Meet the Professor: Dr. Min Zou

Dr. Min Zou, the Twenty-First Century Endowed Chair and associate professor of mechanical engineering, has taught at the University of Arkansas since 2003. She earned a B.S. and M.S. of aerospace engineering from the Northwestern Polytechnical University in China and a M.S. and Ph.D. in mechanical engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology.

Intro to Engineering
Zou’s first experience with engineering was learning from her dad, who was a materials engineer in aerospace engineering. She was fascinated by various aircraft designs when she was young. She chose to study at Northwestern Polytechnical University, reputable for Aircraft Engineering.

University of Arkansas experience
Prior to accepting the position at the UofA, Zou worked for an R&D division of a computer hard drive company, Seagate Technology, where she learned how a high-tech company operates. “In high tech industry, competition is very stiff and it was very fast-paced,” she said.

After several years in the industry, she was ready to return to academia to teach, mentor, and enjoy the broader range of research and interdisciplinary collaboration.

Students
More than anything, Zou would like students to remember that “engineering is a large area of interesting disciplines…and your interests may change once you’re out of school.” Its breadth and adaptability is why she believes engineering is such a great choice. “You will work with all different disciplines,” she said. “Mechanical engineering has research all over.”

Research
Zou developed an active research program in the interdisciplinary areas of nano-surface-engineering, nanotribology and nanomechanics. Zou’s research focuses on developing novel techniques for fabricating nano-engineered-surfaces (NESs) and understanding the tribological, mechanical and wetting behavior of the NESs. The technologies developed by Zou’s group can be used in a variety of applications, including tribological, superhydrophobic, superhydrophilic, biomedical and photovoltaic. The University of Arkansas has filed two utility patents based on her research. Zou also secured approximately $2 million research funds from various government agencies, including the prestigious CAREER award from the National Science Foundation.


Off the Clock
When she’s not in the classroom or lab, Zou loves to spend time with family. Together, they go to Chinese School on Sundays, where her daughter learns Chinese, her husband teaches a children’s Chinese martial arts class, and she practices Chinese dance with several other people. “Most people don’t know this, but there are 56 nationalities in China, so there are many types of dances,” she said. “That’s really what I do most.”