EMSD Quarterly Newsletter – Q4 2024

Our division’s executive committee for the 2024-2025 term has started to serve the community since the division’s annual business meeting at the MS&T24 in October. You can find the information of the executive committee members on the division’s webpage:
https://ceramics.org/membership/divisions/energy-materials-and-systems/.

It is our great pleasure to provide service for our division members. To make our division members better informed of the divisional activities and opportunities for developing the division, the 2024-2025 executive committee decided to send you quarterly newsletters. We will provide brief updates on topical issues. Below, you will find information about the division’s development during October to December in 2024.

1. The executive committee holds monthly meetings

• The executive committee has held two meetings on November 11 and December 6. In particular, the meeting on December 6 involved a broader audience by additionally inviting our DE&I officer, Board of Directors liaison, PCSA delegates, and YPN division liaison to join the meeting. If you are interested in hearing what has been discussed at the meeting, you can get access to the video recording of the meeting via this link:  https://drive.google.com/file/d/1_Sx7D1gb6JZPoqSEhqJzTSfTZiKK_8Yp/view?usp=sharing. The topics discussed at the meeting is summarized in this newsletter.

• We plan to organize a larger, mid-term online meeting in spring 2025 by inviting the entire EMSD community to attend.

• The mid-term meeting will offer an opportunity to our division members to get involved in the discussion about issues concerning the members’ expectations on the division’s service.

• The mid-term meeting will be a supplementary platform to the annual business meeting that is held in person at MS&T.

• EMSD sponsors or co-sponsors multiple symposia at MS&T and ICACC. We are also seeking involvement in GOMD.

• At the MS&T25 to be held on September 28-October 1, 2025 in Columbus, Ohio, EMSD will sponsor two symposia: (1) Ceramic Materials for Nuclear Energy System and (2) Energy Materials for Sustainable Development.

• At the MS&T25, the symposium (2) will mainly focus on the topics of Thermoelectrics and Batteries. This is because the division intends to rotate the topics on different conferences that the division is involved in.

3. Call for nominations for the division awards

• EMSD confers the OSR (outstanding student researcher) award annually. The awardee is granted up to USD 1000 as a travel support to deliver an invited talk at one of the division’s symposia.

• EMSD supports students and early-career researchers (e.g., postdocs and new faculties) to attend conferences by providing up to USD 500 per person as a stipend. The division gives multiple stipends annually.

• EMSD confers the D. T. Rankin award to members who have provided outstanding service to the division. The awardee will give a plenary talk dedicated to the award at one of the division’s symposia.

• Please be encouraged to nominate your students, peers, colleagues, or yourself. You can find details on the division’s webpage.

4. Call for divisional activities

• EMSD supports the members to organize activities such as webinars and podcasts of which the topics are within the scope of the division.

• Please feel encouraged to contact us if you are willing to propose and organize such activities.

5. GGRN is the opportunity to get free membership with us!

• EMSD sponsors Ph.D. students to join the ACerS with waived membership fees in the first two years and for a half price in the following two years.

• Don’t hesitate to introduce this opportunity to your peers! Contact us for more information.

• If you would like to be nominated for the society fellow, please feel free to discuss with us and the division will be happy to nominate you if are deemed qualified after our internal evaluation.

7. Emerging affairs

• EMSD will be one of the divisions helping to establish the first ACerS Spring Meeting. The division is considering rotating the division’s annual business meeting between MS&T and the spring meeting (decision to be made separately based on attendance or survey results).

• As mentioned above, the topics of the division’s symposia will also rotate among the conferences the division is involved in, including the upcoming spring meeting.

• By rotating the annual business meeting and symposium topics, we hope more members will have a chance to participate in our symposia and interact with other division members.

8. Joining our new Program Committee is the chance to get elected to the executive committee!

• EMSD will establish a Program Committee dedicated to organizing the division’s symposia.

• The Program Committee is expected to significantly diversify the topics of the division’s symposia, as specific symposia will be defined and organized by the Program Committee members.

• The succeeding Program Committee Chair will be elected from the Program Committee annually. The Program Committee Chair will be promoted to the Secretary, the Vice-Chair, and eventually the Chair with a one-year term at each position, consecutively.

• The new Program Committee is open to all the division members. Join our Program Committee, organize symposia on topics of your own interests, and be elected to get the opportunity to steer the development of the division in the near future!

9. Tell us your story!

• Do you want your recent activities or research results within the scope of EMSD to be included in the division’s upcoming quarterly newsletters? Contact us and we will seek opportunities to highlight your story!