During his PhD at Monash University (2015-2018), Dr. Chen developed a cutting-edge method using satellite data and machine learning to predict air quality. He applied this method in numerous epidemiological studies, unraveling the health effects of air pollution. To enhance global collaborations and facilitate the adoption of this method, Dr. Chen strategically decided to go to China and join Sun Yat-sen University to expand his unit's collaboration and conducted extensive research there. During this period (2019-2023), he significantly broadened his collaborative network, including with researchers in Brazil, China, UK and US, published original research in top-tier journals, and secured three CIA grants. In 2023, Dr. Chen moved back to Australia to advance his career and rejoined the same unit at Monash University where he did his PhD.

As a Research Fellow at the Climate, Air Quality Research Unit, Dr. Chen was awarded the Monash Early Career Postdoctoral Fellowship, NHMRC Centre for Safe Air Postdoctoral Research Fellowship, and subsequently ARC Discovery Early Career Researcher Award (DECRA). He oversees key research projects, mentors PhD students, and leads the development and implementation of advanced air quality prediction models, focusing on evaluating the health effects of bushfire smoke and air pollution.

Dr Chen's research achievements significantly surpass the typical expectations for EMCRs. Since 2017, He has published > 210 peer-reviewed papers, with 63 for which he was first/corresponding-author and 94% published in JCR Q1 journals, such as Lancet Planetary Health, JAMA Pediatrics, and Nature Communications. He is ranked among top 2% scientists worldwide 2022-2025 (Stanford/Elsevier), with 11,471 citations and an h-index of 59 (Google Scholar). Dr. Chen has secured 6 grants as CIA with nearly $1 million in funding and won the Monash FMNHS Dean's Award for Excellence in Research and the Vice-Chancellor's Excellence Award for Research.