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Contents
1.Academic Background
2.research experience
3.studied course
4.scores
5.statement of purpose
1.Academic Background
09/2011~present
College of Materials Science and Engineering
Huazhong University of Science & Technology (HUST)
(http://www.hust.edu.cn/ ) Wuhan, China
B.Eng. Material Processing and Control Engineering
GPA: 3.6/4.0 (86.7/100)
HUST ranks at top 10 in China, and our major ranks at top 4
2.research experience
10/2012 – present
Research Assistant, Wuhan National Laboratory for Optoelectronics
at the Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China (http://web.archive.org/web/20210224212448/http://www.wnlo.cn/)
Advisor: Prof. TANG Jiang (http://115.156.150.43/tgroup/home/?r=site/index )
Project Ⅰ : Preparation, characterization and applied research of layered material
Literature Consultation: Reviewed the literature of Category A under SCI with an impact
factor >8, and was inspired by epitaxial growth to conduct experiment
Experiment operations:
Principle: epitaxial growth with lattice match
Characterization:
Scatter nono-sheets to the silicon wafer, view the pattern of nono-sheets with SEM to
search the possible mono-layer and to define the yield and size of nono-sheets
Use Raman spectra and PL fluorescence spectra to detect if there is fluorescence and
to test its thickness
Use transmission electron microscopy (TEM) to view the size of nono-sheets and
lattice orientation
Use atomic force microscope (AFM) to view the thickness of nono-sheets
XRD: use highscore2 and jade (data analysis software) to analyze the X-ray
diffraction (XRD) atlas, identify matters, define the lattice orientation of nono-sheets
and calculate the grain size
My contribution:
I was involved in the whole process of operation, characterization, data
processing and analysis of experiment, and used UG (3D modeling software) and Material
Studio to draw the scheme. In the manuscript, “X. Z helped H.S in many experiments”.
Journal to be submitted : Nature Communication, title ” Using lattice matched, water
soluble salts as general templates to synthesize metal chalcogenide nanosheets”,
I am the 4rd
author in this paper.
Project Ⅱ: Thin-film solar cells
Objective: prepare a new chalcogenide system inorganic thin film solar cell, Bi2S3/Sb2Se3
Procedures:
FTO + CdS (n-type semiconductor , chemical bath deposition-CBD 30nm SEM section
confirmation) + Bi2S3 (rapid thermal evaporation- RTE) +Au (gold electrode)
Used sophisticated technique of ITO+ Bi2S3 + Sb2Se3 + Au to prepare cells
Explored the effect of RTE technique (temperature of substrate, temperature of
evaporator source, and time of evaporation) on the quality of Bi2S3 thin-film
Completed the cells of the structure and got a high defect-free rate of up to 0.55%
Will use various methods to increase the efficiency, such as final annealing, increasing
anti-reflection layer, P-N layer interface processing, and processing ITO glass
My task:
Independent design, testing, characterization and analysis in the whole process,
under the guidance of professor Tang.
Paper :
I am now writing the paper, with temporary title” Nontoxic homogeneous
junction-like Bi2S3/Sb2Se3 thin film solar cells”
3.studied course
Technology of New Materials
Engineering Chemistry
Material Processing Engineering
rapid prototyping
3D printing
additive manufacturing(experiment course)
Semiconductor Physics (self-study)
Analysis Methods in Materials Science (self-study)
4.scores
GRE 152(v) 170(q)
TOEFL reading29 listening19 speaking17 writing20
5.statement of purpose
Research Interest
semiconductor solar cell and 3D Rapid Prototyping
Research Experience
I have a strong interest in conducting research. When I was enrolled in the major of material forming and control engineering at Huazhong University of Science and Technology (HUST), I had made up my mind to apply for PhD upon graduation. As a freshman, I began to understand the research topics of our teachers. In October 2013 when I was a sophomore, I was fortunate enough to meet Prof. Tang Jiang, who came to our school for a presentation. He had previously worked for IBM Thomas J. Watson Research Center, and just returned to China as the principal investigator of Wuhan National Laboratory for Optoelectronics (WNLO). He told us that he needed some undergraduate students to be research assistants in a research project. So I sent my CV to him to apply for this position. During the interview, all the applicants were asked to submit proposals and prepare for the oral defense. Thanks to my outstanding performance, I was allowed to join in WNLO, becoming the only one who was enrolled into the laboratory through public selection.
At the first three months of working in the laboratory, I mainly followed the PhD candidates to conduct research. During this period, I understood some operational skills that could be used in future research, such as glove box. Specifically, I was asked to help one PhD candidate to complete his graduation project titled “Preparation, characterization and applied research of layered material”.
During this process, my ability of reviewing literature has been improved greatly. Not only have I read the scientific papers recommended by Prof. Tang and my senior fellow student, I have also reviewed the relevant SCI papers with an impact factor of over 8 to fill my gap in background knowledge.
