Xiao Liye, an expert in superconducting technology, has been appointed new director of China's Institute of Electrical Engineering, a research arm of the Chinese Academy of Sciences dedicating to the promotion of technical level of power generation and electrical equipment manufacturing.

Professor Xiao received his doctoral degree from IEE in 1995. From 1995 to 1997, he carried out his postdoctoral research on the stability of high temperature superconducting magnets at U.S. National High Magnetic Field Laboratory, and from 1997 to 1998, he conducted studies on quench and protection of high temperature superconducting magnets at Japan's National Institute for Materials Science.

After returning to IEE in 1998, he was named the director of Laboratory of Applied Superconductivity in 1999 and the deputy director of IEE in 2003, respectively. Since 2000, Professor Xiao has led a number of major research projects, including those supported by the National High-tech Research and Development Program.