Junhao Cheng

Lab researchNear the bench

Storing more charge without the swelling

Prof. Yue Zhou’s research group, The University of Texas at Dallas · Summer 2026

Eight projects between the bench and the market

Bench experiments, devices, measurementsMarket prices, sourcing, portfolios

  1. Acoustofluidic devicesDuke · 2025–26
  2. Respiratory diagnosticsSEFH · 2025–26
  3. Dual-ion batteriesUT Dallas · 2026
  4. Waste-to-hydrogenSEFH · 2023–24
  5. Host-city modelHiMCM · 2025
  6. Battery price covarianceIndependent · 2026–
  7. Anode sourcingCATL · internship
  8. Asgard Assets portfolioWharton · 2025–26

In a graphite electrode, storing more charge also means more expansion, and that trade-off decides how much of a battery’s capacity it can actually use. The group studies how the electrolyte’s solvation environment shifts it in dual-ion batteries with graphite cathodes.

I joined for the summer of 2026.

The group’s project

  • A study of how electrolyte solvation shapes the capacity–expansion trade-off in graphite-cathode dual-ion batteries, with data from more than 40 battery-system combinations.
  • The group’s finding: second-stage capacity comparable to the first stage, with less expansion.

What I did

  • Assembled about 35 cells in a glovebox and ran their electrochemical tests.
  • Helped plan which battery-system combinations to run.
  • Recorded voltage-dependent in situ ATR-FTIR measurements.
  • Analyzed FTIR and Raman spectra, and tracked down errors in the spectral calculations in OMNIC.
  • Contributed to drafting the group’s manuscript.