Merging electronics with the human body

Through emerging scientific understandings and technological developments in tissue-like polymer electronic materials, devices and energy supplies.

Intrinsically stretchable power source

An implantable triboelectric nanogenerator for scavenging energy from tissue/organ motions to power bioelectronics.

Bioadhesive semiconductors and transistors

A soft semiconductor-based transistor that can adhere to wet biotissue surfaces like tape for stable and high-fidelity biosensing.

Stretchable light-emitting polymer and OLED

Utilizing thermally activated delayed fluorescence (TADF), stretchability OLEDs achieved high light-emitting efficiency.

Ultrasoft and stretchable electronics

A soft interlayer design enables stretchable devices to achieve tissue-level softness for better conformability and biocompatibility.

Wearable neuromorphic computing

Stretchable neuromorphic devices allow artificial intelligence data analysis within skin-like wearable devices.

Stretchable organic electrochemical transistors

Skin-like conformability is combined with transistor-based biosensors with high sensitivity.

Stretchable and strain-unperturbed pressure sensor

Soft, conformable and highly accurate tactile sensation on human skin or soft robots.

“Click-to-polymer” method for functionalizing conjugated polymers

A new synthesis strategy broadens the functional properties on conjugated polymers for human-interfaces applications.

Intrinsically stretchable transistor array

As the device building-block for skin-like electronics, it concurrently provides exceptional electrical performance, skin-like mechanical properties, high device density and performance-uniformity.

Intrinsically stretchable polymer semiconductor

As the material building-block for skin-like electronics, it combines high semiconducting properties and extraordinary mechanical stretchability in single material systems.

Triboelectric nanogenerator

An emerging energy technology that can use polymers to generate electricity from human motions, with high energy conversion efficiency and power output.

Welcome to the Sihong Wang Research Group

Our group focuses on the development of biomimetic polymer electronics and bio-energy harvesting for interfacing with the human body and other biological systems as wearable and implantable devices. The overarching goal of the research is to develop functional polymers and devices that combine advanced electronic/photonic properties with biomimetic mechanical, chemical properties, and operation principles, for realizing the continuous, efficient, and long-term stable acquisition and processing of health data.

 News and Highlights

Jan. 2024 – Welcome Tianda to join our group as a postdoc!

Dec. 2023 – The picture from our “Bioadhesive semiconductor” paper was selected by the Science Magazine as one of their “favorite Science photos of 2023”. Science News.

Dec. 2023 – Our paper of an intrinsically stretchable power source system for bioelectronics was just published in Device. Congratulations to Ping, Shilei, Youdi, Yang and the co-authors!

Dec. 2023 – Welcome Zhichang, Zhiming, Jin to join our group as Ph.D. students!

Nov. 2023 – Nan won the MRS Graduate Student Gold Award! Congratulations to Nan for receiving this highly prestigious and well-deserved honor!

Nov. 2023 – Yahao got featured by our school PME, for his research efforts and achievements in human-integrated electronics. UChicagoPME News.

Nov. 2023 – Nan successfully defended his PhD dissertation! Congratulations, Dr. Nan Li, for completing this amazing journey! This is also the first doctoral degree from our group!

Oct. 2023 – Welcome Ruizhe to join our group as a postdoc!

Sept. 2023 – Welcome Wonbeom join our group as a visiting Ph.D. student!

Aug. 2023 – Our paper on bioadhesive polymer semiconductor and transistors has been published in Science. Congratulations to Nan and the co-authors!

July 2023 – Our paper on achieving tissue-level softness for stretchable electronics has been published in Nature Communications. Congratulations to Yang and the co-authors!

March 2023 – Our paper led by Wei and Cheng is accepted in Nature Materials. Congratulations to all the authors!

March 2023 – Sihong received ACS Polymeric Material Science and Engineering (PMSE) Young Investigator Award.

March 2023 – Sihong is selected as a Fellow of the International Association of Advanced Materials (IAAM). 

Feb. 2023 – Rithvik Papani, an undergraduate student in the Wang Group, is selected as 2022-2023 Quad Undergraduate Research Scholar. Congratulations, Rithvik!

Nov. 2022 – Sihong is named a Highly Cited Researcher by Clarivate Analytics again, which has been three years in a row.

Nov. 2022 – Sihong received the NSF CAREER Award.

Nov. 2022 – Shivani Chatterji, an undergraduate student in the Wang Group, is selected as 2022-2023 Quad Undergraduate Research Scholar. Congratulations, Shivani!

Oct. 2022 – Sihong was selected as a recipient for the 2022 NIH Director’s New Innovator Award. This award will support our research in developing implantable bioelectronic devices that are designed to prevent rejection by the body. We really appreciate this support. UChicagoPME NewsUChicago New.

Oct. 2022 – Our stretchable neuromorphic device paper has been selected by Matter as the cover article for the October issue.

Aug. 2022 – Our paper on stretchable neuromorphic device has been published in Matter. Congratulations, Shilei and Yahao!

