Shi Erwei, male, Han nationality, is a native of Shanghai. He was born in 1955, graduated from the chemistry department of the Wuzhou Branch School of Jiangxi Normal College, and obtained a doctorate from the Shanghai Institute of Ceramics of the Chinese Academy of Science. He is a research professor.
Professor Shi has pursued long term studies of the growth of synthetic crystals and related theories. He participated in the development and industrialization of synthetic colored quartz, conducting systematic research into defects of the crystal and interrelations between its growth conditions and properties. Based on this, he suggested a double-doping strategy and a responsive color-core model. While conducting his postdoctoral research in South Korea, he carried out studies on the synthesis of perovskite thin films by the hydrothermal method. He studied the preparation of various crystallites with the hydrothermal method, such as barium titanate, zirconium oxide, aluminum oxide, bismuth germanate, titanium oxide, zinc oxide, spinel and composite mixtures of aluminum oxide and zirconium oxide. In particular, he engaged in research on the interrelationships of hydrothermal conditions with the structure of crystallite, particle size, growth morphology, physical phases and defects. He suggested the concept of aggregation processes in hydrothermal synthesis systems. His recent research is focused on morphological studies of the synthesis of high temperature semi-conductor materials. Starting from a model about crystal growth, he systematically exposes the internal associations of structure and morphology of crystals with physical and chemical conditions set for the synthesis. His work provides theoretical support for the optimization of synthesis conditions and related properties of the crystalline materials and also introduces new possibilities for computational crystallography.
Shi served as the secretary-general of the Chinese Academy of Sciences until 2004, and he was promoted as vice-president in that same year.