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Thank you for considering me as candidate for the Chair-Elect of the Materials SIG. I am excited about the opportunity to serve our the crystallographic community in this role. I am an Assistant Professor of Materials Science and Engineering at the University of Florida, where my group focuses on understanding and controlling the relationships between composition, processing, atomic structure, and functional properties — as well as how these evolve during dynamic processes. Our work spans materials for energy storage, information storage, and computing, with an emphasis on the structural complexity and disorder that underpin their performance. My path to this field began with my Ph.D. in Materials at the University of California, Santa Barbara, where I studied the atomic structure and mesoscale origins of high-energy Li-ion battery electrodes, followed by a National Research Council postdoctoral fellowship at the National Institute of Standards and Technology. Most recently, my group’s work was recognized with an NSF CAREER Award. I have been fortunate to engage with the ACA community as a speaker, and I deeply value the role this organization plays in advancing science and building connections across disciplines. Beyond ACA, I have served as the Early Career Representative for the Chemistry Division’s Executive Committee of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), organized symposia for the American Ceramic Society, served on the Executive User Committee for the Advanced Photon Source, and contributed as a member of the Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Lightsource Proposal Review Panel. These experiences have strengthened my commitment to building collaborative networks and creating environments where scientists at all career stages can thrive.If elected, my priorities will center on continuing to grow the SIG as a welcoming and dynamic space for scientific exchange. I aim to build stronger mechanisms for dialogue between those developing cutting-edge crystallographic tools — including approaches grounded in data science and machine learning — and those applying these tools to pressing fundamental and applied questions. These conversations are essential for accelerating discovery and ensuring that advances in methods translate into impactful science. I am also committed to facilitating lively discussions and deeper relationship-building across the SIG community, with a particular focus on growing membership and engagement. I think the current community could especially benefit from continued recruitment of researchers early in their career and from adjacent fields who may not yet feel part of the crystallographic community. It would be a privilege to serve this community in a leadership role, and I look forward to the possibility of contributing to its continued growth and impact.
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Tianyi Li is a Beamline Scientist at the Advanced Photon Source, Argonne National Laboratory. He received his Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from Purdue University, an M.S. in Environmental Engineering from Oregon State University, and a B.S. from the University of Science and Technology Beijing. His research focuses on developing and applying synchrotron-based operando X-ray techniques to probe structural evolution and reaction heterogeneities in energy storage materials. His recent work emphasizes quantitative analysis of fast-charging behavior and degradation mechanisms in lithium-ion batteries to advance high-performance and durable electrochemical systems.
As Chair of the ACA SIG, my goal is to broaden our community’s representation and participation at the ACA annual meeting, with a special focus on engaging members from underrepresented institutions and backgrounds. I will actively collaborate with other SIGs to organize workshops and outreach activities that attract, educate, and inspire new members to join and contribute to our dynamic and diverse field.
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