Yang Yang named one of ‘World’s Most Influential Scientific Minds’

Jan 26, 2016

By UCLA Samueli Newsroom

Yang Yang, the Carol and Lawrence E. Tannas, Jr., Chair in Engineering and a professor of materials science and engineering at the UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science, has been cited by Thomson Reuters IP and Science as one of the “World’s Most Influential Scientific Minds.”

The distinction is based on an assessment of more than 120,000 research papers and citations published by thousands of researchers between 2003 and 2013.

In announcing the 19 most influential researchers, Thomson Reuters noted significant growth in the field of solar cells, one of Yang’s areas of focus, as well as in cancer genomics.

Yang also was one of 29 UCLA faculty members recently named to Thomson Reuters’ list of most cited researchers.

Yang’s work has led to the invention of the inverted organic solar cells, the invention of transparent organic photovoltaic devices and greater understanding of polymer morphology and its influence on device performance. Along with fellow researchers, his lab has helped set several world records for power conversion efficiency in solar devices. His recent research includes development of perovskite solar cells and photodetectors.

Thomson Reuters has previously recognized Yang as one of the world’s most highly cited researchers in chemistry and materials science. In 2015 he was named a fellow of the American Physical Society, the Materials Research Society, and the Royal Society of Chemistry.

Yang, who joined the UCLA faculty in 1997, has more than 60 patents and has published more than 290 peer-reviewed papers. He received his Ph.D. in physics and applied physics from the University of Massachusetts Lowell.

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