Yangyang Liu

Yangyang was born and raised in a city called Weifang in the Shandong Province of China. While studying at Nankai from 2005 to 2009, she conducted research on polymers for biomedical applications. In 2009, she moved to the United States and started her PhD studies with Dr. Hongcai Zhou at Texas A&M University, where she learned how to make crystalline materials for gas storage and separations (renewable energy applications). In 2014, Yangyang obtained her PhD and moved to Northwestern University, working with Dr. Joseph Hupp and Dr. Omar Farha as a Postdoctoral Fellow, where she applied crystalline porous materials for catalysis related to defense purposes. In 2016, Yangyang became an Assistant Professor of Chemistry at Cal State LA and started her independent career. In 2021, she received early tenure and was promoted to Associate Professor. Her group is interested in exploring new/hybrid materials for solar cells, catalysis, water purification, gas storage, conductivity, carbon capture, and biomedical applications.