Wang Mingfeng

Biography

Dr. Wang received his BSc degree in Chemistry at Jilin University in 2001, followed by his MSc degree in Polymer Chemistry and Physics under the supervision of Prof. Xi Zhang. In 2004, he joined Prof. Mitchell A. Winnik’s group at the University of Toronto and obtained his PhD degree in Polymer Chemistry and Materials in 2009. In the same year, Dr. Wang was awarded with a Postdoctoral Fellowship supported by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), and joined Prof. Fred Wudl’s group at the University of California, Santa Barbara. Dr. Wang’s postdoctoral research under the direction of Prof. Wudl, with close collaboration with Prof. Alan J. Heeger’s group and Prof. Thuc-Quyen Nguyen’s group, focused on new semiconducting polymers and fullerene derivatives for organic solar cells. Dr. Wang further broadened his research experience at the Center for Functional Nanomaterials in Brookhaven National Laboratory before he joined Nanyang Technological University in July of 2012 as a Nanyang Assistant Professor in the School of Chemical and Biomedical Engineering.

Research Interest

Biological systems are featured by emergent properties in many processes such as energy and chemical transduction, communication, adaptation, self-repair and reproduction. They provide the proof-of-concept for what can physically be achieved with nanotechnology. For example, the ways in which biological systems transform and store energy, as well as their capabilities to perform self-repair and to adapt to external conditions inspire materials scientists and engineers how to manipulate energy, entropy and information in synthetic nano/micro systems. The mission of my research group is to develop novel polymeric and supramolecular materials with bioinspired hierarchical structures and advanced functions, broadly defined, for energy sustainability and human health. We enable this goal through a highly interdisciplinary research program across chemistry, materials science, biology and engineering. Our specific aims include: 1) To develop bioinspired light-harvesting complexes by design, synthesis and assembly of functional molecules, polymers and nanoparticles. 2) To understand interfacial transport of energy, charge and mass in hierarchically assembled structures with integrated functions. 3) To explore new materials and device structures for sustainable energy conversion and storage. 4) To develop multifunctional nanoscale vectors for smart biodiagnostics and nanomedicines. Students and postdocs in Dr. Wang's research group will be trained with knowledge and skills in polymers and materials chemistry, supramolecular science, nanomaterials, and colloids & interfaces. They will also gain opportunities of cross-boundary collaboration in ultrafast spectroscopy, optoelectronic devices and biomedical sciences. Please contact Dr. Wang if you would like to learn more information about our research, or if you are interested to join our group.