Newsletter
April 2022
From the Chair
Dear Alumni and Friends of the Department,

This issue of the MSE newsletter showcases some of the remarkable research discoveries made this academic year by our materials scientists and engineers, with applications for medicine, renewable energy, quantum computing and more. We also feature our 2022 Alumni Award winner, Dr. Peter Green of the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, and share MSE's vision and goals for the future as part of the Cornell Engineering 2030 Strategic Plan.
Research and News

A new artificial intelligence tool developed by Cornell materials and computer scientists promises to rapidly explore and identify what it takes to “whip up” new materials. SARA (the Scientific Autonomous Reasoning Agent) integrates robotic materials synthesis and characterization, along with a hierarchy of AI and active learning methods, to efficiently reveal the structure of complex processing phase diagrams, making materials discovery vastly quicker. Read more in the Cornell Chronicle.

Cornell dots, originally developed 16 years ago by MSE Professor Uli Wiesner, have begun human clinical trials as a cancer therapeutic. Included in this feature is a video and animation illustrating how Cornell dots work.

MSE researchers grew a thin film of one of the oldest known superconductors on top of a semiconductor, paving the way for hybrid superconductor-semiconductor quantum devices.

A new X-ray technique offers an unprecedented look at the elaborate inner workings of batteries while they are in use – a breakthrough that is already yielding important findings for next-gen energy storage.

An MSE-led collaboration received a $3 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy to use machine learning to accelerate the creation of low-cost materials for solar energy.

Materials scientists have discovered a new approach for making a lead-free antiferroelectric material that performs as well as its toxic relatives.
Awards and honors

Peter F. Green, Ph.D. ’85, deputy laboratory director for science and technology and the chief research officer for the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, has been selected as the 2022 MSE Alumni Award winner.

“Dr. Green is everything that our department aspires for our students and alumni to be,” said Lara Estroff, MSE chair and professor. “He’s a world-class researcher, a leader, an educator and someone who is using his talents to help others reach their full potential as scientists and engineers.”
Huili Grace Xing was named an IEEE Fellow and a AAAS Fellow for her contributions to GaN high-electron-mobility transistors.

Julia Dshemuchadse received an NSF CAREER Award for her proposal of decoding the processes governing crystal growth. She also received the James M. and Marsha D. McCormick Advising Award from Cornell Engineering.

Darrell Schlom was awarded the AVS John A. Thornton Memorial Award/Lecture for pioneering contributions to the development of molecular-beam epitaxy for the growth of complex oxides.

Mike Thompson was selected to receive a Stephen H. Weiss Award honoring excellence in undergraduate teaching and mentoring at Cornell University.

Bruce van Dover received the Ralph S. Watts ‘72 Award for Excellence in Teaching and Advising from Cornell Engineering.

Nicole Benedek received the Robert ‘55 and Vanne ‘57 Cowie Award or Excellence in Teaching and Advising from Cornell Engineering.

Matthew Barone was awarded the 2021 APL Materials Excellence in Research Award for his publication “Improved control of atomic layering in perovskite-related homologous series.”

Bashayer Aldakkan received the 2021 Young Technical Professional of the Year by the Abu Dhabi International Petroleum Exhibition and Conference.
Our Future

We are thrilled to share MSE's vision for the future through the Cornell Engineering 2030 Strategic Plan recently published by the college.

The plan includes our department’s goals for this decade and beyond, as well as several of the college’s priority research directions and impactful initiatives that MSE will play a critical role in cultivating.
Giving Opportunities
Thank you to everyone who gave on Cornell Giving Day, especially those who chose to give directly to MSE. Cornell Engineering received $778,000 of the more than $12 million raised by the university to 'do the greatest good' by supporting students and research that benefits the world.

There are many ways to support MSE students and researchers. Please visit our giving opportunities website and consider a gift that will help us remain a top materials science and engineering department.