Materials scientist · Singapore
Postdoctoral Fellow · Nanyang Technological University
I study how ceramics, metals, and their interfaces transform under constraint—and how those local transformations can make structural materials stronger, tougher, and more adaptive.
01 · Research
A common design logic
A
I place transformable ceramics, alloys, and chemically tuned interfaces inside metal matrices to control phase change, load transfer, strain hardening, and damage at the local scale.
The program connects constraint engineering with interpenetrating and hierarchical architectures, interface chemistry, in situ mechanics, and X-ray or neutron scattering.
B
I design stress- and temperature-responsive building blocks—from particles and fibres to foams, granular packings, and interpenetrating networks.
The aim is to translate martensitic transformation into recovery, superelasticity, damping, and energy absorption at useful engineering scales.
C
I use ultrafast heating and cooling, reactive joining, and additive manufacturing to retain metastable phases and control interfacial reactions.
These processing routes connect atomic-scale structure with the reliability of ceramics, ceramic–metal joints, and superalloys under heat, hydrogen, and impact.
02 · Platforms & resources
From processing to proof
I combine processing, microscopy, scattering, and in situ mechanics to connect non-equilibrium structure with local and system-level response.
01
Powder metallurgy; ultrafast high-temperature sintering and joining; stir and freeze casting; pressure infiltration; extrusion and rolling; additive manufacturing of ceramics and metals.
02
SEM, TEM, precession electron diffraction, focused-ion-beam work, X-ray microscopy, diffraction, small-angle X-ray or neutron scattering, and Raman microscopy.
03
Uniaxial tension, compression, and bending; nanoindentation; in situ micro- and nano-mechanics; split-Hopkinson pressure-bar testing; and digital image correlation.
These are platforms and methods I work with across collaborating facilities; availability depends on project scope and institutional access.
03 · Representative work
Five studies and reviews
Acta Materialia · 311, 122074
Materials Research Letters · 13, 51–59
Acta Materialia · 276, 120118
JOM · 76(7), 3604–3621
Nature Communications · 14, 7103
04 · Mentoring & service
Research as stewardship
Research mentor in the YSA–Yuanpei Young Scholars Program. Co-supervised five bachelor theses and one master’s thesis across transformable composites, heterogeneous interfaces, and energy-dissipating architectures.
Teaching assistant for Interface of Composites across two terms and for Fundamentals of Materials Science. Led a six-hour materials seminar for more than 1,000 high-school students through HSYLC.
Managed the SJTU Electron Microscopy Group from 2020 to 2024, coordinating daily operations and maintenance, training more than 20 users, organizing more than 10 workshops, and introducing inclusive instrument scheduling.
Independent reviewer for Nature Communications, Journal of Applied Physics, Journal of Materials Science, and Journal of Materials Research; co-reviewer for 12 additional journals. Principal investigator of an NSFC Ph.D. Program project.
05 · Biography
Academic path
My training spans composite mechanics, smart ceramics, microscopy, scattering, and non-equilibrium processing, with research experience in Singapore, Shanghai, and Oxford.
2025—present
Nanyang Technological University · Singapore
Structural and functional ceramics, ultrafast processing, additive manufacturing, and materials performance under extreme conditions.
2020—2025
NTU × Shanghai Jiao Tong University
Zhiyuan Honor Program (top 1%). Research on transformation-induced mechanical robustness in metastable aluminium-matrix composites.
2019
University of Oxford · United Kingdom
Scalable graphene processing and environmentally considerate polymer-fibre fabrication in the Grobert group.
2016—2020
Shanghai Jiao Tong University
Hsu Tzuyao Honor Class (top 10%), with undergraduate research across composites and functional nanomaterials.
06 · Contact
Open to conversations about composites, interfaces, phase transformation, micromechanics, and neutron scattering.