MateriAlZ Seminar: Mingwei Chen

Abstract
Constructing bulk graphene materials with well-reserved 2D properties is essential for many device and engineering applications. In this seminar, the recent progress in fabrication and application of 3D graphene with designable microstructure, chemistry, and property will be discussed. Both template-based and template-free methods have been developed to synthesize the 3D continuously porous graphene, which typically has the microstructure reminiscent of pseudo-periodic minimal surfaces. The 3D graphene can well preserve the premier properties of graphene of being highly conductive, surface abundant, and mechanically robust, together with unique 2D electronic behaviors. Additionally, the bicontinuous porosity and large curvature offer new functionalities, such as rapid mass transport, ample open space, mechanical flexibility, and tunable electric/thermal conductivity. Particularly, the 3D curvature provides a new degree of freedom for tailoring the catalysis and transport properties of graphene. The 3D graphene with those extraordinary properties has shown great promises for a wide range of applications, especially for energy conversion and storage. D. Chen will briefly overview the recent advance made in addressing the challenges of developing 3D graphene, the benefit and opportunity of the new materials for energy-related applications, and the remaining challenges that warrant
future study.

Bio
Dr. Chen is professor of the Department of Materials Science and Engineering and fellow of Hopkins Extreme Materials Institute. He joined JHU in 2017 following his years as the professor and division director at Tohoku University, Japan. His research interests focus primarily on the structure and property of advanced materials, particularly energy materials, nonequilibrium and nanostructured materials. He is recognized internationally for his pioneering contributions in characterizing atomic structure and dynamics of metallic glasses, development of 3D nanoporous functional materials, and discovery of shock induced amorphization of armor ceramics. He has published nearly 500 peer-reviewed articles, received over 60,000 citations, and been identified as the highly cited researcher in materials science by Web of Science in 2014 and 2018-2022.