Nine University of Sydney researchers have secured over $10 million in Australian Research Council (ARC) Future Fellowships. 

The prestigious fellowship recognises the outstanding quality of researchers and their dedication to advancing knowledge and innovation in areas of national and international interest. 

“Congratulations to our researchers, whose commitment and academic rigour have been recognised by the Australian Research Council,” said Interim Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research) Professor Julie Cairney. 

“The award of these fellowships highlights the breadth and excellence of the University of Sydney’s research. 

“I’m incredibly proud that University of Sydney academics are making such an important contribution to the development of new knowledge and innovations that will translate into future benefit for our community.” 

The University of Sydney recipients of ARC Future Fellowships are:

• Dr Junning Chen* ($976,144): Developing a new approach for creating strong, durable interfacial structures by mimicking natural strategies.
• Dr Zengxia Pei, from the Faculty of Engineering and the University of Sydney Nano Institute ($975,544): Investigating energy-dense and durable zinc metal batteries for sustainable energy storage. This project will generate knowledge from multidisciplinary research and pave the way to a new generation of affordable energy storage technology supporting Australia’s commitment to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050.
• Dr Anusha Withana, from the Faculty of Engineering, the University of Sydney Nano Institute and the Charles Perkins Centre ($1,131,800): Developing a co-design and fabrication framework using computational and additive manufacturing methods. The outcomes will enhance the independence of individuals with disabilities.
• Dr Barbara Barbosa Neves, from the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences ($1,131,799): Investigating how artificial intelligence can equitably and safely be used in aged care to combat social isolation and loneliness.
• Associate Professor Pengyi Yang, from the Faculty of Science and the Charles Perkins Centre ($1,280,036): Harnessing cutting-edge deep learning and single-cell omics technologies to improve the accuracy and efficiency of cell programming, where one cell type is converted into another.
• Dr Tiangang Cui, from the Faculty of Science ($1,107,368): Seeking to advance theory and algorithms of measure transport, creating new sequential inverse problem solvers to update digital twins and reliable risk estimators to support decisions driving these systems.
• Associate Professor Maté Biro, from the Faculty of Engineering ($1,286,884): Mechanoimmunology: exploring whether swarming is a universal phenomenon among immune cell populations.
• Dr Shuying Wu, from the Faculty of Engineering, the Net Zero Institute and the University of Sydney Nano Institute ($1,111,800): Generating a new understanding of the interplay between molecule structure, composite composition, sensor design and their mechanical, sensing and degradation properties, and establishing a fundamental guideline for the development of soft transient sensors.
• Associate Professor Anne Thomas, from the Faculty of Science ($1,175,732): A new approach to Coxeter groups. This project aims to use a new synthesis of approaches to investigate fundamental properties of reflection groups.

*Dr Junning Chen is an overseas applicant (currently at the University of Exeter), and will be joining the University of Sydney's Faculty of Engineering to commence their fellowship.