Recently, the project "Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Materials and Technologies for Energy Conversion (MATEC)" undertaken by Guangdong Technion - Israel Institute of Technology (GTIIT) received a research grant of 3 million RMB from the Platform Base and Science and Technology Infrastructure Construction Project of Department of Science and Technology of Guangdong Province in 2021-2022. This is GTIIT's first provincial level research platform being recognized by the Guangdong Provincial government. It will explore the frontier scientific problems of energy materials, develop core technologies of energy conversion, help solve the problems of carbon peaking and carbon neutral, and provide intellectual and technical support for Guangdong Province and even the national new energy material industry.

The project has a strong academic committee, with external members including 8 academicians from Fudan University, Tsinghua University, University of Science and Technology of China, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Center for High Pressure Science & Technology Advanced Research, Songshan Lake Materials Laboratory, and Shanghai Synchrotron Radiation Facility; and 23 professors and researchers from universities and research institutions including Peking University, Xiamen University, Beihang University, Southern University of Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Xi'an University of Technology, University of Science and Technology of China, Jilin University, Southeast university, Nanjing University of Science and Technology, Sun Yat-Sen University, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, CAS; Shanghai Institute of Ceramics, CAS; Institute of Metal Research, CAS and the State Key Laboratory of Nonlinear Mechanics.

The project is led by Prof. Daniel Tan and completed together with the following GTIIT members: Academician Xingao Gong, Prof. Klaus-Dieter Liss, Prof. Ziyi Zhong, Prof. Ji-Dong Gu, Prof. Varenyam Achal, Associate Professor Elissaios Stavrou, Associate Professor Aleksandra Baron-Wiechec, Associate Professor Grammati kopoulos, Associate Professor Xuezhong He, Associate Professor Peng Xu, Associate Professor Marcelo Fabián Ciappina, Assistant Professor Yuanshan Qi, Assistant Professor Nan Wang, Assistant Professor Zuoti Xie, Assistant Professor Quanfu Lin, Assistant Professor Jin Hyun Woo, Assistant Professor Bo Kong, Assistant Professor Wan Yan, Assistant Professor Xi Gao, Assistant Professor Xiaowu Huang, Assistant Professor Bin Li, Assistant Professor Youhua Jiang, Assistant Professor Xinpeng Xu, Assistant Professor Khadga Jung Karki, Assistant Professor Yigal Achmon, Senior Research Scientist Limei Cha, Senior Research Scientist Amitesh Paul, Research Scientist David Perez de Lara, Dr. Dayakar Gandla, Dr. Guanghui Song, Dr. Shisong Tang, and Dr. Mingyuan Li.

Accelerating energy consumption and carbon emissions are challenging the sustainable development of our country. The efficient conversion of various energy sources into usable energy fundamentally depends on new material technologies. Therefore, developing new materials is a major strategic focus area for the country and the province. This project proposes to build a key laboratory of energy conversion materials and technologies in Guangdong Province to study mechanical and electrical transformation and technology, energy storage, photovoltaic cells, materials processing, catalytic conversion technology, characterization and technology, to meet the needs of bolstering technology and industry in Guangdong Province, increase the competitiveness of the energy in the field of materials science in our country and international status, and put highly efficient energy conversion technology into use.

This interdisciplinary, high-level, and international research platform is based on GTIIT's international talent resources and cutting-edge facilities. The university has the clean room, thin film preparation center, lithography nano preparation center, electron microscopy center, structure analysis center, and the key members' laboratory equipment and large public facilities. It opens to the academic counterparts both home and abroad. MATEC is committed to building a world-class research and development platform for energy conversion materials and technologies. At present, it has built several private and public laboratories, with a total of more than 300 experimental facilities, which can carry out structural and component analysis research, and has established connections with large international research centers.

In line with the principle of "talent, innovation and cooperation", MATEC has set up an open research fund, and warmly welcomes and invites doctoral scholars in related research fields to apply. It also looks forward to more postdoctoral researchers, postgraduates and PhD students joining the team. Please contact yuehuan.kuang@gtiit.edu.cn for more information.

Text: RIGS, GTIIT News & Public Affairs

Photos: GTIIT News & Public Affairs