2nd Century Trailblazers
Journal of the American Ceramic Society
A competition for the best young researchers
The Journal of the American Ceramic Society has published the most important fundamental research in ceramic and glass sciences for more than 100 years. As we continue into the next 100 years, we are steadfastly committed to bringing to light the impactful work of researchers, both established and emerging.
The inaugural JACerS 2nd Century Trailblazers special issue is now published. This issue recognizes the accomplishments and promise of 43 of the best ceramics and glass researchers in the early stages of their careers. Please go to the special issue page to view the outstanding work they are doing.
Outstanding Participation, Outstanding Results
More than 70 researchers were nominated for this initiative, with 51 submitting their research and perspective articles for consideration. Of these, 43 articles were accepted and are published in the 2nd Century Trailblazers Special Issue.
Mauro says, “We should be very proud of the outstanding collection of papers we’ve received as part of the 2nd Century Trailblazers competition. I think this initiative has been a huge success. The finalist papers are all outstanding. I’m sure this will be a landmark issue for the Journal.”
The inaugural 2nd Century Trailblazer is Xufei Fang. Fang is an Athene Young Investigator at the Technical University of Darmstadt and group leader of the new Hydrogen Micromechanics group in the Institute for Applied Materials–Mechanics of Materials and Interfaces at Karlsruhe Institute of Technology. His open-access article “Mechanical tailoring of dislocations in ceramics at room temperature: A perspective” describes work performed at TU Darmstadt.
Fang presented his work during the Journal of the American Ceramic Society Awards Symposium at ACerS Annual Meeting at MS&T, held Oct. 1–4, 2023, in Columbus, Ohio. You can view his presentation here.
Below are the finalists from this year’s inaugural 2nd Century Trailblazers competition and the titles of their articles. These are all "Editor's Choice" articles in recognition.
- Linfeng Ding, Nanoindentation-induced evolution of atomic-level properties in silicate glass
- Yuye Zhao, Improved densification in cold sintering of gadolinia-doped ceria with reactive sintering aids
- Lei Su, Engineering the mechanical properties of resilient ceramic aerogels
- Zhenzhen Fu, Mechanical properties of three-dimensional trilayer Li-garnet electrolyte for high-rate cycling in solid-state battery
- Guoxing Chen, Perspectives on achievements and challenges of oxygen transport dual-functional membrane reactors
- Lisa Rueschhoff, Future directions in ceramic additive manufacturing: Fiber reinforcements and artificial intelligence
- Keisuke Yazawa, Polarity effects on wake-up behavior of Al0.94B0.06N ferroelectrics
- Collin Wilkinson, Glass and a carbon-free United States: What is glass’s role in the upcoming green revolution?
- Carlos Rios Ocampo, Glassy–crystalline spatial and temporal distributions in chalcogenide phase change materials for optical modulation
- James Kemp, Size effects in 3D-printed polymer-derived ultrahigh-temperature ceramic composites
Candidate Qualifications
- Any active researcher (academic, government lab, industry, etc.) who is within 10 years of receiving their Ph.D
Candidates who experienced career interruptions may also be considered - Active in the science of ceramic and glass materials and composites based on ceramics and glasses
Topics include discovery, characterization, and analysis of new inorganic, nonmetallic materials; synthesis methods; phase relationships; processing approaches; microstructure–property relationships; and functionalities. - Of great interest are works that support understanding founded on fundamental principles using experimental, theoretical, or computational methods or combinations of those approaches.
ACerS statement on diversity and inclusion
The American Ceramic Society values and seeks diverse and inclusive participation within the field of ceramic science and engineering. ACerS strives to promote involvement and access to leadership opportunity regardless of race, ethnicity, gender, religion, age, sexual orientation, nationality, disability, appearance, geographic location, career path, or academic level.