The 2025 U.S. News & World Report Global Universities ranked nanoscience and nanotechnology as the top program at Drexel University, #6 in the US. Behind this ranking are some significant metrics of DNI’s publication impact: normalized citation impact was #1 in the world, the percentage of total publications that are among the 10% most cited was #1 in the world, and the percentage of highly cited papers that are among the top 1% most cited was #2 in the world.
With our impressive standings, it makes sense to harness our capabilities and grow from them.
Large-scale deployment of low-cost, low-carbon renewable electricity is likely the most important piece of a multifaceted plan for a sustainable, climate-friendly future. My research group at Drexel investigates renewable energy systems, with particular focus on processing-structure-property-performance relationships for solar energy materials and solar cells. Our expertise includes solution deposition of nanostructures and thin films, with emphasis on revealing how nanostructured architecture and composition impacted solar photovoltaics and solar water splitting. We have capabilities for ultrafast spectroscopy with sub-picosecond time resolution and spectral range from ultraviolet to terahertz frequencies. We apply these tools to quantify performance-limiting recombination in photovoltaic absorbers such as CdTe and to investigate fundamental optoelectronic phenomena in materials including perovskites and quantum dots. We have also engaged in sustainability modeling of renewable energy systems, with particular interest in applying life cycle assessment to supply chain and end-of-life considerations for photovoltaics and wind turbine blades.
The focus of the Brumberg Group is on controlling and understanding dynamic structural processes – such as phase transitions, self-assembly, and crystallization – in nanocrystalline and bulk inorganic materials. Although we often think of materials in terms of their static crystal structures, seeking to understand structure/property relationships, the reality is that structure is a dynamic feature of materials that changes as a material is synthesized, incorporated into a device, or exposed to the environment. In order to understand the fundamental photophysics of inorganic materials and meet the increasing energy demands of our society in a sustainable way, we need to understand how structures change over time and how those structural changes impact optical and electronic properties. Our goal is to establish control over optoelectronic and other physicochemical properties using a sca\olded approach via: (1) the study of carrier dynamics as a function of materials structure, especially as materials undergo post-synthetic structural modifications; and (2) the development and in situ characterization of stimuli-responsive materials. Students in the group combine inorganic synthesis, in situ characterization, and ultrafast spectroscopy to determine how structure impacts optoelectronic properties and uncover the mechanisms driving dynamic structural processes.
Professor Yong-Jie Hu leads the Materials Computation and Informatics Group (MCIG) in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at Drexel University. At MCIG, we develop and apply cutting-edge computational and data-science approaches to understand, design, and accelerate the synthesis and processing of advanced materials.
Our research integrates multiscale modeling, physics-based theory, and machine learning to uncover fundamental mechanisms that govern materials behavior while addressing challenges arising in real-world applications. Current eeorts focus on complex concentrated (high-entropy) alloys, magnesium alloys, low-dimensional nanomaterials, and novel oxynitride compounds, with an overarching goal of enabling sustainable materials solutions for energy and advanced manufacturing technologies
Professor Ji’s research interests focus on nanomaterials for energy and environmental applications, nanopillars and phosphorus-based nanomaterials for energy applications, surface chemistry, polymer chemistry, hydrogels, MEMS devices, etc. He is a co-author of more than 230 peer-viewed journal articles and book chapters. He has an H-index of more than 46.
https://sites.google.com/view/frankji/home
Christopher Li received his B.S. from the University of Science and Technology of China in 1995 and his Ph.D. in Polymer Science from the University of Akron in 1999. After completing postdoctoral training at the Maurice Morton Institute of Polymer Science, he joined Drexel University’s Department of Materials Science and Engineering in 2002 and became a full professor in 2011. His research focuses on structure–morphology– roperty relationships in complex soft and hybrid materials, particularly in ordered polymer systems, such as crystalline, liquidcrystalline, and block copolymers, for energy storage and biomedical applications. He is a Fellow of the American Physical Society and the North American Thermal Analysis Society and has received numerous awards, including the NSF CAREER Award and the Alexander von Humboldt Research Fellowship. He also serves on the editorial advisory boards of several journals, including Polymer and Giant.
Professor Pomerantseva’s research integrates materials chemistry and electrochemistry to address critical challenges in sustainable energy storage and water treatment. She leads the Material Electrochemistry Group, which designs nanostructured materials with precisely controlled crystal structures, compositions, and architectures to enable selective ion transport, rapid charge transfer, and long-term electrochemical stability. Her work has established fundamental structure–property relationships in electrochemically active nanoscale materials, advancing battery and capacitive deionization technologies as well as electrochromic and biomedical devices. By bridging molecular-level synthesis with device-level performance, her research provides design principles for electrochemically driven systems capable of selective ion removal, critical mineral recovery, and high-rate energy storage. These contributions support the development of scalable technologies for clean water and next-generation energy systems, positioning her work at the interface of fundamental materials discovery and real-world implementation.
