Kun Wang, a doctoral candidate in the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences physics and astronomy department, received a Materials Research Society graduate student award for research he presented at the 2016 MRS fall meeting in Boston.
Wang is the first UGA student to receive the prestigious MRS research award. In all, 19 students received the silver award, which recognizes students whose academic achievements and materials research display a high level of excellence and distinction. Seven students received gold awards in the competition.
Wang won the award for his work on designing molecular-scale electronics, research that could pave the way toward smaller and more powerful electronic devices. Working with his faculty adviser, Binqian Xu, a professor in the College of Engineering, and a team of other researchers, Wang helped investigate the use of single DNA-based molecules as a replacement for conventional electronic diodes. The team’s research was published in the journal Nature Chemistry.