Professor Xin Zhang Elected Fellow of the American Physical Society
By Liz Sheeley
Professor Xin Zhang (ME, ECE, BME, MSE) has been elected a Fellow of the American Physical Society (APS) in recognition of her research and educational initiatives using microelectromechanical systems and metamaterials to address a wide range of important problems in areas ranging from energy to healthcare to homeland security.
“I am honored to be elected to the Fellow of the APS,” says Zhang. “I have such respect for the important work that the APS does – and am especially pleased to be part of the industrial and applied physics community which helps the society take advantage of the evolving opportunities in the practice and application of physics.”
Zhang’s work in metamaterials has been able to influence a wide range of fields because of its adaptability. A metamaterial’s properties are derived from its shape, not its material, and by manipulating the shape, Zhang can develop new ways to manipulate non-visible waves and fields such as sound, magnetic fields, micro-waves, and infrared radiations.
Her papers have been cited over 10,000 times and she currently has an h-index, which is a measurement of the productivity and citation impact of a scholar, of 50—an outstanding score.
APS Fellows are recognized for their exceptional contributions to the physics enterprise in physics research, important applications of physics, leadership in or service to physics, or significant contributions to physics education. Each year, no more than one half of one percent of the society membership is elected to the status of Fellow.
This election to APS adds to her already long list of appointments. She is already a Fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the Optical Society of America and the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, and an Associate Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics.
In 2018, she received Boston University’s Innovator of the Year Award as well as the College of Enigneering’s Charles DeLisi Award and Distinguished Lecture.