Kenneth Desmond
Physicist & Researcher
Former ExxonMobil Research Scientist
Post Doc, UCSB
PhD, Emory University
BSc, Rochester Institute of Technology
🔗 LinkedIn 🎓 Google Scholar👋 Welcome
I’m an independent researcher pursuing research in soft matter physics and acoustic sensing.
- Particle-size distribution effects in RCP
- Acoustic-based navigation & sensing (“BatBot”)
- Deformable-particle models for soft-matter simulations
Feel free to explore my code or reach out via GitHub issues!
Current Code & Repositories Available
🔗 GitHub ↗ Random Close Packing Generator - Link to Mathworks File Exchange ↗ - c++ and matlab code to randomly pack dense polydisperse particles in arbitrary dimensions.
🔗 GitHub ↗ Squishy Particle Simulator
Current Research
N-Dimensional Random Close Packing Generator
🔗 GitHub ↗
A fast, flexible toolkit (C++, MATLAB, Python) for generating random close packings, dense packings, and jammed states of spheres in 2–N dimensions.
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| 2D Confined Packing | Dense packing confined within circular container | Cylindrically confined packing with upper and lower hard boundaries. | Spherically confined packing. |
Squishy Particle Simulator
🔗 GitHub ↗ A MATLAB-based 2D deformable-polygon model for “squishy” particles. Includes core engine, example scripts, and GIFs showcasing deformation and flow.
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| Deformable ellipses falling under gravity | Fun couette geometry | Simple shear |
Prior Research
Wave Propagation in Fractures
| Generating monitoring acoustic waves in synthetic fractions. | Research Overview | 🔗 Link to publication ↗ |
📚 Publications & Patents
Publications
| # | Title | Year |
|---|---|---|
| 12 | Clogging and avalanches in quasi-2D emulsion hopper flow X. Hong, K.W. Desmond, D. Chen, E.R. Weeks. Phys. Rev. E 105(1), 014603 |
2022 |
| 11 | 3D GFEM for wave propagation in fluid-filled fractures N. Shauer, K.W. Desmond, P.A. Gordon, F. Liu, C.A. Duarte. CMAME 386, 114136 |
2021 |
| 10 | Experimental observation of local rearrangements in dense quasi-2D emulsion flow D. Chen, K.W. Desmond, E.R. Weeks. Phys. Rev. E 91(6), 062306 |
2015 |
| 9 | Dynamics of mussel plaque detachment K.W. Desmond, N.A. Zacchia, J.H. Waite, M.T. Valentine. Soft Matter 11(34), 6832–6839 |
2015 |
| 8 | Measurement of stress redistribution in flowing emulsions K.W. Desmond, E.R. Weeks. Phys. Rev. Lett. 115(9), 098302 |
2015 |
| 7 | Influence of particle size distribution on random close packing of spheres K.W. Desmond, E.R. Weeks. Phys. Rev. E 90(2), 022204 |
2014 |
| 6 | Rheology of fluidized granular matter K.W. Desmond, U. Villa, M. Newey, W. Losert. Phys. Rev. E 88(3), 032205 |
2013 |
| 5 | Experimental study of forces between quasi-2D emulsion droplets near jamming K.W. Desmond, P.J. Young, D. Chen, E.R. Weeks. Soft Matter 9(12), 3424–3436 |
2013 |
| 4 | Stress fluctuations in 2D hopper flow D. Chen, K.W. Desmond, E.R. Weeks. Soft Matter 8(40), 10486–10492 |
2012 |
| 3 | Dynamical heterogeneities near colloidal glass transition T. Narumi, S.V. Franklin, K.W. Desmond, M. Tokuyama, E.R. Weeks. Soft Matter 7(4), 1472–1482 |
2011 |
| 2 | Random close packing in confined geometries K.W. Desmond, E.R. Weeks. Phys. Rev. E 80(5), 051305 |
2009 |
| 1 | Jamming of three-dimensional prolate granular materials K. Desmond, S.V. Franklin. Phys. Rev. E 73(3), 031303 |
2006 |
Patents
| # | Title | Year |
|---|---|---|
| 7 | Systems and methods for measuring cluster efficiency using broadband tube waves B.D. Wheelock, P.A. Gordon, L. Song, K.W. Desmond, Y. Zhang. US Pat. 12,130,399 |
2024 |
| 6 | Estimates of flow velocity with controlled spatio-temporal variations in contrast media properties K.W. Desmond, G.L. Hunter. US Pat. 11,573,108 |
2023 |
| 5 | Method and system for performing wireless ultrasonic communications along tubular members T.F. Kinn, X. Yi, S.W. Clawson, M.M. Disko, K.W. Desmond, J.H. Moss. US Pat. 11,203,927 |
2021 |
| 4 | Encoded injection of microbubbles to improve flow velocity measurements using cross-correlation technique K.W. Desmond, G.L. Hunter. Meas. Sci. Technol. 32(8), 085302 |
2021 |
| 3 | Estimating flow velocity in pipes by correlating multi-frequency signals K.W. Desmond, G.L. Hunter. US Pat. App. 16/190,734 |
2019 |
| 2 | Sensitivity of coda wave interferometry to fluid migration through rock K.W. Desmond, J.J. Valenza. J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 145(2), 1100–1104 |
2019 |
| 1 | Electrode materials with mixed particle sizes Z.C. Tim Holme, K. Desmond, W.A. Hermann, J. Han. US Pat. 20,150,357,644 |
2015 |
🎓 Education
| Degree | Institution | Year | Advisor |
|---|---|---|---|
| PhD Physics | Emory University | 2012 | Eric R. Weeks |
| BSc (Physics) | Rochester Institute of Technology | 2006 | Scott V. Franklin |
| Postdoctoral Fellow | University of California, Santa Barbara | 2012–14 | Megan J. Valentine |
Google Scholar profile:
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Last updated: 2025-05-23