as a post-doctoral researcher in the Mechanical Engineering Department at UCSB, where he was involved in the initial development of plasma-based micromachining of titanium. He joined the School of Mechanical Engineering at Purdue University as a Assistant Professor in January 2007. Prof. Rao’s current research interests lie in the continued development of titanium micromachining and its application towards biomedical microdevices, as well as the development of other novel microfabrication technologies for various applications. He has authored/co-authored over 15 journal articles and conference proceedings, and has presented lectures in fields ranging from ceramic composites for gas turbine applications to MicroElectroMechanical Systems (MEMS) for telecommunications and biomedical applications.