School Notes: School of Engineering & Applied Science
September/October 2023

Professor elected to National Academy of Sciences

Michel Devoret, the F. W. Beinecke Professor of Applied Physics and Physics, was elected to the prestigious National Academy of Sciences in recognition of his distinguished and continuing achievements in original research. Devoret has conducted seminal research on qubits, the “artificial atoms” at the heart of quantum information science. Along with Yale colleagues including Robert Schoelkopf and Steven Girvin, Devoret has done pioneering work in the field of superconducting qubits with controllable dynamics. He is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the French Academy of Sciences. He is also the recipient of the Micius Quantum Prize, the Ampere Prize of the French Academy of Science, and the Descartes-Huygens Prize of the Royal Academy of Science of the Netherlands.

Expanding the potential of radical polymerization

A technique known as radical polymerization has proven to be an important method for the industrial production of plastics, rubbers, and adhesives. Now a team of researchers led by Mingjiang Zhong, assistant professor of chemical and environmental engineering and chemistry, has developed a new method that significantly expands the scope of radical polymerization’s applications. The research team designed a novel catalytic system that allows the properties of polymers to be synthesized from the same type of monomer. The results of the work are published in Nature Synthesis. Next, the researchers plan to optimize the catalyst so that the method can be used to synthesize novel polymers used in energy devices and tissue engineering.

Professor wins Ackerman Award

For his patience, empathy, and ability to make difficult topics accessible, Amir Haji-Akbari, assistant professor of chemical and environmental engineering, is the winner of this year’s Ackerman Award for Teaching and Mentoring. His dedication to his students is one of the many reasons Haji-Akbari has been selected to receive the award. Made possible by a generous gift from SEAS alum Robert W. Ackerman ’60, this annual award—which includes a $5,000 cash prize—recognizes outstanding teaching and mentoring as evidenced by the faculty member’s impact on students.