Group Webpage: https://research.coe.drexel.edu/mse/electrochemistry/
The Sohlberg group in the Department of Chemistry at Drexel University brings quantum mechanics and mathematical modeling to bear on problems in materials chemistry. Of particular interest are systems at the micro/macro transition. Typically, these systems are characterized by length scales in the nanometer regime. With decreasing length scale, it is at the micro/macro transition where the discreteness of quantum states emerges, but the state density is so high that traditional methods of quantum chemistry are intractable. This challenge is met with mathematical modeling that leverages a statistical application of high-efficiency quantum-chemical methods. Systems of particular interest are molecular machines based on Mechanically Interlocked Macromolecular Architectures (MIMAs). Another feature of systems at the micro/macro transition is that macroscopic observables are often governed by competition between bulk and surface properties, which presents another challenge. These systems are too large to treat with fully atomistic models, but bulk continuum methods are inadequate because they neglect atomic and molecular effects at the surface. Success in their description is found in mathematical models that link the macroscopic physical observables to microscopic structure and properties. Systems of particular interest are complex oxides. The group also studies proton and electron transport in materials, using both classical kinetics and quantum dynamics.
Recent publications:
MIMAs:
Tina T. Dinh, Gloria Bazargan and Karl Sohlberg, “Proposed modification to a muscle-like acid-base switchable [2](2)rotaxane for improved force delivery,” Molecular Simulation, 50(1), 55-62 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1080/08927022.2023.2272635
nanoparticles:
Natalie M. Stuart and Karl Sohlberg*, Investigation of γ-Alumina Particle Size: The Role of Hydrogen Defects on Size Constraint, J. Phys. Chem. C, 128(21), 8803–8811 (2024) https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jpcc.4c01070
proton kinetics:
Benjamin Rosen and Karl Sohlberg*, “Kinetics of Hydrogen Transport Through Orthorhombic InVO4, a Theoretical Study,” Computational Materials Science, 245, 113333 (2024) https://doi.org/10.1016/j.commatsci.2024.113333
Quantum dynamics:
Karl Sohlberg, “Influence of a sequence of decoherence events on statistical measures of the time dependence of the flow of probability density relevant to constitutional isomerism by proton transfer,” Computational and Theoretical Chemistry, 1254, 115525 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.comptc.2025.115525
Masoud Soroush is the George B. Francis Chair Professor of Engineering, Professor of Chemical and Biological Engineering, and Affiliate Professor of Materials Science and Engineering at Drexel University. He directs the Future Layered nAnomaterials Knowledge and Engineering (FLAKE) Consortium, a multi-institutional initiative bringing together more than 90 researchers from Drexel University, the University of Pennsylvania, and Purdue University. His research focuses on advanced manufacturing, nanomaterials, membrane separations, polymer systems, and digital solutions, including artificial intelligence, digital twins, process systems engineering, and functional safety
The Tang Lab studies electrochemical systems using a variety of experimental and theoretical techniques. We emphasize fundamental mechanisms of thermodynamics, kinetics, and transport. Our applications include nonaqueous batteries and electrocatalysis. We recently developed a novel method, electrochemical fluorescence microscopy, to visualize electrical connectivity in composite electrodes. In addition to primary eYorts in electrochemical engineering, we have projects on detecting invasive insects and social-emotional learning in engineering education.
The Functional Inorganic Materials Synthesis Laboratory (FIMSL) focuses on the realization of inorganic and hybrid materials for energy and environmental applications. Major aims of the lab are informed syntheses of functional materials – with particular interest in photoactive mixed anion materials, oxides, and nitrides – using in situ X-ray scattering and microscopy techniques, characterization of novel material properties using a suite of chemical, optical, and structural measurements, and development of thin film deposition approaches for these materials.
Yue Zheng’s research focuses on architected and programmable materials that combine structural design with functional materials to enable new capabilities. Her group studies how geometric and mechanical nonlinearities, together with material interactions, can be harnessed to design systems with tunable and multifunctional properties. By integrating theory, computation, and experiments, the group explores fundamental mechanics and their integration with nanomaterials for flexible electronics,
wearable sensors, and adaptive devices.
https://research.coe.drexel.edu/mem/zhenglab/