Dr Chenying Liu

B.Eng. in Automation (Mechatronics), Beihang University (2019); D.Phil. in Engineering Science, University of Oxford (2024)

I was trained across mechanical, electrical, and computer engineering during my undergraduate studies in Automation (Mechatronics) at Beihang University in China. I then came to Oxford to complete my D.Phil. in Engineering Science, where I focused on origami-inspired design and robotics. After a postdoctoral appointment, I was elected to a Junior Research Fellowship at Christ Church in 2024, which supports the development of my independent research programme in robotics centred on embodied physical intelligence.

I first joined Christ Church in 2022 to teach core courses on the MEng Engineering programme and have remained involved in undergraduate teaching since. In addition, I have taught in departmental laboratories, including electronics, information engineering, and 3D printing.

My research interests lie in robotics and embodied physical intelligence. I explore how geometry, mechanics, materials, and control can be co-designed so that robot bodies actively contribute to sensing, movement, and decision-making. This means that bodies are no longer passive structures commanded by a central “brain”; instead, they work together to reduce control complexity and improve robustness while still generating useful behaviours. My work aims to build robotic systems that are more efficient, resilient, and naturally integrated into the physical world, ranging from healthcare to sustainable energy systems.
I am particularly interested in robotic systems built from diverse material platforms, from conventional metals and polymers to biologically active substrates such as cells. I seek to understand how physical embodiment shapes function across length scales and environments. For further details about my research projects, please see my department profile.

See a comprehensive list of publications on Google Scholar.

Swimming, yoga and dancing