Mohammad Karbalaei Akbari is a PhD student in Bioscience Engineering in the Department of Green Chemistry, Ghent University and a teaching and research assistant at the Center for Environmental and Energy Research at the Ghent University Global Campus (GUGC). He studies and has practical R&D experience in the field of materials science and engineering. He was the recipient of several financial incentives and awards in the field of nanotechnology. His interests cover several fields in materials engineering, including two-dimensional semiconductor oxides, atomic layer deposition of semiconductor oxides, and photoelectronic and plasmonic devices. He is also the author and co-author of more than 45 journal papers and book chapters. Prof. Serge Zhuiykov is a senior full professor, faculty of Bioscience Engineering, in the Department of Applied Analytical & Physical Chemistry of the Ghent University Global Campus (GUGC). He is also the director of the Center for Environmental and Energy Research at GUGC.
As a scientist, he possesses both academic and industrial experience and has worked at various universities in Australia, Japan, South Korea and Europe, accompanied by 25 years of experience in an industrial environment. As an expert, Prof. Zhuiykov was the official head of the Australian delegation at the International Standards Organizations (ISO) TC-21/SC-8 Technical Committee during 2002-2015. He is also the recipient of the 2007, 2011 and 2013 Australian Academy of Science and 2010 Australian Government Endeavour Executive Awards for his work in advanced functional nanocrystals and their applications. He was also selected as distinguished expert of "100 Talents" program of Shanxi Province, P. R. China. His research interests include development of new advanced semiconductor nanocrystals, two-dimensional nanostructures and environmental sensors for various applications such as photovoltaics, electronics and environmental applications.
He is also the author and co-author of more than 200 scientific papers, monographs, 15 international patents, several book chapters and 3 individual books including Electrochemistry of Zirconia Gas Sensors, CRC Press 2007.