Announcements

MDPI, the leading Open Access (OA) publisher, announced on Monday that it opened its Korean branch office on 29th April 2024. With this addition, MDPI now operates 21 offices in 12 countries worldwide. Claude Seo, with over 20 years of experience in the academic journal publishing industry, including Nature Publishing Group (NPG), has been appointed as the Office Manager of the Seoul office.

With the establishment of a Seoul office, MDPI aims to actively support Korea scientific communities to further promote the publication of OA journals in the region. As of the end of 2023, Korea ranked sixth worldwide in both submissions and publications of MDPI research papers. MDPI is the number one OA publisher in Korea.

Sungkyunkwan University Joins MDPI’s Institutional Open Access Program

In addition, MDPI announced that Sungkyunkwan University joined MDPI’s Institutional Open Access Program (IOAP). This program offers free access to MDPI online submission system for the institutions and APC discounts to affiliated authors. Thirteen major Korean universities, including Sungkyunkwan University, Kyung Hee University, Chung-Ang University and Catholic University of Korea, have adopted IOAP in Korea.

OA aims to break down barriers that have traditionally restricted access to science, ensuring that knowledge is available to all, regardless of financial situation or institutional affiliations. Authors, academia, and scientific communities are rapidly moving toward OA. MDPI has been at the forefront of reshaping the academic publishing landscape, with OA surpassing subscription-based publishing in 2020.

MDPI CEO Visits Seoul, Korea

In March, Stefan Tochev, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of MDPI, visited Korea and met with various stakeholders including government agencies, research and academic institutions, universities. During his visit, Stefan highlighted that MDPI continues to pave the way for a world where science is accessible to all, supporting a global community of inclusive innovation and collaborative solutions.

Stefan expressed excitement about the new venture, stating, "Today marks a significant milestone for MDPI as we celebrate the opening of our new office in Seoul, Korea. This expansion is more than just an increase in our physical footprint, it is a pivotal step in our ongoing commitment to making scientific knowledge more accessible, participatory, and inclusive across the globe."

Claude Seo, reflecting on his new role, commented, "I am delighted to have been offered this position of trust within MDPI, the no. 1 scholarly OA publisher. As we establish our presence in Korea, we are dedicated to integrating into the local community and contributing to its vibrant culture. Our commitment goes beyond business growth; it is about creating a more informed and innovative society by embracing and promoting diversity within the scientific community.”

For further inquiries, please contact our Seoul office directly.

About MDPI

A pioneer in scholarly, open access publishing, MDPI has supported academic communities since 1996. MDPI is leading the transition to open science by making more research free and accessible to everyone. Over 3.3 million researchers have entrusted MDPI with publishing their scientific discoveries. MDPI’s editorial process is bolstered by a network of dedicated reviewers, a team of 6000 diligent, well-trained staff members, and an in-house article submission platform that was designed to ensure efficient processes within its 430 fully OA titles.

We are thrilled to share the updated Exceptional Reviewers List 2024. This program was designed to recognize and honor the scholars who have delivered consistently exceptional review reports to our journal. Committed to fostering rigorous research and promoting knowledge exchange, the journal Materials (ISSN: 1996-1944) recognizes the significant role our reviewers play in maintaining the quality and integrity of the articles we publish. According to surveys conducted in 2023, 91% of our authors rate the peer-review service as good or excellent, thanks to our pool of excellent reviewers.

We would like to express our sincere appreciation for all the reviewers who have generously volunteered their time and expertise to assist in Materials’ peer-review process. Their dedication and attention to detail in evaluating manuscripts, offering valuable feedback, and contributing to academic rigor are truly commendable.

The Exceptional Reviewers List was introduced in March 2024. Each quarter, we will select a group of outstanding reviewers and introduce them here.

Q1:

• Name: Dr. Zhifu Zhao
  Affiliation: Institute of Mechanics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
  Interest: fracture; molecular dynamics simulation; dislocations; twinning; crack propagation; crack initiation; vibration; nonlinear dynamics; nanocrystalline metals

• Name: Dr. Thomas Gietzelt
  Affiliation: Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Karlsruhe, Germany
  Interest: joining technologies; diffusion bonding; laser welding; materials technology; materials diagnostics; application of new materials; corrosion phenomena

• Name: Dr. Krystian Zyguła
  Affiliation: AGH University of Science and Technology, Kraków, Poland
  Interest: metal forming; hot deformation; microstructure; titanium alloys; processing maps; additive manufacturing; composites; properties

• Name: Dr. Mauro Taborelli
  Affiliation: European Organization for Nuclear Research, Geneva, Switzerland
  Interest: molybdenum coatings; surface analysis; secondary electron yield

