Many a little make a mickle——for micro-electronics expert Prof. Huang Xiaodong from the School of Electronic Science & Engineering

Publisher:吴婵Release time:2019-05-20Number of Views:310



In Nanjing in April, it is drizzling, and the sycamore trees are towering and full of vitality. Sipailou Campus is quiet and beautiful with green and new leaves competing for growth; a burst of breeze is refreshing. In MEMS key laboratory of the Ministry of Education of Southeast University, the author interviewed Prof. Huang Xiaodong, a post-80s microelectronics expert of our school.

When I met himfor the first time, Huang Xiaodong took the initiative to say hello to me and enthusiastically gave me a cup of warm water. During the interview, he was always smiling and listening carefully to my questions, and answered patiently and meticulously. His wonderful life impressed the author deeply for his humility, wisdom, responsibility and dedication to his academic pursuit.

As the backbone of young teachers in our school, Huang Xiaodong has long adhered to the front line of scientific research and teaching. From the research on “micro-nano electronic devices” to tackling “micro-energy”, he has devoted himself to academics. In the eyes of his students, Huang Xiaodong highlights profound knowledge but never feel arrogant, maintains meticulous scholarship but never hard-favored, is always loyal and dedicated to education, caring for every student in every possible way. In the eyes of colleagues, Huang Xiaodong is a commendable teacher in all aspects. He’s always tried his best to serve the collective and help others to interpret the school’s motto of “striving for perfection” with practical actions.

In 2001, Huang Xiaodong was admitted to the School of Electronic Science and Engineering of Southeast University. In 2005, he was admitted by Southeast University majoring in microelectronics and solid electronics majors with the top score. After his graduate studies, he joined Qimonda, the world's second largest DRAM chip company. At the beginning of 2009, Huang Xiaodong resolutely resigned from the comfortable work at a foreign company and applied to study for the doctorate degree in Hong Kong. In the meantime, he returned to his alma mater to “live” for a month and studied English. After finishing TOEFL, he worked at Nanjing Research Institute of ZTE for a short time under the recommendation of the headhunting company. In September 2009, Huang Xiaodong went to the University of Hong Kong for Ph.D. studies graduated in advance, as the only student who graduated in advance in his tutor’s education history for over 30 years. Then he worked as a postdoctoral researcher at Hong Kong University of Science and Technology.

In 2016, MEMS Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education of Southeast University aimed at the emerging field of “micro-energy” to improve the discipline layout and foster the growth of emerging inter-disciplines. Huang Xiaodong was granted the important responsibility and thus engaged in the critical technology research.

As introduced by Huang Xiaodong, the future micro-systems such as micro-robot and micro-aircraft can be as small as a rice grain, which can be used for national defense such as intelligence collection, implantable medical device and other civilian fields. But how to provide effective energy supply to such micro-systems is a huge challenge. The corresponding direction is known as “micro-energy”. There are few international studies on micro-energy. Compared with traditional macro-energy, the scale effect of micro-energy has resulted in many limitations in design, materials, structure and preparation technology, waiting for innovative solutions.

The new direction for Huang Xiaodong, who has achieved great success in the electronics field, means that everything will start from scratch because “micro-energy”, as an emerging interdisciplinary subject, involves many fields such as electrochemistry and materials, etc., the dead zone knowledge for him. In addition, he had to re-establish the research platforms by himself. Professor Huang Qing'an, Director of the laboratory, once said to Huang Xiaodong that those who are engaged in research should dare to break through their own comfort zone, which Huang Xiaodong kept in his mind and always used this sentence to encourage himself.

“A decade of grinding a sword”, Huang Xiaodong began to stand out and achieved a series of original results and won a sound academic reputation. Since 2016, Huang Xiaodong has been serving as a fellow of the Program Committee or Co-chairman of IEEE International Conference on Electronic Devices and Solid-State Circuits. In 2018, he was awarded Jiangsu Excellent Youth Fund and was selected in succession by the talent programs including “Jiangsu Innovative and Entrepreneurial Talent Program”, “Jiangsu Provincial Top 6 Talent Peak”, “Excellent Youth and Key Teacher of Jiangsu Cyanine Engineering” and youth academic leader, etc.. Only in 2018, he published four SCI papers in authoritative periodicals inthe field of “micro-energy”.