Purdue Engineering professors Du, Pol named NAI senior members
The National Academy of Inventors (NAI) has elected Purdue Engineering Professors Shengwang Du and Vilas Pol to its 2026 class of senior members.
The senior member program recognizes active faculty, scientists and administrators at NAI member institutions who have successfully produced, patented and commercialized technologies that have brought, or aspire to bring, real impact on the welfare of society and economic progress.
Shengwang Du, Scifres Family Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, and Professor of Physics and Astronomy
Du holds 12 patents through disclosures to the Purdue Innovates Office of Technology Commercialization (OTC).
He serves as deputy director of the Purdue Quantum Science and Engineering Institute (PQSEI), which is developing technologies to revolutionize the way we communicate, compute, and sense the world around us.
“I am truly honored to be elected as a senior member of the National Academy of Inventors,” Du said. “For me, invention has always been about curiosity — asking fundamental questions about how nature works — and then taking the extra step to translate those discoveries into technologies that can serve society. This recognition belongs equally to my students, postdoctoral scholars, and collaborators, whose creativity and dedication make innovation possible.”
Heading the Purdue Quantum Optics Laboratory, Du focuses his research on quantum optics and its applications in quantum networks, quantum computing, quantum sensing, optical neural networks for AI, and optical microscopy. His work in optical microscopy led to the establishment of Light Innovation Technology USA, a startup he co-founded to commercialize cutting-edge optical microscopies and bioimaging techniques.
He also is leading an autonomous experiment that will ride aboard Virgin Galactic’s “Purdue 1” spaceflight. The research will examine how laser-cooled atoms behave at near-absolute zero temperatures, in the first step toward quantum positioning, navigation and timing (Q-PNT) for future space exploration.
Active in the scientific field, Du has served on the editorial boards of several journals and currently is an associate editor of Optics Express. He is a fellow of Optica and the American Physical Society. Du has authored 123 research journal publications.
Vilas Pol, Professor of Chemical Engineering
Pol holds 27 U.S. patents through disclosures to the OTC.
As head of the Vilas Pol Energy Research (ViPER) group at Purdue, he focuses on the design and fabrication of high-capacity materials and electrolytes for next-generation lithium-ion, lithium-sulfur, zinc-ion and sodium-ion battery systems. The lab synthesizes next-generation materials and electrolytes that are tested for the future of energy storage technology, with specialties in ultra-low temperatures and battery safety.
“Being elected as a senior member of the National Academy of Inventors is a profound honor that validates my team's dedication to transforming fundamental science and chemical engineering into numerous issued U.S. patents,” Pol said. “It underscores the vital role of translational research in driving sustainable innovations — from extreme-temperature batteries and their safety to circular waste upcycling — that are essential for a resilient and independent global energy future.”
Among previous academic honors, Pol received the IEEE Power Electronics Society's Energy Storage Innovation Award for “groundbreaking research that pushes the temperature and performance boundaries of lithium-ion batteries.” He said it validated his lab’s Guinness World Record-earning achievement of the lowest temperature to charge a lithium-ion battery (-100°C).
Other recognition has included selection as a Fulbright specialist; a ScholarGPS top scholar; and a fellow of The Royal Society of Chemistry, Royal Society of Arts, International Association of Advanced Materials, and The World Technology Network. Pol also has received an R&D 100 award and the American Institute of Chemical Engineers’ Excellence in Process Development Research Award.
Pol has authored more than 300 publications (h-index 65), as well as delivered 200 invited, keynote and plenary talks, including a TEDx presentation.
More information on NAI senior members
Du and Pol are among 230 emerging inventors in the 2026 class of NAI senior members, to be inducted at NAI’s 15th Annual Conference, taking place June 1-4, 2026, in Los Angeles.
“This year’s senior member class is a truly impressive cohort,” said NAI President Paul R. Sanberg. “These innovators come from a variety of fields and disciplines, translating their technologies into tangible impact. I commend them on their incredible pursuits and I’m honored to welcome them to the academy.”
Du and Pol join Yuehwern Yih, the Tomkins Professor in the Edwardson School of Industrial Engineering, elected in 2025, as Purdue faculty who have been named NAI senior members.