Announcements

We are pleased to announce the winner of the Nanomaterials 2022 Young Investigator Award—Dr. Aiping Chen.

Name: Dr. Aiping Chen

Affiliation: Center for Integrated Nanotechnologies, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, NM 87545, USA

Dr. Aiping Chen is a scientist at the Center for Integrated Nanotechnologies (CINT) at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), New Mexico, USA. The CINT is a user facility funded by the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Science, which serves national and international users. Dr. Chen received a B.Sc. in applied physics and an M.E. in physical electronics from Huazhong University of Science and Technology in 2007 and 2009, respectively. He then joined Texas A&M University in 2009 and completed his Ph.D. in electrical engineering in 2013. After his Ph.D., he continued to research functional thin films as a Director’s Postdoctoral Fellow at LANL. He became a CINT scientist in 2016. Since then, he has been leading efforts to synthesize and characterize thin film at CINT and working with CINT users on nanoscience research. His recent research focuses on thin film synthesis, emerging phenomena in quantum materials and electronic devices. He was awarded the LANL Early Career Award in 2017. He has published over 120 papers that have been cited more than 4600 times and has an h-index of 39 (Google Scholar). He actively participates in the activities of different societies. He serves as an Editorial Board Member for Scientific Reports and Nano Convergence. He has organized many symposiums and been invited to give many talks at different international conferences.

We would like to thank the award committee for their hard work in the difficult task of selecting a winner from such a large number of exceptional candidates. We also thank all the nominees from various fields for their participation. We will continue to reward young scientists with the Young Investigator Award, and wish them every success in their careers.

For more information about Nanomaterials awards, please refer to the following link: https://www.mdpi.com/journal/nanomaterials/awards.

The following is an interview with Dr. Aiping Chen:

1. Which research topics do you think will be of particular interest to the research community in the coming years?
For nanoscience and nanomaterials research, the following areas could attract increasing attention in the coming years:

• Development and integration of non-conventional nanomaterials for advanced computing and artificial intelligence;
• Synthesis and integration of novel materials for quantum information science;
• Functional nanomaterials for flexible electronics and low-power devices;
• Materials and devices for extreme conditions.

2. Have you had difficulties to overcome in your work? How did you approach those situations?
I studied in school for over 20 years, and I seemingly know a lot about science and technology, especially materials science. I thought this would prepare me to become a great scientist and overcome any challenges. Unfortunately, I realized later what I learned in school was mostly about things around me, from atoms to the universe, from math equations to physical models, but almost none of this related to me. I most likely can handle the relationship between myself and things (e.g., experiments), as this simple relationship can be solved by using logical reasoning and basic knowledge learned from school. However, the relationship between myself and others (e.g., students, mentors, collaborators, co-workers, managers, etc.) seems far more complex. I think the biggest challenge during my research is how to handle relationships (i.e., me and myself, me and others). Unfortunately, I haven’t overcome this challenge yet, and I am still learning. In my learning curve, I do find that knowing myself both physically and mentally is important to handle such dynamic and complex relationships correctly.

3. What qualities do you think young scientists need?
I believe being open-minded is an extremely important quality for young scientists. Humans are often self-centered because nature structured our consciousness in such a way. That is why I often find myself stuck inside of my own ideas, data and writing. On the one hand, I have to believe in myself (data, analysis, etc.) to write/publish a paper. On the other hand, believing in myself too much will stop me from learning. Therefore, open-mindedness will be the key to solving this dilemma and making new discoveries.
Passion is required for a person to be successful in any type of job. Passion is even more important for a scientist. This is because a scientist or teacher, like an entrepreneur in a start-up company, works long hours, and handles both small and big tasks, such as purchases and finance. Without a passion to research and educate, the only thing left will just be pain.
We have many deadlines to deliver the promised research. Patience can be the most challenging characteristic to have, especially for a young scientist. As young researchers, we are eager to establish and demonstrate ourselves, which can be further fueled by both internal and external pressure. Knowing myself and looking beyond myself can reduce my internal anxiety and make patience a part of this journey.

4. Can you briefly describe the key to a happy laboratory life?
Laboratory life can be extremely frustrating as there are so many realistic challenges, such as a funding shortage, co-worker conflicts, proposals/papers rejection, etc. From the point of view of psychology and philosophy, the key to a happy (laboratory) life is to have a happy mindset. Every day can be a happy (laboratory) day if you truly believe so. We need a bit of stoicism to defeat anxiety, fear, and uncertainty. Learning from ancient philosophers may quickly help to stabilize our mental health. 
Inner peace will be just the beginning. Setting up long-term goals or, in other words, finding the meaning of laboratory life is the secret of happiness. Luckily, I have had several excellent mentors in the past decade. I realized how important it is to have a good mentor. My first goal is to become an excellent mentor like my mentors did. In my institute, I have an opportunity to mentor a variety of students and postdocs from different cultures, countries, and research backgrounds. Accepting the differences between each individual and finding their strengths can really help them to achieve their personal best. Their career success really motivates me to move forward in my mentorship. 

5. As the winner of this award, is there anything else you would like to say or anyone you would like to thank?
I would like to thank my postdoc mentor, Prof. Quanxi Jia, from the University at Buffalo, the State University of New York, and institutional mentor Dr. Ho Nyung Lee from Oak Ridge National Laboratory for their continuous support of research. I learned a lot of things from them, not only about how to practice excellent science, but also about how to interact with or mentor others. These core values not only benefit me as a researcher, but also as a human being.

Please join us in congratulating Dr. Aiping Chen on his outstanding achievements.