Muhammad Saiful Islam (PI), an assistant professor, joined JSU in 2017 after completing his PhD at the University of Bonn, Germany, and gaining postdoctoral experience at both Bonn and Northwestern University, USA. In the summers of 2018 and 2019, Dr. Islam served as a visiting faculty/researcher at Oak Ridge National Laboratory and the Army Research Laboratory in Adelphi, MD. Currently, he leads a research group composed of seven graduate students at the PhD level, three postdoctoral researchers, and five undergraduate students. Their primary focus lies at the intersection of solid-state chemistry and material science. The research group's endeavors revolve around synthetic inorganic chemistry, encompassing crystalline and amorphous materials. Their interests span a wide range, including nano- to microporous amorphous solids, hetero-anionic composites, ultra-low-density high surface area gels, nanoparticles, and thin-film deposition. To advance their understanding of newly synthesized materials, Dr. Islam's group employs various analytical tools, such as synchrotron X-ray pair distribution functions (PDF) and X-ray Absorption Spectroscopy (XANES and EXAFS). These techniques aid in unraveling the synthesis, morphology, and structure-function relationships of their creations. The overarching objective of their diverse material synthesis endeavors is to unearth innovative materials possessing the requisite properties for applications in sustainable energy and environmental contexts. These applications include electrochemical energy storage for lithium-ion and sodium batteries, electrocatalysis, and supercapacitors, as well as the environmental remediation of chemically toxic metal cations and radioactive species from aqueous solutions and addressing legacy nuclear waste in defense applications.