Changning Niu, Ph.D.

Senior Materials Design Engineer and Team Lead

Education

Ph.D. Materials Science and Engineering, North Carolina State University, 2015

B.S. Materials Science and Engineering, University of Science and Technology Beijing, 2011

Current Role at QuesTek

Changning Niu specializes in ab-initio prediction of thermodynamic and kinetic properties with density functional theory (DFT) and Monte Carlo algorithms. He is responsible for predictive materials design by developing and using internal mechanistic models.

Background and Specialization

Before joining QuesTek in 2018, he worked as a postdoctoral research at Ohio State University, employing DFT to study strengthening mechanisms in alloys and developing Monte Carlo algorithm for phase prediction of multi-component alloys. During his Ph.D. he investigated phase stability and mechanical properties of multiple fcc high entropy alloys, and predicted spin-driven partial chemical ordering in the NiFeCrCo alloy using DFT calculations. His Ph.D. dissertation was titled “First-principles studies of NiFeCrCoMn high entropy alloys”.

Professional Associations

He is an active member in The Minerals, Metals and Materials Society (TMS).

Publications and Presentations

  • Niu, C., LaRosa, C. R., Miao, J., Mills, M. J. & Ghazisaeidi, M. “Magnetically-driven phase transformation strengthening in high entropy alloys”. Nat. Commun. 9, 1–9 (2018).
  • Niu, C., Windl, W. & Ghazisaeidi, M. “Multi-Cell Monte Carlo Relaxation method for predicting phase stability of alloys”. Scr. Mater. 132, 9–12 (2017).
  • Gao, M. C., Niu, C., Jiang, C. & Irving, D. L. “Chapter 10. Applications of special quasi-random structures to high-entropy alloys”. High-Entropy Alloys: Fundamentals and Applications, Springer (2016).
  • Niu, C., Zaddach, A. J., Koch, C. C. & Irving, D. L. “First principles exploration of near-equiatomic NiFeCrCo high entropy alloys”. J. Alloys Compd. 672, 510–520 (2016).
  • Niu, C. et al. “Spin-driven ordering of Cr in the equiatomic high entropy alloy NiFeCrCo”. Appl. Phys. Lett. 106, 161906 (2015).
  • Zaddach, A. J., Niu, C., Koch, C. C. & Irving, D. L. “Mechanical properties and stacking fault energies of NiFeCrCoMn high-entropy alloy”. JOM 65, 1780–1789 (2013).