Rate My Professor Yaolin Xu

Yaolin Xu is a Tenure-Track Assistant Professor of Advanced Energy Materials in the Department of Applied Physics at Aalto University, leading the Energy Materials & Interfaces (EMI) group. He earned a B.Sc. in Physics from Renmin University of China, an M.Sc. in Sustainable Energy Technology from TU Delft, and a Ph.D. in Batteries from TU Delft in 2018. After his Ph.D., Xu held postdoctoral positions at Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin, Humboldt University of Berlin funded by a Humboldt Research Fellowship, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology supported by a DAAD-PRIME Fellowship. He joined Aalto University in late 2024, where he is building his laboratory and team to advance energy storage research.

Xu's research centers on batteries and electrocatalysis, with a focus on mechanistic insights into electrochemical energy materials and interfaces. He utilizes advanced characterization techniques including cryogenic electron microscopy, in-situ transmission electron microscopy, synchrotron X-ray and neutron-based spectroscopy for operando and ex situ analysis. His investigations cover battery ageing through electrochemical analytics and materials characterization, as well as state estimation and lifetime prediction with sophisticated models. Notable awards include the Energy Storage Materials Young Scientist Award in 2025 for contributions to energy storage, the ZEISS Young Research Award, and the Chinese Government Award for Outstanding Self-Financed Students Abroad. Key publications encompass "Degradation and Failure Mechanisms of Lithium/LiNi_xCo_yMn_1-x-yO₂ Batteries" (ACS Energy Letters, 2025), "Degradation mechanisms of LiNi_0.5Mn_0.3Co_0.2O₂/graphite battery in real-life driving scenarios" (Energy Storage Materials, 2025), "Nanosized Li₂S-Loaded Polar Porous Carbon Nanofibers as Self-Supporting Electrodes in Anode-Free Lithium–Sulfur Batteries" (Advanced Science, 2025), "Operando monitoring the lithium spatial distribution of lithium metal anodes" (Nature Communications, 2018), and "Honeycomb-like porous 3D nickel electrodeposition for stable Li and Na metal anodes" (Energy Storage Materials, 2018). Xu leads projects such as FAST: Fast-Charging Future Batteries (2026–2028) and PULSE: Prolonging Future Battery Lifetime with Pulse Charging (2025–2029), contributing to sustainable electrochemical energy technologies.