In 1995, Cai received his Bachelor of Science degree in
optoelectronics from
Huazhong University of Science and Technology in Hubei province, China. In 2001, Cai received a Ph.D. in
nuclear engineering from
Massachusetts Institute of Technology and immediately after it became a postdoc at the
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, where he remained until 2004. In July 2004, Cai became an assistant professor of mechanical engineering at Stanford University, and in September 2011 was promoted to associate professor. ==Memberships==