Academic Credentials
  • Ph.D., Mechanical Engineering, Northwestern University, 2020
  • M.S., Mechanical Engineering, Northwestern University, 2017
  • B.S., Mechanical Engineering, California Institute of Technology (Caltech), 2014
Licenses & Certifications
  • Professional Engineer, Illinois, #062074128
Additional Education & Training
  • Certificate in Research Communication, Northwestern University
  • Management for Scientists and Engineers Certificate, Northwestern University
  • Predictive Science & Engineering Design Certificate, Northwestern University
  • SWE/Chevron Scholar
Professional Affiliations
  • American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM)
  • Society of Woman Engineers (SWE)
Languages
  • Cantonese Chinese

Dr. Cheng specializes in computational mechanics and analytical modeling of metal deformation and manufacturing processes. She has experience in thermal and mechanical finite element modeling (FEA) of plasticity, damage, and microstructure evolution.

At Exponent, Dr. Cheng performs analysis of mechanical components and software. She has analyzed technologies involved in intellectual property disputes regarding consumer products and machinery with mechanical and electronic components, including equipment used in energy generation. She has performed failure investigations related to manufacturing defects and damage in consumer products and industrial equipment.

Prior to joining Exponent, Dr. Cheng completed her Ph.D. at Northwestern University on toolpath design and optimization for metal 3D printing and incremental sheet metal forming. During her studies, she also performed research in collaboration with Ford Motor Company to develop software for modeling the deformation and failure of carbon fiber composites. She has experience in data analysis, parallel and high-performance computing, image processing, data visualization, data acquisition, and experiment design.