Selected Publications

Professor Nan Yao is the founding director of Princeton University’s Imaging and Analysis Center (IAC) and an Inaugural Professor of the Practice. He is internationally recognized for transformative contributions to materials science, advanced microscopy, and interdisciplinary education. Over more than three decades, Yao has advanced the frontiers of science and engineering through groundbreaking research, global outreach, and the mentoring of students, researchers, and professionals across disciplines.

As a research scholar, Yao is internationally recognized for his co-discovery of the first natural quasicrystal. This once-in-a-generation breakthrough resolved a longstanding scientific debate in solid-state physics. Building on Dan Shechtman’s 1982 discovery of synthetic quasicrystals (Nobel Prize in Chemistry, 2011), which challenged centuries-old definitions of crystallinity, Yao helped determine whether such structures could also form in nature. Beginning in the late 1990s, he joined theoretical physicist P. J. Steinhardt and crystallographer P. J. Lu in launching a sustained, interdisciplinary search. When mineralogist L. Bindi identified a promising grain from the Khatyrka meteorite in 2007, it was Yao who provided the decisive electron microscopy evidence, confirming icosahedral symmetry, establishing the structure and stability of the phase, and proving that quasicrystals can form under cosmic conditions. Published in Science (2009) and cited in the 2011 Nobel Prize in Chemistry press release, the discovery confirmed a third solid form, beyond crystalline and amorphous, and fundamentally redefined the classification of minerals. As the electron microscopist and materials scientist on the team, Yao’s contribution was not only essential but foundational, transforming a theoretical possibility into verified natural evidence. In 2015, his microscopy again proved pivotal in identifying a second natural quasicrystal with decagonal symmetry (Scientific Reports, 2015), also from the Khatyrka meteorite. Together, these discoveries opened new frontiers for studying alloy formation under extreme conditions and revealed materials dating back 4.5 billion years, offering rare insight into the early solar system.

Yao’s other landmark contributions include the first images of electron orbital signatures within individual atoms (2023), the development of the first 300 keV environmental-cell transmission electron microscope (1991), and a theoretical explanation for the superior resolution of helium-ion microscopy over SEM (2008). His interdisciplinary research also pushed back the origin of animals by ~100 million years through the discovery of a 650-million-year-old sponge-like fossil (2010), and identified the earliest known use of diamond, dating back to 4000 BC (2005). He coauthored the opening paper of Nano Letters’ inaugural issue (2001), underscoring his broad impact on nanomaterials research.

Yao’s research integrates advanced imaging, diffraction, spectroscopy, and in-situ techniques with computational modeling to explore structure–composition–processing–property relationships in complex materials for applications in nanotechnology, energy, environment, and health. He has authored two seminal books in multiple languages (Handbook of Microscopy for Nanotechnology and Focused Ion Beam System: Basics and Applications), 18 book chapters, and over 330 peer-reviewed publications in leading journals, including Science, Nature, and Physical Review Letters.

A dedicated educator and mentor, Yao has taught over 5,000 students, postdoctoral researchers, and faculty members at Princeton. He is a thirteen-time recipient of the Princeton Teaching Awards, including the Excellence in Teaching Award and the Commendation for Outstanding Teaching. In 2024, Princeton President Christopher Eisgruber praised Yao’s “extraordinary and unusual record of sustained excellence, even by Princeton’s high standards,” in recognition of his three decades of contributions to the university. Yao designed and leads Princeton’s materials characterization curriculum, establishing an outreach program of free workshops and short courses that has trained thousands of students worldwide and over 800 industrial scientists from more than 140 companies. He also taught the first generation of electron microscopists in several African countries, significantly expanding global scientific capacity. His students have won prestigious honors, including the Rhodes Scholarship, Fulbright Scholarship, Hertz Fellowship, NSF Graduate Research Fellowship, and MSA and MRS Student Awards.

Bridging academia and industry, Yao has collaborated with companies including ExxonMobil, DuPont, GE, Merck, Colgate-Palmolive, Eli Lilly, Johnson & Johnson, and Bristol-Myers Squibb. He established Princeton’s first industrial seminar series. He founded the Princeton–Nature Conference Series (2018, 2022, 2024), entitled “Frontiers in Electron Microscopy for the Physical and Life Sciences”, which brings together global leaders to explore emerging microscopy technologies.

Yao’s collaborative spirit has made him a central figure in interdisciplinary research at Princeton, where he has coauthored publications with more than 60 research groups. Under his leadership, the IAC has become a world-class research hub, praised by the NSF-MRSEC as “among the best in the world for advanced imaging and analysis of materials”.

A Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the Royal Microscopical Society (RMS), and the Microscopy Society of America (MSA), Yao continues to shape the future of materials research and microscopy through his visionary scientific leadership and a deep commitment to education and mentorship.

Princeton University Princeton, New Jersey Zip: 08544 United States of America

Imaging and Analysis Center Andlinger Center, Room 033 86 Olden Street Phone: 609-258-6394 Email: nyao@princeton.edu

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