Rafael Barea del Cerro is a Professor at Universidad Nebrija, Madrid, Spain, specializing in materials engineering, additive manufacturing, and the mechanical behavior of metallic materials. He holds a Ph.D. in Inorganic Chemistry from Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, where he focused on thermal conductivity in biphasic materials. His research experience includes postdoctoral work at CENIM-CSIC, where he developed conductivity models and studied the behavior of metallic materials under different thermal conditions. His research has primarily focused on the microstructural and mechanical characterization of metallic alloys, with a particular interest in magnesium-based materials and steels processed through additive manufacturing techniques such as SLM, DED, and LWAM. He has worked on finite element simulations to analyze the thermal and mechanical behavior of metallic components, correlating experimental results with predictive models. Over the years, he has led and participated in various national and international research projects, collaborating with CSIC, CENIM, and industrial partners. He has supervised four Ph.D. theses on the characterization and processing of metallic materials and has published extensively in high-impact materials science and engineering journals.