Xin Xu's lab, a diverse group of 10 people, stands outdoors in front of a modern building and tall cacti. Several people smile at the camera and make hand gestures.

Curious minds driving discovery.

People

Principal Investigator

Xin Xu

Xin Xu

Assistant Professor

Engineering, The Polytechnic School

Xu is an assistant professor in The Polytechnic School. His research at ASU aims to advance material understanding and design for next geneartion energy technologies.

Graduate Students

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Cauê de Souza Coutinho Nogueira

Ph.D. Student (Lab Manager)

Materials Science and Engineering

Cauê joined the group as a Ph.D. student in Fall 2024. He completed his Master’s in Physics at Federal Fluminense University in Brazil, where he specialized in the synthesis and characterization of nanomaterials.

Qiwen

Qiwen Chen

Ph.D. Student (Safety Officer)

Materials Science and Engineering

Qiwen joined the group as a Ph.D. student in Spring 2026. She completed her bachelor’s degree in Materials Science and Engineering at Shanghai Jiao Tong University

Isabella Wu

Isabella Wu

Ph.D. Student

Clean Energy Systems

Isabella joined as a Ph.D. student in Fall 2026. She earned a BEng from Imperial College London and interned in battery research. Her work focuses on plasma-assisted electrochemistry and conversion-type battery materials.

Undergraduate Students

Giancarlo Cortes Bugarini

Giancarlo Cortes Bugarini

FURI Undergraduate Fellow

Material Science and Engineering

Giancarlo joined the group in Summer 2026. He is a senior in Materials Science and Engineering at ASU. His research interests include nanomaterials and battery technologies.

 Muhammad Ahmad

Muhammad Ahmad

Junior (Mechanical Engineering)

Barrett, The Honors College

Muhammad Ahmad is a junior in Mechanical Engineering at ASU and a Barrett Honors student. He is also on the Sun Devil Motorsports chassis team and works on roll-to-roll manufacturing for battery materials.

Lia Ryan

Lia Ryan

FURI Undergraduate Fellow

Barrett, The Honors College

Lia joined the group in Spring 2025. She is currently a junior seeking her bachelor’s degree in Engineering(Robotics) and is part of Barrett, The Honors College.

Matthew Sample

Matthew Sample

FURI Undergraduate Fellow

Manufacturing Engineering

Matthew joined the group in Fall 2025. He is currently a junior studying Manufacturing Engineering at ASU. Matthew enjoys problem solving, working with his hands, and finding ways to improve products and processes.

Ty Zurcher

Ty Zurcher

FURI Undergraduate Fellow

Mechanical Systems Engineering

Ty joined the group in Fall 2025. He is an undergraduate majoring in Mechanical Systems Engineering. He has a passion for iteration, design, and assembly, and has prior experience designing and manufacturing competition robot

 Keegan Erdmann

Keegan Erdmann

FURI Undergraduate Fellow

Barrett, The Honors College

Keegan joined the group in Fall 2024. He is currently a sophomore in Mechanical Systems Engineering at ASU.

Brendan Sourwine

Brendan Sourwine

FURI Undergraduate Fellow

Barrett, The Honors College

Brendan joined the group in Fall 2024. He is currently seeking his bachelor degree in Mechanical Engineering Systems and is a part of Barrett, The Honors College. He enjoys 3D printing using CAD.

High School Students

Ethan Cho

Ethan Cho

Junior (high school)

BASIS Scottsdale

Ethan joined the group in Summer 2026. He is a junior at BASIS Scottsdale and won a gold medal at the 2026 International Chemistry Olympiad. He is interested in materials science and AI for chemistry research.

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Sarah Adamsha

Junior (high school)

Mountain Ridge High School

Yishan Gao

Yishan Gao

High School Junior

Seton Catholic Preparatory

Catholic Preparatory who joined the group in Spring 2025. She has been an active member of her school’s Robotics Club since her freshman year, and the team have just made State for the 2025 FIRST Robotics Competition.

Group Photos

2026 Spring in ISTB12, Poly Campus, ASU
2026 Spring in ISTB12, Poly Campus, ASU

Alumni

Xukun Ma, graduate student (2026)

Victória Almeida, visiting student (2026)