Bio

EDUCATION

2017         Ph.D. in Polymer Science, The University of Akron, Akron, USA
2012         B.S. in Polymer Materials and Engineering, Sichuan University, China

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE 

09/2021 - present   Assistant Professor, College of Polymer Science and Engineering, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China
10/2017 - 08/2021  Postdoctoral Fellow, Engineering and Applied Physics, Harvard University, USA
10/2016 - 11/2016  Visiting PhD student, University of Ghent, Ghent, Belgium
10/2011 - 02/2012  Exchange Study, Organic Chemistry, University of Ljubljana, Ljubljana, Slovenia 
 
I am an assistant professor at the College of Polymer Science and Engineering at Sichuan University. I a broadly trained polymer materials researcher, whose work spans multiple disciplines, from biology to physics and materials science, using both experimental and computational approaches. My research involves polymers, soft mater, colloids, optics, and interfaces. I have published my research as the first/co-first author in 11 high-impact journals, including two in Science Advances. My researches have been extensively highlighted in popular media like The New York Times, Popular Science, C&E News, and Science.
 
I completed my Ph.D. study with Ali Dhinojwala and Matthew Shawkey at the University of Akron, where I used multidisciplinary approaches to study bio-inspired melanin-based photonic materials through self-assembly. Inspired by bird feathers and guided by optical modeling, I designed synthetic melanin nanoparticles with different morphologies (solid, or core-shell) and used different self-assembly approaches to organize their packings to produce unique, optically active materials, including some with highly saturated colors, humidity colorimetric sensors, and wide-angle photonic inks.
 
As a postdoc in Vinothan Manoharan lab at Harvard University, I focus on both fundamental questions and practical challenges in disordered photonic materials. I work together with two graduates students to develop a multiple scattering model based on a Monte Carlo approach that can be used as a effective tool to design colors. I have collaborated with three big companies and use our model to solve their related technology challenges. In addition, I initiate and lead a collaborative project with Professor David Clarke group to design a novel reconfigurable color-changing platform that takes advantages of buckling to change colors, integrating photonic glasses to a dielectric elastomer. This platform can be used in both wide-angle reflective color display and high-quality camouflage, considering that colors are insensitive to curvatures and color changes are conjugated with shape morphing.
 
Here's my google scholar. The best way to learn about what research I am doing is to contact me directly.