Jin Li, a graduate student in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at Texas A&M University, has received the 2016 Materials Research Society (MRS) Graduate Student Silver Award. Li is the third graduate student from Texas A&M to be selected to receive this award in the past 10 years.
“Like all Ph.D. students, I am one of the hardworking guys,” Li said. “I am fortunate to work in a team environment where my teammates and advisor provide tremendous support.”
Li has been studying under Dr. Xinghang Zhang since 2013, and his doctoral thesis focuses on radiation damage and mechanical behavior of nanostructured metals. He has a GPA of 4.0 and has published four first-author articles in premier materials science journals such as Nano Letters and Acta Materialia, a flagship journal in the material community. He also has two papers that are under review, and he’s the co-author of more than 10 other articles, including four in Acta Materialia and two in Nano Letters.
“I enjoy doing research and hopefully can stay in academia after graduation,” Li said. “I feel so lucky to be selected.”
MRS, established in 1973, is one of the largest materials research conferences for the materials community with almost 14,000 members of materials researchers from academia, industry and government. As a recognized leader in the advancement of interdisciplinary materials research, the MRS Graduate Student Awards are intended to honor and encourage graduate students whose academic achievements and current materials research display excellence and distinction. MRS seeks to recognize students of exceptional ability who show promise for future substantial achievement in materials research. Emphasis is placed on the quality of the student’s research accomplishment. The awardees are selected internationally based on their presentations at the MRS meeting.
Li feels his achievement of the MRS Graduate Student Award is a direct reflection on the outstanding research and education provided by Texas A&M. Li will defend his doctoral thesis in the summer of 2017.