Professor Tithof's research utilizes a combination of complementary laboratory experiments and numerical simulations to probe important questions at the forefront of fluid mechanics. One area of focus concerns the glymphatic system, which is an important waste clearance pathway in the brain relevant to many neurological disorders, including Alzheimer's disease. His group also explores new approaches to describing fluid flows with the goal of developing reduced-order models, obtaining new insights, and improving forecasting.

• Glymphatic system (a waste clearance pathway in the brain involving cerebrospinal fluid flow)
• Computational fluid mechanics
• Microfluidics and in vitro models
• Dynamical systems approaches to turbulence (exact coherent structures, Lagrangian coherent structures)
• Machine learning and data-driven modeling
• Topological data analysis

Jeff Tithof is an accomplished fluid mechanics researcher and enthusiastic teacher. He particularly enjoys collaboration to solve interdisciplinary problems, utilizing both experimental and numerical approaches.

Lab
Tithof Lab

ME Research Areas
Biosystems & Bioengineering
Fluid Mechanics

ME Impact Areas
Energy Transition
Environment & Sustainability
Human Health

Education

Ph.D. 2016, Physics, Georgia Institute of Technology 
B.S. 2010, Physics & Mathematics, University of Tennessee

Professional Background

Benjamin Mayhugh Assistant Professor, Mechanical Engineering, University of Minnesota, 2020-present
Assistant Professor (Research), Mechanical Engineering, University of Rochester, 2019-2020
Postdoctoral Associate, Mechanical Engineering, University of Rochester, 2016-2019

Scientific & Professional Societies

Teaching Subjects

• ME 5351: Computational Heat Transfer
• ME 3332: Fluid Mechanics

Honors and Awards

• Burroughs Wellcome Fund Career Award at the Scientific Interface (2019)
• 1st Place Video, University of Rochester Art of Science Competition (2018)
• University of Rochester Steadman Prize in Interdisciplinary Research (2017)

Selected Publications

• H. Mestre, T. Du, A. M. Sweeney, G. Liu, A. J. Samson, W. Peng, K. N. Mortensen, F. F. Stæger, P. A. R. Bork, L. Bashford, E. R. Toro, J. Tithof, D. H. Kelley, P. G. Hjorth, E. A. Martens, R. I. Mehta, O. Solis, P. Blinder, D. Kleinfeld, H. Hirase, Y. Mori, M. Nedergaard. “Cerebrospinal fluid influx drives acute ischemic tissue swelling.” Science 367 (2020).
• J. Tithof, D. H. Kelley, H. Mestre, M. Nedergaard, and J. H. Thomas. “Hydraulic resistance of periarterial spaces in the brain.” Fluids Barriers CNS 16 (2019): 19.
• H. Mestre, J. Tithof, T. Du, W. Song, W. Peng, A. M. Sweeney, G. Olveda, J. H. Thomas, M. Nedergaard, and D. H. Kelley. “Flow of cerebrospinal fluid is driven by arterial pulsations and is reduced in hypertension.” Nature Commun. 9 (2018): 1-9.
• J. Tithof, B. Suri, R. K. Pallantla, R. O. Grigoriev, and M. F. Schatz.  “Bifurcations in a quasi-two-dimensional Kolmogorov-like flow.” J. Fluid Mech. 828 (2017): 837–866.
• B. Suri, J. Tithof, R. O. Grigoriev, and M. F. Schatz.  “Forecasting Fluid Flows Using the Geometry of Turbulence.” Phys. Rev. Lett. 118 (2017): 114501. 

More Publications

Google Scholar Profile