Current topics of interest include investigations of a broad class of problems where there is a competition between order and disorder, such as in mixing and segregation of granular matter or fluid mixing and, more generally, problems in the realm of complex systems involving tools such as agent-based models and network theory.

The interest in basic understanding of mixing lies in the ubiquity of mixing processes in technology and nature; examples are found in chemical, mechanical, and aeronautical engineering, but also in geophysics, physiology, oceanography, polymer engineering, and environmental sciences.

The work in granular dynamics involves a blend of theory, computations, and experimental work that reaches into applications. While important to a wide range of industries, our understanding of solid mixing and segregation is primitive. Some key questions we are currently addressing are: What features of mixing can be predicted computationally? What causes demixing and how it interplays with mixing? How can mixing be optimized?