My research group focuses on three main areas of materials chemistry: 1) The development of conducting polymer nanofibers with applications in sensors, flash welding, actuators and membrane separations; 2) New synthetic routes to carbon-based materials focusing on energy storage including supercapacitors; and 3) Solid-state routes to refractory materials with an emphasis on superhard metal borides.

Awards and Achievements

  • Thomson-Reuters Most Highly Cited Author ( 2014)
  • American Chemical Society Award in the Chemistry of Materials ( 2012)
  • Recognition from Nature Nanotechnology for Most Highly Cited Paper ( 2012)
  • Materials Research Society Fellow ( 2011)
  • Adjunct Professor, Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology, Australia ( 2010)
  • Richard Tolman Medal for “Outstanding Contributions to Chemistry in So. CA” ( 2009)
  • J. William Fulbright Senior Scholar ( 2004-05)
  • Gold Shield Faculty Prize for Academic Excellence (UCLA) ( 2002-04)
  • American Association for the Advancement of Science Fellow ( 2000)
  • Buck-Whitney Research Award (Eastern NY Section, American Chemical Society) ( 1997)
  • John Simon Guggenheim Fellow ( 1996-97)
  • Defense Science Study Group Fellow ( 1994-95)
  • Alfred P. Sloan Research Fellow ( 1993-97)
  • Camille and Henry Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar Award ( 1991-95)
  • American Chemical Society: Buck-Whitney Research Award
  • Tolman Medal, and Award in the Chemistry of Materials
  • Royal Society of Chemistry Centenary Prize
  • Elsevier Scopus Most Cited Researcher in Materials Science and Engineering
  • Thomson-Reuters Most Highly Cited Author in Chemistry and in Materials Science
  • Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the American Chemical Society, the Materials Research Society, and the Royal Society of Chemistry.

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