Recently, Researcher Zhouyue Lei from the College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering at Donghua University proposed a transparent ionic conductor polymer solution that balances high conductivity and high modulus as part of her work on solving the “Transparent Conducting Elastomer Materials” challenge initiated by Huawei's Terminal BG for hard technology problems. This solution, which holds considerable application value, earned her Huawei’s prestigious Spark Award. Remarkably, this marks the first time a faculty member from Donghua University has received this award.
Zhouyue Lei, who has focused on studying ionic polymer materials since her PhD, explained that ionic conducting materials have advantages over traditional electronic conducting materials in terms of transparency. Upon learning about Huawei’s call for research on “Transparent Conducting Elastomer Materials,” she sought to tackle the challenge by developing ionic conductor polymers that achieve transparency while maintaining high modulus. Despite ionic polymer materials’ typical limitations in conductivity, Lei addressed this issue by designing a nano-phase separation structure, enabling a material that is both transparent and conductive. This research may have extensive applications in the future, particularly in the fields of flexible electronic devices or biomedical engineering, such as transparent displays and health-monitoring patches.
“Exploring the frontiers of science and solving practical problems by investigating meaningful and interesting scientific questions” has been Lei’s guiding research philosophy. Speaking about her future research plans, she expressed her desire to seize greater opportunities for collaboration between universities and enterprises, focusing on challenging problems that pose significant bottlenecks in industries. She aims to achieve more groundbreaking and leading scientific results, contributing to building a technologically strong nation.
The Spark Award, inspired by the idea of spark collisions, was established by Huawei in November 2021. It aims to recognize and encourage university teachers and researchers who make significant contributions to solving industry challenges and advancing scientific theories.