• Name: Dr. Ilias Stavrakas
  Affiliation: University of West Attica, Athens, Greece
  Interest: electrical circuits; electrical and electronic measurement technologies; measuring systems and devices; integrated measurement systems; non-destructive testing of materials; electrical characterization of materials

Q2:

• Name: Wolfgang Kern
  Affiliation: Montanuniversität Leoben, Department of Chemistry of Polymeric Materials, Leoben, Austria
  Interests: impact; special and functional polymers polymer photochemistry; surface modification of polymers; chemistry at interfaces of inorganic/organic materials; organic functionalization of inorganic surfaces and particles

• Name: Rosaria D'Amato
  Affiliation: ENEA, FSN-TECFIS-MNF, CR Frascati, via E. Fermi 45, 00044 Frascati, Rome, Italy
  Interests: synthesis, different materials and nanomaterials, polymer, organometallic compound, inorganic nanoparticles, photonics, energy and sensors, nanocomposites, optical fiber sensors

• Name: Liubomyr Poberezhnyi
  Affiliation: Helmut Schmidt University - University of the Federal Armed Forces Hamburg, Germany, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Hamburg, Germany
  Interests: fatigue and corrosion fatigue of materials; pipeline fatigue and failure; risk-management of oil and gas pipelines; corrosion degradation of steel and alloys; ageing of low-carbon steels

• Name: Jiho Moon
  Affiliation: Department of Civil Engineering, Kangwon National University, Chuncheon-si, Gangwon-do 24341, Republic of Korea
  Interests: composite materials and structures

• Name: Abhijit Dasgupta
  Affiliation: Mechanical Engineering Department, Center for Advanced Life Cycle Engineering (CALCE), University of Maryland, College Park, MD, 20742, USA
  Interests: nanomechanics; mechanics of materials; Micromechanics; reliability of electronic materials; Accelerated stress testing

Q3:

• Name: Prof. Dr. Ovidiu-Cristian Oprea
  Affiliation: National University of Science and Technology POLITEHNICA Bucharest, Bucharest, Romania
  Interests: nanomaterials; antimicrobial applications of nanomaterials; ZnO; food packaging; drug delivery
• Name: Dr. Dimitrios Vlachos
  Affiliation: Department of Physics, University of Ioannina, Ioannina, Greece
  Interests: surface science; materials science; physics of condensed matter

• Name: Prof. Dr. Hans-Joachim Krause
  Affiliation: Forschungszentrum Jülich, IBI-3, 52425 Jülich, Germany
  Interests: magnetic field sensors; SQUID; low field NMR; magnetic particle detection

• Name: Prof. Dr. Tingting Lang
  Affiliation: School of information and electronic engineering, Zhejiang University of Science and Technology, Hangzhou, China
  Interests: metamaterial; optical fiber; integrated photonics; waveguide-based devices

• Name: Prof. Dr. Marcella Bini
  Affiliation: Department of Chemistry, University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy
  Interests: energy; batteries; electrode materials; nanomaterials; ceramic materials; solid state chemistry; powder diffraction; SEM microscopy; synthesis

Q4:

• Name: Prof. Dr. Beate Paulus
  Affiliation: Institute for Chemistry and Biochemistry, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
  Interests: theoretical chemistry with emphasis on material science; first-principles study; graphene; spectroscopy

• Name: Dr. Ivan Giorgio
  Affiliation: Department of Civil, Construction-Architectural and Environmental Engineering, University of L’Aquila, L’Aquila, Italy
  Interests: continuum mechanics; metamaterials; lagrangian mechanics; strain gradient elasticity; biomechanical analysis

• Name: Prof. Dr. Arno Schindlmayr
  Affiliation: Universität Paderborn, Paderborn, Germany
  Interests: Ab initio calculations of electronic; optical and magnetic properties of materials; quantum many-body theory of electrons in solids

• Name: Dr. Pierre Montmitonnet
  Affiliation: MINES Paris, PSL⁎ Research University – CEMEF, Paris, France
  Interests: materials engineering; materials processing; mechanical engineering; stress analysis; fracture

• Name: Dr. Raquel González-Arrabal
  Affiliation: Instituto de Fusión Nuclear, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Madrid, Spain
  Interests: development of more radiation-resistant materials; development of permeation and corrosion barriers; magnetron sputtering; nanomaterials under extreme conditions; radiation–matter interaction; radiation-induced damage

All papers published in 2022 in Materials (ISSN: 1996-1944) were considered for this award. After a thorough evaluation of the originality and significance of the papers, citations, and downloads, the winner was selected:

“Back-Propagation Neural Network Optimized by K-Fold Cross-Validation for Prediction of Torsional Strength of Reinforced Concrete Beam”
by Zhaoqiu Lyu, Yang Yu, Bijan Samali, Maria Rashidi, Masoud Mohammadi, Thuc N. Nguyen and Andy Nguyen
Materials 2022, 15(4), 1477; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma15041477
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1944/15/4/1477

The winners will receive CHF 300 and a chance to publish a paper free of charge after peer review in Materials in 2024.

