Me and Max, my dog.
Mehdi El Kamch
PhD candidate in mechanical engineering. I use machine learning to design 4D-printed devices.
ICB Laboratory (UMR 6303 CNRS), Université de Technologie de Belfort-Montbéliard (UTBM), Belfort, France.
E-mail: mehdi.el-kamch@utbm.fr
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/Mehdi-El-Kamch
Research 
I use machine learning to design 4D-printed devices: parts that change shape on their own after printing, when they are heated or lit. My main case is a self-expanding stent driven by two stimuli, heat and light. It is printed from liquid crystal elastomers (LCEs), with a light-sensitive azobenzene LCE as the active material.
The core problem is inverse design. I know the shape the stent should take inside the body, and I need the printed geometry and material layout that gets it there. Nonlinear simulations are too slow to search that space by hand, so I train physics-informed neural networks (PINNs) and neural operators that learn the mechanics and make the design search fast.
What I am working on now:
- PINNs and neural operators (FNO, DeepONet) as fast surrogates for large-deformation, stimulus-driven mechanics.
- Inverse design: from a target deployed shape back to the geometry and material layout to print.
- A thermo-photo-hyperelastic model of the LCE network, which gives the networks their physics.
- Cosserat rods for the slender struts, FEniCSx for reference simulations, Rhino/Grasshopper for parametric geometry.
- A first LCE stent printed by freeform liquid 3D printing (FL3DP), to test the pipeline end to end.
Supervisors: Prof. Frédéric Demoly (thesis director), Prof. François Peyraut, Théo Calais.
Papers 
- First journal paper in preparation. It will be listed here when it is out.
Experience 
| 2026–now | PhD candidate, ICB Laboratory, UTBM, Belfort, France. |
| 2025 | Mechanical engineer, Madrex Engineering & Stellantis, Casablanca, Morocco. Reverse-engineered the Peugeot 208 powertrain housing: 3D scanning, CATIA V5 reconstruction, structural FEA and CFD in Ansys. Topology optimization cut the part's weight by 12%. |
| 2024 | Mechanical engineering assistant, OCP Group, Jorf Lasfar, Morocco. Preventive-maintenance plan for belt conveyors (15% less downtime) and heat-exchanger thermal control (5% lower energy use). |
| 2023 | Engineering intern, OCP Group, Jorf Lasfar. Repaired a faulty agitator; proposed a closed-loop water reuse system for fertilizer production. |
Education 
| 2026–2029 | PhD, UTBM, Belfort, France (expected 2029). |
| 2026 | PhD Summer School “Geometry for Digital Fabrication and Architecture”, DTU, Copenhagen. |
| 2023–2025 | Diplôme d'Ingénieur, Mechanical, Production & Thermal Engineering, Euro-Mediterranean University of Fès, Morocco. |
| 2021–2022 | Electrical engineering and embedded systems, Polytech Clermont-Ferrand, France. |
| 2018–2020 | Classes préparatoires (PSI), Lycée La Résidence, Casablanca. |
Older projects 
- Hard-drive support bracket. FEA and topology optimization; 50% lighter, better heat dissipation.
- Eddy-current brake for elevators. Braking force and a 1 T magnetic field modelled in ANSYS Maxwell.
- Aircraft trimmable horizontal stabilizer actuator. Screw-nut mechanism design and vibration analysis under ±10° angular displacement.
- Medical-delivery drone. Led the design with an electrical team, from CAD and structural simulation to embedded code and 3D printing.
Tools 
- Simulation: FEniCSx (UFL, PETSc), Ansys, Abaqus, SolidWorks Simulation.
- Code: Python, PyTorch, MATLAB, C/C++, Arduino.
- Design: Rhino/Grasshopper, CATIA V5, SolidWorks, Fusion 360.
- Making: FDM, SLS and SLM printing, 5-axis CNC, 3D scanning.
- Languages: Arabic (native), French, English.
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