Logo: University of Southern California

Nanotechnologist Wins Early Career Chair


July 07, 2007 — Chongwu Zhou, a nanotechnology specialist who has attracted international attention for his work in creating nanowires and nanotubes, has been named the first holder of a new chair honoring highly accomplished young engineers.

Zhou’s appointment to the Jack Munushian Early Career Chair was announced by Viterbi School Dean Yannis Yortsos.  "The appointment recognizes Chongwu’s exceptional distinction and promise as a junior faculty member in his field," Yortsos said.  “Please join me in congratulating him on this well-deserved honor.”
Chongwu Zhou

Yortsos' announcement followed closely the publication of a paper in Nature Nanotechnology describing Zhou's laboratory's achievement in creating transparent transistors using laser-fabricated metal oxide nanowires. The technology has far-reaching potential in information processing and computer display technologies of the future.  

His other research concentrated on nanowire memory systems and a system to have carbon nanotubes self-assemble into regular lattices on sapphire bases.
 
Professor Zhou is currently associate editor for IEEE Transactions on Nanotechnology. He served as a symposium organizer of a number of conferences, including the 2005 American Physical Society (APS) March meeting, the 2005 IEEE Nanotechnology International Conference, and the 2004-2006 SPIE Optics East Conferences. He received an NSF CAREER Award and the NASA “Turning Goals Into Reality” (TGIR) award in 2002. He also received the USC Junior Research Award in 2004 and, in June 2007, he was honored with the first ever IEEE Nanotechnology Early Career Award.

Zhou holds joint appointments within the USC College departments of physics and chemistry.  He received his Ph.D. in 1999 from Yale University, and worked as a postdoctoral fellow at Stanford University from 1999 to 2000.  His research interests include synthesis of nanomaterials, nanoelectronics and bionanotechnology. He has published more than 70 scientific papers, including papers in Science and Nature.  His work has received numerous citations and has been reported in Scientific American, Physics Today, and the publications of the National Science Foundation.

The Munushian chair honors the memory of Jack Munushian (1923-2005), a scientist, educator and leader who played a key role in expanding USC engineering and turning it into a research powerhouse.  He is also credited with creating the television educational extension program which evolved into the Viterbi School’s world-renowned Distance Education Network.