Dr. Yang Yu is currently a Research Fellow at the Centre for Infrastructure Engineering and Safety, School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of New South Wales, Australia. His research focuses on (1) sustainable construction materials, (2) digital transformation of civil infrastructure, and (3) smart materials for resilient structures. He has authored or co-authored over 120 journal articles that are indexed in the Web of Science, including eight ESI Highly Cited Papers and six ESI Hot Papers. Dr. Yu is serving as an Associate Editor for the journal Frontiers in Materials. Additionally, he has been included consecutively in the World's Top 2% Scientists list since 2022, published by Elsevier and developed by scientists from Stanford University, USA.

The following is an interview with Dr. Yang Yu:

1. Could you please briefly introduce the main content of the winning paper? 
This paper introduces a novel approach for predicting the torsional strength of reinforced concrete (RC) beams by combining the advantages of the genetic algorithm (GA) and neural networks, specifically using a BP neural network optimized with K-fold cross-validation. This method addresses the challenge of limited sample size in conventional prediction methods by leveraging machine learning to enhance prediction accuracy. The study employs various metrics such as RMSE, MAE, MSE, MAPE, and R² to evaluate the performance of the proposed model. A comparative analysis with existing empirical formulas from design codes demonstrates the enhanced prediction capability of the BP neural network after optimization with K-fold cross-validation and the GA, suggesting its potential for practical application in the optimal design of RC beams.

2. What is your current research and why did you choose this research field? 
My current research focuses on sustainable construction materials, an area I chose due to its critical importance in addressing environmental challenges and promoting sustainable development within the construction industry. As global awareness of environmental issues grows, the need for sustainable practices in all sectors, including construction, becomes increasingly paramount. This field offers the opportunity to innovate and develop materials that not only reduce the environmental footprint of construction projects but also enhance efficiency, durability, and cost-effectiveness. By exploring alternative materials, recycling waste products, and improving existing material sustainability, my research aims to contribute to building practices that are more in harmony with our environment. The potential for a significant positive impact on both the industry and the planet is what drives my passion and commitment to this area of study.

3. What appealed to you about our journal that made you want to submit your paper? What benefits do you think authors can gain when publishing their articles in Materials?
Publishing in Materials not only offers authors a broad and interdisciplinary platform to showcase their work but also significantly boosts the research’s visibility and impact through its inclusion in prestigious databases, such as Web of Science and Scopus. This can lead to higher citation rates, amplifying the influence of the research in the field. The journal's commitment to open access is a pivotal advantage, providing unrestricted global access to the research, which enhances its dissemination and engagement potential across the scientific community and beyond. Furthermore, the rigorous peer review process ensures the credibility and quality of the published work, affirming its contribution to the field of materials science. The journal's efficient publication timeline ensures that cutting-edge research is shared promptly, keeping pace with the rapid advancement in materials science. Moreover, exposure to a diverse audience fosters interdisciplinary collaboration and innovation, potentially leading to new research avenues and applications.

4. We are an open access journal. How do you think open access impacts the authors?
Open access significantly benefits authors by enhancing the visibility and accessibility of their research, ensuring wider dissemination across disciplines and beyond the academic community, which can lead to increased citations and a broader impact. It facilitates compliance with funding mandates that require open dissemination of research findings, fostering interdisciplinary collaborations and public engagement. While open access shifts publication costs to authors in the form of article processing charges (APCs), institutions and funders often cover these expenses, recognizing the value of open and accessible research. Thus, open access presents a compelling model for authors looking to maximize the reach and influence of their work in the scientific community and the broader public sphere.

MDPI will attend the 12th World Biomaterials Congress (WBC 2024) as an exhibitor. We invite researchers from different backgrounds to visit and share their latest ideas with us.

The WBC is a large-scale academic conference supported by the IUSBSE, a global association in the field of biomaterials. The 12th World Biomaterials Congress will attract more than 4,000 participants from all over the world. Participating experts can gather and share the latest information and knowledge in the diverse areas within biomaterials research.

The following MDPI journals will be represented at the conference:

• Bioengineering;
• International Journal of Molecular Sciences;
• Journal of Functional Biomaterials;
• Applied Biosciences;
• Journal of Cardiovascular Development and Disease;
• Materials;
• Current Issues in Molecular Biology;
• Cosmetics;
• Fibers;
• Metals.

