Chenxu Liu | Adhesion Control | Best Researcher Award

Dr. Chenxu Liu is a multidisciplinary researcher specializing in surface and interfacial science, tribology, soft robotics, and intelligent friction/adhesion control, currently serving as a Postdoctoral Fellow in Surface/Interface Science at the University of Alberta, Canada. He earned his Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from Tsinghua University, following an M.Sc. in Materials Science and Technology from the University of Science and Technology Beijing and a B.Sc. in Material Chemistry from Beijing Jiaotong University. Dr. Liu’s research integrates mechanics, materials science, chemistry, and engineering to uncover fundamental contact phenomena and develop next-generation interfaces for robotics, sensors, coatings, and smart material systems. His pioneering discoveries in contact interface design for soft robotics include the wet-to-dry hydrogel transition enabling ultra-high friction and adhesion, fingerprint-inspired hydrogel microstructures for enhanced tactile sensing, electric-field-controlled friction modulation in ionic gels, and the identification of transient ultra-low-friction states during lubricant evaporation. In multiphysics interfacial science, he developed AFM-based nano-mechanical systems, quantified velocity- and temperature-dependent graphite adhesion, clarified electric-field-mediated adsorption behavior, and formulated a chemical-potential-driven framework for friction-induced electrochemical reactions, enabling localized surface oxidation for advanced materials engineering. His work in surface modification and coatings includes reusable hydrogel optical coatings and cathodic plasma electrolysis for efficient deposition on complex geometries. Dr. Liu has published widely in high-impact journals such as Advanced Science, Nano Letters, ACS Nano, Applied Physics Letters, Friction, and Surface & Coatings Technology, with several cover-featured articles. His research has accumulated 428 citations across 317 documents, with 47 publications and an h-index of 12, reflecting his growing influence in tribology, materials science, and intelligent interface engineering.