Faculty News gained an appreciation for multidisciplinary research, particularly at the intersection of organic chemistry, materials, and medicine. In 2012, Dr. Chu moved to southern California to pursue her doctorate in chemistry at the California Institute of Technology. She studied novel reactivity and selectivity in transition metal-catalyzed reactions, including cross couplings, oxidations, and olefin metathesis, and earned her Ph.D. in 2017 with Nobel Laureate, Professor Robert H. Grubbs. Before joining Lehigh as an Assistant Professor of Chemistry, Dr. Chu was an NIH NRSA postdoctoral fellow with Professor Robert Langer and Professor Daniel Anderson in the Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Her postdoctoral research focused on structure-property relationships that enable the molecular design of biomaterials, including bioinspired fibers and glucose-responsive hydrogels for drug delivery. Dr. Chu’s research interests lie at the intersection of chemistry, engineering, and materials science. The overarching goal of her research group at Lehigh is to decipher molecular mechanisms to tune the mechanical properties and functions of soft materials synthesized for biomedical applications. Hannah Cronk Joining Lehigh University in January, 2020, (and quickly adapting her course design to provide virtual instruction during the early days of the COVID-19 transition to remote learning) Visiting Professor Hannah L. Cronk obtained her Ph.D. in Materials Chemistry from the Department of Chemistry at Binghamton University SUNY where her research was in alloy nanoparticle synthesis. Before joining Lehigh University, she taught at a range of institutes where she focused on general chemistry education. Hannah found that many students fear failing chemistry but do not know how to succeed--so she shifted her teaching style to include study tips, memorization tricks, and test anxiety resources. She also enjoys STEAM community outreach, sewing, needle felting, and reading. Hannah is enjoying being a part of the Department of Chemistry. Fac lty Ne s ult w WELCOME NEW FACULTY Dr. Crystal Chu attended the University of California, Berkeley, where she earned a B.S. in Chemistry. At Berkeley, she performed undergraduate research in organic materials and Crystal Chu ANNOUNCING THE PROMOTION AND TENURE OF DR. XIAOJI XU Dr. Xiaoji Xu has been promoted to the rank of Associate Professor and granted tenure effective October, 2020. He came to Lehigh University in the Fall of 2014 as an Assistant Professor from a Postdoctoral Research Associate position under Gilbert C. Walker at the University of Toronto where his research focused on the study of biological and condensed phase matter material with near-field and farfield techniques. He received his BSc in Analytical Chemistry from Peking University and his PhD in Physical Chemistry from the University of British Columbia in 2009, studying ultrafast spectroscopy, nonlinear optics, and photonics under John W. Hepburn. His research at Lehigh University has been focused on the organization and interaction of molecules, materials, and structures with spatial heterogeneity, particularly in regard to nanoscale characterizations of polymers, aerosols, polaritonic materials, and biological samples. In response to challenges of optical microscopy and the diffraction limit of light (nano-materials often have features smaller than the diffraction limit that is not resolvable by traditional optical microscopy) Xu's lab has developed two types of super-resolution infrared microscopies that combine atomic force microscopy with laser radiations: 1.) Peak force infrared (PFIR) microscopy and multipulse PFIR microscopy in both air phase and liquid phase, and 2.) Scattering-type scanning near-field optical microscopy (sSNOM)--and more specifically, Peak force scattering-type near-field optical microscopy (PF-SNOM) that can collect 3D near-field response cube. In addition, they have also developed and refined other modalities of atomic force microscopy through instrumentation. For example, the Pulsed force Kelvin probe force microscopy (PF-KPFM) to map the surface potentials with < 10 nm spatial resolution under ambient conditions. His lab's focus is on materials that may be nanoscale heterogeneous, such as block copolymers, blends, protein aggregates, polaritonic nanostructures, oil shale, urban aerosols, cellular structures, and photovoltaics. Xu has been named a 2018 Beckman Young Investigator, a 2020 Sloan Research Fellow and (as spotlighted on Page 6 of this newsletter) a 2021 Camille Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar! Page 14 · Lehigh University
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