Coming full circle: Hoffmann named I-MRSEC director

Founder Professor Axel Hoffmann of the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at The Grainger College of Engineering would tell you he experienced a full-circle moment in 2025. Professor Harley Johnson, along with Department Head Nancy Sottos and Professor Paul Braun, had approached him about taking over as director of the Illinois Materials Research Science and Engineering Center (I-MRSEC).

"I-MRSEC is a big part of the story of why I'm in this department in the first place," said Hoffmann. "I became involved as an unfunded collaborator when I was with Argonne National Laboratory. (Past leadership) decided it would be a good fit for me to maybe become a funded collaborator at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign."

Through Hoffmann’s years of involvement with the materials department, he developed first-hand knowledge of just how important I-MRSEC is to reaching breakthroughs in research. I-MRSEC is one of 22 centers across the United States created by the National Science Foundation, each bringing researchers from one institution together to address fundamental questions in materials science and engineering. From the day it was founded in 2017, the Illinois center has served two key goals: performing critical research that answers needs in society and supporting the interdisciplinary education and training of students involved in materials design, understanding and application.

Hoffmann previously served as deputy director of I-MRSEC under Johnson, who represents the Department of Mechanical Science and Engineering and an affiliate of the materials department. Johnson chose to step down as I-MRSEC director to focus his efforts on leading the new Illinois Quantum and Microelectronics Park in Chicago as CEO, and when he came to Hoffmann about stepping up as his replacement, he was looking for a respected and accomplished member of the materials science community. As a selectee of the Clarivate Analytics Highly Cited Researchers List for five consecutive years, Hoffmann fit that mold perfectly. 

“We are thrilled that Axel will take on the role of I-MRSEC director,” said Johnson. “ I-MRSEC is at the heart of the MRL and the materials research community at Illinois.  Axel is a distinguished researcher and a respected leader, and we have great confidence that he will lead the program to a bright future.  I’m looking forward to following his lead!”

“I-MRSEC plays multiple critical roles. It serves to define the future of materials research across the nation, supports research at the forefront of science and engineering and enables the Materials Research Laboratory to bring cutting-edge instrumentation to campus for the good of the broader materials community,” said Braun. “When Harley decided to focus on IQMP, it was clear I-MRSEC had big shoes to fill, and we are quite fortunate to have Axel stepping into the directorship, where I’m sure he will lead I-MRSEC to even greater heights.”

Setting Goals 

This director role continues to align with Hoffmann's natural inclinations as a researcher. Throughout his career, he has enjoyed collaborative work in larger teams — precisely the type of culture I-MRSEC empowers.

"Being able to facilitate that is certainly a challenge I like," Hoffmann said.

When asked about his goals for I-MRSEC, Hoffmann stressed how important it is to position the center for continued success on multiple fronts. First, there's managing relationships with sponsors to ensure researchers can focus on their work. 

"The director is supposed to keep the heat off of the individual researchers from what the sponsors require and make sure at the same time that we progress in a way that keeps the sponsors happy," he said.

Equally critical is positioning I-MRSEC for successful evaluations with NSF. The center has been through this process successfully in recent years, including earning $18 million in renewed funding over six years in 2023. 

These dollars are backing two Interdisciplinary Research Groups (IRGs), each tackling fundamental questions with strong potential for technological application using the funding NSF is providing. The first IRG, "Directing Spin, Charge and Energy with 2D Strainscapes,” involves the leadership of Associate Professor Arend van der Zande and Professor Pinshane Huang. The second, called “Photo-Ionics: Controlling Ion Transport and Defects with Light," is co-led by Associate Professor Nicola Perry and Associate Professor Elif Ertekin, who is from the Department of Mechanical Science and Engineering. 

Positioned for Impact 

What distinguishes I-MRSEC from many purely research-driven centers is its commitment to impact beyond the laboratory. The center maintains a strong Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) program, bringing students from universities that lack large research efforts or the high-level equipment they might need, to work with I-MRSEC faculty over the summer.

"The goal is to show these students what graduate student life is about, what academic research really looks like, and get them hopefully fired up enough that they may want to pursue a grad student career thereafter," Hoffmann said.

Similarly, outreach programs with local schools aim to convey excitement about materials science to the next generation. 

"What sets I-MRSEC apart from many other research centers where it's really just research driven is (how it) definitely tries to have impact beyond just the research on its own," he said.

Perhaps most importantly, Hoffmann emphasized that research direction at I-MRSEC comes from the ground up, not from top-down mandates. When the center prepares to re-compete for funding, leadership will ask the broader materials science community — spanning departments from chemistry to physics to engineering — what the next big questions should be.

"It's not that I'm going to say, 'Hey, I think this is what we have to do,’" Hoffmann explained. "We'll ask, what are the cool ideas out here? And we'll take the best ones we find and pass them on to NSF."

Illinois Grainger Engineering Affiliations 

Paul Braun is an Illinois Grainger Engineering professor of materials science and engineering in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering. He is affiliated with the Department of Chemistry, the Department of Mechanical Science and Engineering, the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering and the Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology. He is director of the Materials Research Laboratory and holds a Grainger Distinguished Chair in Engineering appointment.

Axel Hoffmann is an Illinois Grainger Engineering professor in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering. He is affiliated with the Materials Research Laboratory, the Department of Physics and the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering. He holds the founder professor appointment.

Harley Johnson is an Illinois Grainger Engineering professor in the Department of Mechanical Science and Engineering.  He is affiliated with the Department of Materials Science and Engineering, the Materials Research Laboratory and the National Center for Supercomputing Applications. He serves as executive director and CEO of the Illinois Quantum and Microelectronics Park. He holds the Founder Professor appointment. 

Nancy Sottos is an Illinois Grainger Engineering professor of materials science and engineering and serves as department head of the Department of Materials Science and Engineering. She also serves as a Center for Advanced Study professor and holds a Swanlund Endowed Chair appointment.