[Image above] The 5th International Conference on Smart Materials and Nanotechnology welcomed over 605 participants from around the world. Credit: SmartMat@2020
ACerS Thailand Chapter chair Rattikorn Yimnirun contributed the following report on SmartMat@2020.
The 5th International Conference on Smart Materials and Nanotechnology (SmartMat@2020) took place Dec. 1–4, 2020, at the Nongnooch Pattaya Garden & Resort in Thailand.
Twelve co-hosts and four sponsors supported the conference, which was attended by over 605 participants from around the world. Rattikorn Yimnirun, professor at Vidyasirimedhi Institute of Science and Technology (Wangchan, Thailand) and dean of the School of Energy Science and Engineering, chaired the conference committee. He also is chair of the ACerS Thailand Chapter, which served as the main host of the conference.
The conference was organized in a hybrid format to allow international participants to attend via an on-line platform and domestic participants to attend the conference on-site. The i-STEM team professionally managed both the on-line meeting via Zoom and the on-site meeting at Nongnooch Tradition Center.
In an email, Yimnirun says they originally planned to announce the establishment of ACerS Thailand Chapter at the Second Asia Pacific Ceramic Cooperation Summit (APCCS2) in early March. However, the Summit was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and so SmartMat@2020 became the first major event organized under ACerS Thailand Chapter.
Yimnirun says SmartMat@2020 made for a nice introduction of the ACerS Thailand Chapter to the larger ACerS community.
“Back in 2004, the SmartMat Conference series was initiated by some key people from ACerS, including Robert E Newnham, L. Eric Cross, and Kenji Uchino at The Pennsylvania State University, and Amar Bhalla at the University of Texas at San Antonio. The first four meetings of SmartMat welcomed even more ACerS Fellows. So, I am very happy to host SmartMat@2020 to honor these people to start ACerS Thailand Chapter on a high note,” he says.
After registration at Nongnooch Tradition Center, the welcome reception of SmartMat@2020 took place at Thai village. Participants at the welcome reception met old and new friends and exchanged ideas about recent smart materials and state-of-the-art technology.
On the second and third day of SmartMat@2020, the atmosphere was full of knowledge and academics. ACerS president Dana Goski and past-president Tatsuki Ohji welcomed delegates in recorded messages to the opening plenary session. There were three plenary speakers, seven keynote speakers, 20 invited speakers, and 16 international journals represented across the eight parallel sessions and four special seminars. A poster session featured 259 posters. Special academic round table seminars and committee meetings for ACerS Thailand Chapter and IEEE Magnetic Society Thailand Chapter also took place. Social activities gave participants the opportunity to gain new colleagues and to build academic strength in Thailand.
“We thank the i-STEM organizers for their great teamwork and hard work to make this great meeting happen,” Yimnirun says.
Participants’ feedback was positive and can be seen by checking the hashtag #SmartMat2020 #iSTEM #NongnoochGarden on Facebook.
We look forward to seeing everyone at SmartMat@2024 in Thailand!
