Academic Credentials
  • Ph.D., Physics and Electrical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), 1995
  • E.E., Electrical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), 1991
  • S.M., Electrical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), 1989
  • S.B., Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), 1987
Licenses & Certifications
  • Certified Cardiovascular Industry Representative (CCIR)
  • Qualified for Welding and Electrofusion of Gas Pipe by the State of Alabama
  • Certified Laser Safety Officer (CLSO)
Professional Affiliations
  • Optical Society of America (OSA)
  • International Society for Optics and Photonics Engineers (SPIE)
  • Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE)
  • National Association of Fire Investigators (NAFI)
  • Laser Institute of America (LIA)
  • American National Standards Institute (ANSI)
  • Member of ANSI Z136.3 Standard Subcommittee (SSC-3), “Safe Use of Lasers in Health Care.”
  • Member of ANSI Z136.9 Standard Subcommittee (SSC-9), “Safe Use of Lasers in Manufacturing Environments.”
  • Member of ANSI Z136 Technical Subcommittee 1 (TSC1), “Biological Effects and Medical Surveillance.”

James Brennan, Ph.D., is a principal in the Electrical Engineering & Computer Science practice at Exponent with over 25 years of experience in medical device failure analysis, laser and optical systems, and electrical science consulting. He specializes in product liability investigations, intellectual property disputes, and accident reconstruction for clients in the medical device, consumer electronics, and telecommunications industries.

Dr. Brennan serves as a science and engineering technical consultant for hundreds of companies throughout the world, ranging from pre-revenue organizations to multinational corporations. He applies his physics and electrical engineering expertise to help solve complex multidisciplinary problems across a broad range of sectors and applications. He holds a Ph.D. in physics and electrical engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He was also trained in medical device development at Harvard Medical School and its affiliated hospitals.

Before joining Exponent, Dr. Brennan worked for eight years developing products for the sensor and communications industry at 3M Company, Inc., including optical fiber components, connectors, and devices for data centers. He was also the Vice President of Research and Development at Raydiance, Inc., where he led the product development team that designed and built laser machining systems. Dr. Brennan also previously served as the Chief Science Officer at Prescient Medical, Inc., where he designed and led the development of an optical catheter system for the diagnosis of coronary artery disease.

Dr. Brennan has authored more than 75 journal and conference papers and five book chapters and has 35 granted U.S. patents.

Effects of Electricity and Radiation

Dr. Brennan has built and utilized electrical, optical, electromechanical, wireless, and radiation systems for use in several fields, such as medicine, communications, electricity production and transport, and manufacturing. His expertise extends from static electric and magnetic fields, through radiation at frequencies of radio wave, microwave, infrared, visible, ultraviolet, and X-ray, and into radiation from radioactive sources. He has specialized knowledge in the use and effects of electricity and radiation on the human body.

Consumer Products and Industrial Equipment

Dr. Brennan has over 16 years of industry experience developing consumer products utilizing extended multidisciplinary technical teams. He is the inventor of several technologies in optical, optical fiber, and laser systems, some of which started the Optical Transport business unit at 3M Company, Inc. With this product development experience, he has helped clients evaluate and understand products and technologies for mergers and acquisitions, product development delays, and alleged misallocations of trade secrets.

Medical Devices

Throughout his career, Dr. Brennan has addressed electrical, wireless, optical, and radiation medical systems for cosmetic, diagnostic, life-improving, and surgical applications. He worked on many cardiovascular devices, such as stents, transcutaneous coronary artery catheters, automatic external defibrillators (AED), ablation catheters, pacemakers, implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICD), and electrocardiogram (ECG) ambulatory, hospital, and personal systems. He has also worked on neuromodulators, neurostimulators, and neuromonitors, including cochlear implants and spinal cord stimulators. Many of the medical devices he has designed and analyzed are implantable and require batteries to function.

Optical Fiber Cabling Manufacture and Installation

Dr. Brennan has leveraged his physics and electrical science expertise to help clients in diverse fields, such as solar panel production and installation, electric shock and electrocution accidents, laser machining, electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) and electromagnetic interference (EMI), optical fiber cable installations, heavy machinery control, electronic consumer products, and software analysis.

Technical Support for Litigation and Intellectual Property Disputes

Dr. Brennan specializes in accident evaluation and prevention, root-cause analysis, product development and validation, and intellectual property disputes. Dr. Brennan has testified as an expert in various litigation matters in state and federal courts. His expertise has also been utilized at the International Trade Commission (ITC), as an independent third party in submissions to federal agencies, and directly by industrial clients to evaluate and improve products or processes.