Two UChicago Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering (UChicago PME) PhD candidates were honored for innovative research presentations at the most recent meeting of the Materials Research Society (MRS).
Pengju Li, a UChicago PME student in the lab of Chemistry Prof. Bozhi Tian, was recognized with Gold in the Graduate Student Awards. Yu Han in PME Asst. Prof. Chong Liu’s lab received Silver.
The MRS offers the awards at each meeting “to honor and encourage graduate students whose academic achievements and current materials research display a high level of excellence and distinction.”
“I was both humbled and honored,” Li said. “Winning this award felt like validation not only of my work but also of our lab’s dedicated efforts in advancing the field. I immediately thought of the immense support I’ve received from my advisors, collaborators, and team members throughout this journey.”
This was not the only recent accolade Li received for his work on light-controlled pacemakers and “living bioelectronics.” The MIT Technology Review recently named Li an Innovator Under 35 Asia Pacific.
“Pengju exemplifies excellence—not only as a brilliant scientist but also as an extraordinary mentor and a phenomenal collaborator,” Tian said. “His dedication, creativity, and ability to inspire others set a shining example. Our academic community would be immensely enriched by having more professors and educators like Pengju, whose contributions elevate the field and empower those around him.”
Han was honored for his presentation on his innovative work on ion exchange, a powerful technique for converting one material to another when synthesizing new products.
“Receiving this award from MRS is an incredible honor and a meaningful affirmation of my potential as a young researcher,” Han said. “When I learned of the win, I felt a profound sense of excitement and gratitude, especially toward my principal investigator, Chong Liu, whose unwavering support made our fundamental work on layered oxides possible. This recognition encourages me to continue pushing the boundaries of my research, and I look forward to sharing more fascinating discoveries with the scientific community in the future.”
Liu said this honor is a taste of things to come from Yu Han.
“The award honors his significant contributions to advancing our understanding of material responses during ion exchange, which is important to many fields,” she said. “Yu is always determined to solve the puzzles in materials science. His sharp logic and exceptional capabilities consistently lead us to new discoveries.”
Both presentations—and all of UChicago PME’s interdisciplinary research—emphasized impact, leveraging lab innovations to address some of the world’s most pressing challenges.
“While science is our foundation, we are driven to create broader impacts in engineering, healthcare, and sustainability,” Li said. “We aim to bridge the gap between fundamental discoveries and real-world applications to address pressing societal challenges.”