Dr. Safa is an Assistant Professor of Medical Engineering at the University of South Florida, leading innovative research in soft tissue biomechanics with a focus on glaucoma. His current areas of focus are iris biomechanics and optic nerve head remodeling, addressing both angle-closure and open-angle glaucoma. Prior to joining USF, Babak was a BrightFocus Postdoctoral Fellow at Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering at Georgia Institute of Technology and Emory University at Prof. Ross Ethier's lab, where he investigated glaucoma biomechanics and mechanobiology. Dr. Safa earned his Ph.D. from the University of Delaware, and his thesis was focused on tendon damage mechanics at Prof. Dawn Elliott's lab, and his Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Sharif University of Technology, Iran's premier engineering university. Through his research, Dr. Safa aims to advance our understanding of ocular biomechanics and develop novel approaches to combat visual impairment.

Babak is a professional musician, and he plays Qopuz (an Azerbaijani string instrument), watch Babak on stage. Also, he was a member of Iran’s national astronomy olympiads team, and he won a bronze medal at the international astronomy and astrophysics olympiads in Thailand (IOAA 2007).