Principal Investigator
Lili Cai
Assistant Professor of Mechanical Science and Engineering
Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering, Stanford University, 2016
M.S. in Mechanical Engineering, Stanford University, 2012
B.S. in Materials Science and Engineering, USTC, 2009
Email: lilicai@illinois.edu
Google Scholar, UIUC Profile, CV
Postdoctoral Scholars
Songtao Tang
Year Joined: Fall 2024
Graduate School: Peking University & Sun Yat-sen University
Graduate Major: Physical Chemistry
Email: songtat@illinois.edu
Graduate Students
Yoon Young Choi
Ph.D. Candidate, Mechanical Science and Engineering
Year Joined: Fall 2021
Undergrad School: Sungkyunkwan University
Undergrad Major: Materials Science and Engineering
Email: yychoi3@illinois.edu
Taewoo Kim
Ph.D. Candidate, Mechanical Science and Engineering
Year Joined: Fall 2022
Undergrad School: Yonsei University
Undergrad Major: Mechanical Engineering
Email: tk21@illinois.edu
Pranto Karua
Ph.D. Candidate, Mechanical Science and Engineering
Year Joined: Fall 2023
Undergrad School: Khulna University of Engineering & Technology (KUET)
Undergrad Major: Mechanical Engineering
Email: pkarua2@illinois.edu
Sadman Sakib
Ph.D. Student, Mechanical Science and Engineering
Year Joined: Spring 2024
Undergrad School: Ahsanullah University of Science and Technology (AUST)
Undergrad Major: Mechanical Engineering
Email: ssakib2@illinois.edu
Nuzhat Aqila Tushe
Ph.D. Student, Mechanical Science and Engineering
Year Joined: Fall 2024
Undergrad School: Military Institute of Science and Technology (MIST)
Undergrad Major: Mechanical Engineering
Email: ntushe2@illinois.edu
Beomhui Lee
Ph.D. Student, Mechanical Science and Engineering
Year Joined: Fall 2024
Undergrad School: Korea University
Undergrad Major: Mechanical Engineering
Email: beomhui2@illinois.edu
Undergraduate Students
Juan Reynoso
Degree Program: BS in Mechanical Engineering
Year Joined: Fall 2023
Urim Song Zhu
Degree Program: BS in Mechanical Engineering
Year Joined: Fall 2023
Aryan Arora
Degree Program: BS in Mechanical Engineering
Year Joined: Spring 2024
Venkata Krishna Teja Kolla
Degree Program: BS in Mechanical Engineering
Year Joined: Summer 2024
Elise Polizzi
Degree Program: BS in Electrical Engineering and Physics (UMass Amherst)
Year Joined: Summer 2024
Ammaar Jaleel
Degree Program: BS in Mechanical Engineering
Year Joined: Summer 2024
Alumni
Adrian Manjarrez
MS. Mechanical Science and Engineering
Year Graduated: August 2022
Kai Zhou
Ph.D. Mechanical Science and Engineering
Year Graduated: May 2025
Current Position: Huawei
Ho Kun Woo
Ph.D. Mechanical Science and Engineering
Year Graduated: May 2025
Current Position: Postdoc, Chemistry, University of Wisconsin-Madison
Junsang Park
MS. Mechanical Science and Engineering
Year Graduated: May 2025
Current Position: Ph.D. Student, Mechanical Science and Engineering
Diya Patel
MS. Mechanical Science and Engineering
Year Graduated: May 2025
Siddhi Surawar
MS. Mechanical Science and Engineering
Year Graduated: May 2025