More importantly, my self-learning and hands-on operation abilities were enhanced through the research project. The senior fellow student, inspired by epitaxial growth, conducted experiment with salt template method. I was fortunate enough to be involved in the whole process of operation, characterization, data processing and analysis of the experiment, and used UG (a 3D modeling software) and Material Studio to draw the scheme, which has been included in the scientific paper of the senior fellow student. Although I had not learnt Material Studio in class, I learnt by doing and grasped the use of the software within a week. Later, I revised the scheme many times according to the needs. At present, the senior fellow student is finalizing the scientific paper with my input, and it had been submitted to the journal of Nature Communication. And I am 4th author in this paper, with” X. Z helped H.S in many experiments” .
Due to my excellent performance in the project, I was entrusted by Prof. Tang in April 2014 to independently undertake a project titled “the R&D of Bi2S3 thin-film solar cells”. By reviewing the literature, I found that Bi2S3 is a promising semiconductor material which, however, has received little attention in research. Hopefully Bi2S3 can be used in flexible, thin-film solar cells, and can be produced fast and cheap in a roll to roll process. It is obvious that the project has a great value in application.
This was the first time that I independently designed and conducted experiment in a laboratory. Firstly, according to the actual conditions of the lab’s instrument, I decided to use the plane structure. Then, I searched relevant literature to understand the property of Bi2S3, focusing on its application in thin-film solar cells.
Later, I bought Bi2S3 to conduct experiment. I came to realize that patience is a virtue in scientific research, as it costs time and energy to explore the process of making thin-film. Thermogravimetry (TG) data of Bi2S3 proves to be very important. Without it, we cannot understand its thermal properties, the separation in the evaporation process, and limit of the base temperature, and cannot ensure that Bi2S3 is used for evaporation. So I sent the sample of the raw material to the laboratory of Wuhan University to acquire TG data.
At present, I am still exploring how to improve the RTE film-making process to further increase the efficiency of solar cells. I plan to use various methods to achieve this objective, such as final annealing, increasing anti-reflection layer, P-N layer interface processing, and processing ITO glass. The research process is challenging yet interesting, and one can enjoy a sense of achievement when the problems have been solved and results have been obtained. That’s why I like conducting scientific research. I am more fond of scientific research when I began to carry out this small project independently. In the future, I hope I can go to USA to pursue further study and expand my horizon.
Career Plan
Upon graduation from the PhD program, I plan to be a post-doctor or work in a world-class laboratory or a corporate research institute to further study the material’s properties and their future industrial application. My objectives are to study one type of material or a method of micro-forming in five years, become a well-known expert or technician in the professional area in 10-15 years, and turn to be a principal investigator in a special program or even become a candidate of Nobel Prize winner in 30 years.
I hope my research findings can help promote the study of micro-materials and facilitate their industrial application. One example may be the study of thin-film solar cells made with semiconductor materials, and integration of 3D prototyping for rapid industrial forming so as to help address energy shortage problems in China and the whole world.
Motivation
When I was a senior middle school student, I was awarded the second prize for National Physics Competition and the first prize for Hubei Provincial Chemistry Competition due to my outstanding academic results. I was then admitted to Huazhong University of Science and Technology, majoring in material forming and control engineering. The core courses include: New Material Technology, Surface Engineering, Semiconductor Physics, Introduction to Nano-Material, and Material Forming Principle, etc. All these professional courses have helped me lay a solid foundation of theory.
HUST attaches great importance to raising our awareness on the cooperation between university, enterprises and research institutes, and has organized the students to visit some famous companies engaging in material forming in Wuhan. In the summer vacation of 2012, I visited Shiyan Dongfeng Automobile Manufacturing Co.,Ltd., having a better understanding about the production process of the plant. In the summer vacation of 2013, I visited some other companies including Wuhan Heavy Industry Casting & Forging Co.,Ltd., and Wuhan MECA Plastic Company, etc., and had the opportunity of integrating my knowledge with the corporate operation.
When I visited Wuhan Heavy Industry, I was astonished to learn that 100% of control systems are imported from foreign countries (Siemens)! All the finished products made in China must be used with the foreign operating systems. Otherwise, they cannot work at all! “ The CNC machine tools developed by HUST have been manufactured for over ten years. However, they still have a big gap compared with the competitors in Germany and other foreign countries,” said one of the presenters in the machine tool plant. For this reason, I made up my mind to pursue further study in USA, which boasts more advanced experimental equipment and leads the research in material forming and control engineering.
Additional Information
You may assume that I am just crazy about scientific research. You are totally wrong. In fact, I also like arts, including flute and painting (my painting works once won the first prize in a competition in Hubei Province), which bring me relaxation and enjoyment and benefit me a lot. In addition, I like sports very much, especially soccer and tennis (I obtained the highest score of 96 for the two sports in my class). In my spare time, I often go with my classmates to play soccer or tennis. I believe a man must be both physically and spiritually healthy. When I go to USA for further study, I will continue to actively participate in these extracurricular activities to enrich my life while making my due contribution to the local community.