Jadon Zheng is an exceptional student completing a double major in electrical engineering and mathematics in just three years at UT—an achievement unmatched among the many undergraduates who have come through the lab. Despite this accelerated pace, he has maintained top academic performance while contributing meaningfully to research and teaching. Jadon was part of the inaugural FUSE (Fusing Undergraduates with Science and Engineering) cohort and is the first graduate of the program. 

During his second year, Jadon served as an undergraduate teaching assistant for ECE 302, the introductory course required of all first‑year electrical engineering majors. This role is highly demanding and typically reserved for students with both strong academic records and exceptional communication skills. Jadon balanced supervising weekly lab sessions, mentoring new engineering students, taking five courses, and conducting research, demonstrating remarkable dedication to both his own learning and the success of others.

In the lab, Jadon played a central role in fabricating devices used to explore new quantum light‑emission phenomena in 2D materials. His work in nanofabrication, exfoliation, and layer transfer required precision, patience, and technical maturity well beyond the undergraduate level, and his contributions were essential to the project’s success.

Jadon’s accomplishments have been recognized nationally: he was awarded the prestigious NSF Graduate Research Fellowship. Graduating a full year early, he will begin his graduate studies at MIT this fall, where he is poised to continue making significant scientific contributions.