If you are planning to attend the above conference, please do not hesitate to start an online conversation with us. Our delegates look forward to meeting you in person and answering any questions you may have. For more information about the conference, please visit the following website: https://www.wbc2024.com/.

We are pleased to announce that Materials (ISSN: 1996-1944) will grant the 2025 Travel Award to two junior scientists. Applications will be assessed by an Evaluation Committee of senior scholars from the Materials Editorial Board.

This award provides financial support for the winners to attend an international conference in the field of materials science and engineering to be held in 2025 to hold a presentation, present a poster, or both.

Candidate Requirements:

• Postdoctoral fellows or Ph.D. students;
• Plans to attend an international conference in 2025 (oral presentation or poster).

Required Application Documents:

• Information about the conference the applicant is planning to attend and the abstract that will be submitted;
• Curriculum vitae and list of publications;
• Justification letter describing the focus of the research (max. 800 words);
• Letter of recommendation from the supervisor, research director, or department head, which also confirms the applicant’s status as a postdoctoral fellow/Ph.D. student.

The winners (two awardees) will each be awarded CHF 800 and an electronic certificate.

Please submit your applications for the Materials 2025 Travel Award online by 30 October 2024. Prizes will be awarded at the end of December 2024 and announced on the Materials website.

Materials Editorial Office

The 2024 Spring Meeting of the European Materials Research Society (E-MRS) will be held from 27 to 31 May 2024, in Strasbourg, France. The conference is organized by the European Materials Research Society and Foundation Jean-Marie Lehn.

The conference will focus on the following:

• Vascular disorders;
• Decarbonized energy and sustainability;
• Materials for human well-being;
• Two-dimensional materials and surfaces: synthesis, characterization, and perspectives;
• Advanced characterization of materials;
• Materials sciences for cultural heritage;
• Electronics, magnetics, and photonics.

The following MDPI journals will be represented:

• Materials;
• Nanomaterials;
• Symmetry;
• C;
• Textiles;
• Coatings;
• Applied Nano;
• Polymers;
• Fibers;
• Construction Materials;
• CMD;
• Crystals.

If you are attending this conference, please feel free to start an online conversation with us. Our delegates look forward to meeting you in person at booth #27 and answering any questions that you may have. For more information about the conference, please visit the following link: https://www.european-mrs.com/meetings/2024-spring-meeting.

Conference: 8th National Congress of Magnetic Materials and Devices
Date: 12–14 April 2024
Location: Hangzhou, China 

MDPI will attend the 8th National Congress of Magnetic Materials and Devices as an exhibitor. We invite researchers from different backgrounds to visit and share their latest ideas with us. 

The 8th National Congress of Magnetic Materials and Devices aims to gather domestic scientific and technological workers and industrial units to discuss the focus, hot spots, frontiers, and key common scientific issues in the field, share the latest results, explore basic research ideas and priority development directions, and promote technological progress and industrialization. Collaborate, grasp scientific research and industry development trends, and promote industry–university–research cooperation and leapfrog development. 

The following MDPI journals will be represented:

• Magnetochemistry;
• Actuators;
• Crystals;
• Hardware;
• Magnetism;
• Materials;
• Technologies;
• Vehicles. 

If you are planning to attend this conference, please do not hesitate to start an online conversation with us. Our delegates look forward to meeting you in person and answering any questions you may have. For more information about the conference, please visit the following website: http://www.c-nmaterial.com.cn/index.php.

MDPI will be attending the 20th National Youth Congress on Catalysis (20NYCC), which will be held from 10 to 14 May 2024 in Dalian, China.

Since its initiation in 1987, the National Youth Congress on Catalysis has been held every two years, aiming to provide a platform for mutual learning and communication among young catalytic workers (under 45 years of age). The conference will focus on topics such as biocatalysis, organocatalysis, photocatalysis, and electrocatalysis, showcasing the latest progress and achievements in the basic and applied research of young Chinese catalytic workers in the fields of energy, chemical engineering, materials, and biology in recent years. It will also delve into the opportunities, challenges, and future innovative development directions of the Chinese catalytic field under the current unprecedented changes of the century, promote exchanges in cutting-edge catalysis science and technology and interdisciplinary integration, deepen communication and cooperation between industry, academia, and research, and comprehensively promote the development of catalysis science and technology in China.

The following MDPI journals will be represented at the conference:

• Catalysts;
• Molecules;
• AppliedChem;
• Crystals;
• Molbank;
• Materials;
• Reactions.