Orlin D. Velev

Orlin D. Velev, born in Plovdiv, Bulgaria in 1963, is the S. Frank and Doris Culberson Distinguished Professor in the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at North Carolina State University, best known for his work in soft matter, colloid science and nanoscience. After degrees in chemical physics and a doctorate in physical chemistry at Sofia University and postdoctoral work at the University of Delaware, he joined NC State in 2001. His research on colloidal assembly uses electric fields to build structures from nanoparticles and microspheres, and he has developed self-propelling microdevices, gel-based photovoltaic cells and soft robotic hydrogel actuators. Technologies from his work formed the basis of two companies, Xanofi and Benanova, and he is a fellow of the American Chemical Society and the Materials Research Society.