Ping Xiao's research area covers both fundamental study of degradation mechanisms of ceramic coatings and novel manufacture of ceramics and ceramic coatings. The research covers developing novel techniques to produce ceramic matrix composites and ceramic coatings, understanding degradation mechanisms of ceramics and coatings, which involves characterisation of microstructure, mechanical property, and residual stresses in ceramic coatings. Ping Xiao's research has generated 300+ publications in peer-reviewed journals and he is among the top 2% list of the most cited researchers in the world identified in a study in 2020 by Stanford University