Light and heat are two ubiquitous energy forms which are distinct but also closely correlated to each other. As the sunlight emitted from its 5500K surface is extremely useful for us to generate high-grade energy, its radiation is governed by the same physics as our human body thermal radiation at 300K. The fundamental materials science and thermal engineering of light-heat conversions are the keys to achieve better efficiency, higher power density, and other desirable properties for various applications in energy and personal health.

Ongoing and potential projects:
Wearable thermal managing textiles, Electrochromic photonic fibers, Radiative cooling, Solar thermal energy utilization, Skin&textile electronics, 3D temperature mapping, Artificial intelligence battery designs, etc.

Highlighted in Science

Adaptive solar-heater and radiative-cooler (A-SHARC) mentioned in New Atlas, TechXplore, and WRAL.

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Neural networks utilized to optimize porous internal structure of Lithium-ion battery (LIB) electrodes.

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Vascular ENabled Advanced (VENA) electrodes for fast charging Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) for Electric Vehicles (EVs).

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Thermal imaging of cotton, IR-reflective (heating), and IR-transparent (cooling) textiles.

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Electrochemistry: Electrochromic window, Electrocatalysis, Photoelectrochemical reactions, and more.

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Nanoporous polyethylene can freely transmit thermal radiation and cool down the human body.

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Dual-mode textile that has both heating and cooling function can expand the thermal comfort zone.

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Nanofibers and Nanowires

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Tunable surface emissivity for Smart buildings.

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The electrochromic device made by the graphene-coated metal nanowire transparent electrode shows significantly improved cycle life.

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Metal nanowire-coated textile is both breathable and highly reflective in mid-IR.

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Metal mesowires bridge the gap between nanowire and contact fingers and achieve ultra-low sheet resistance.

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