Liu is a statistical physicist by training, with expertise in analytical calculation, modeling and data analysis. His Ph.D. research encompassed a broad range of topics from statistical to condensed matter and biological physics. Liu received his Ph.D. in Physics from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in May 2009. His thesis focused on the study of an unexpected universal behavior in disordered magnetic systems. This work has been featured in Europhysics News and selected for the Europe Physics Letter — Best of 2009 Collection. In addition to the theoretical study of statistical physics, Liu has collaborated with condensed matter experimentalists on the modeling of perpendicular recording media, which is the state-of-the-art magnetic storage application. He served as a Postdoctoral Research Associate in the Center for Complex Network Research (CCNR) at Northeastern University (NEU) from June 2009 to September 2012. From October 2012 to July 2013, Liu was employed as a Research Assistant Professor in CCNR. and was responsible for writing research papers, presentations and grant proposals. His research has focused on the quantitative study of the dynamic properties of complex systems. Liu's work has been featured as a cover story in Nature (May 12, 2011) and a cover story in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the U.S.A (Feb. 12, 2013), and received broad media coverage including Nature News & Views, Science News & Analysis, ScienceNews, ScienceDaily, Wired, PHYSORG, and Faculty of 1000.