June 2022 – Yahao Dai, a graduate student in the Wang Group, receiving the Harper Dissertation Fellowship. Congratulations, Yahao!

May 2022 – Sihong received the Advanced Materials Rising Star award.

May 2022 – Our paper on stretchable redox-active polymer semiconductors has been published in Advanced Materials. Congratulations, Yahao and Shilei!

April 2022 – Shinya Wai, a graduate student in the Wang Group, receiving the National Defense Science and Engineering Graduate Fellowship. Congratulations, Shinya!

March 2022 – Nan Li, a graduate student in the Wang Group, receiving the Windt Graduate Student Travel Award. Congratulations, Nan!

March 2022 – Welcome Max Weires and Sean Sutyak to join our group as Ph.D. students!

Jan. 2022 – Welcome Naisong to join our group as a Ph.D. student!

Dec. 2021 – Sihong received the iCANX Young Scientist Award.

Nov. 2021 – Our paper on a stretchable and strain-unperturbed pressure sensor has been published in Science Advances. The work was reported by PME news: stretchable pressure sensor could lead to better robotics, prosthetics.

Congratulations, Qi and Yang!

Sep. 2021 – Sihong is granted a Joint Appointment at Argonne National Laboratory (Nanoscience and Technology Division). This will help to strengthen our collaborations with the Argonne community.

Aug. 2021 – Our paper on building multifunctional conjugated polymers for human-integrated electronics has been published in Matter. Congratulations, Nan!

Aug. 2021 – Welcome Songsong to join our group as a Postdoc!

May 2021 – Sean Lee, a graduate student in the Wang Group, receiving the PSD TA teaching prize. Congratulations, Sean!

May 2021 – Sihong received the Office of Naval Research (ONR) Young Investigator Award.

April 2021 – Our review paper on implantable bioelectronics towards long-term stability and sustainability has been published in Matter. Congratulations to Yang and Nan!

Jan. 2021– Our paper on strain-insensitive intrinsically stretchable transistors and circuits has been published in Nature Electronics.

Jan. 2021 – In celebration of the 50th year of The Bridge, the National Academy of Engineering is publishing 50 essays projecting developments in Engineering. Sihong was invited to contribute one of the essays in this special issue, as “Building the Nexus Between Electronics and the Human Body for Enhanced Health”. We really appreciate the invitation!

Jan. 2021– Our review paper on stretchable transistors and functional circuits has been published in Nature Electronics. Congratulations to Yahao and Huawei!

Nov. 2020 – Sihong is recognized as a Highly Cited Researcher by Clarivate Analytics.

Sept. 2020 – Sihong gave an invited talk in IEEE International Conference on Nano/Micro Engineered & Molecular Systems. Thanks for the invitation!

Sept. 2020 – Nickolas De Oliveira​, an undergraduate researcher in the Wang Group, was recently selected to join the Micro-Metcalf Program. Congratulations, Nick!

Sept. 2020 – Sihong has been invited to serve as an Associate Editor for Biomedical Engineering (BME) Frontiers – a Science Partner Journal.

June 2020 – Sihong gave a remote invited talk on Global Virtual Conference on Flexible Electronics Technology. Thanks for the invitation!

June 2020 – Sihong is named to the 2020 global list of MIT Technology Review 35 Innovators Under 35.

April 2020 – Maritha Wang, an undergraduate researcher in the Wang Group, was recently selected to receive two prestigious graduate fellowships: NSF Graduate Student Fellowship, and NDSEG Graduate Fellowship. Congratulations, Maritha!

Feb. 2020 – Sihong gave an invited talk in the Conference on Chemical Sensors for Wearable Devices, which was held at Technion – Israel Institute of Technology. Thanks for the invitation!

Jan. 2020 – Our research is supported by the Center of Data and Computing of UChicago.

Dec. 2019 – Congratulations to Nan for successfully passing the Ph.D. candidacy exam! Well done!

Nov. 2019 – Welcome Youdi and Cheng to join our group as new Ph.D. students!

Oct. 2019 – Sihong gave an invited talk in the ECS meeting.

Sept. 2019 – Sihong gave a keynote talk in the International Nanotechnology and Nanoscience Conference.

Sept. 2019 – Sihong gave an invited talk in the Macropolis 2019: Chicagoland Soft Matter Symposium. Thanks for the invitation!

August 2019 – We had our first Undergraduate Summer Symposium!

July 2019 – Sihong gave an invited talk in the Mi-Bio Summit on Flexible and Stretchable Bioelectronics at Purdue University. Thanks for the invitation!

June 2019 – Sihong gave an invited talk in the 5th Symposium on Flexible and Stretchable Electronics 2019.

June 2019 – Sihong gave an invited seminar in the Chinese University of Hong Kong.

June 2019 – Sihong gave an invited seminar in Tsinghua University, Beijing.

June 2019 – Sihong gave an invited talk in the 4th International Conference on Nanoenergy and Nanosystems.

April 2019 – Sihong gave an invited talk in the 2019 MRS Spring meeting.

April 2019 – Welcome Hongzhang to join our group as a visiting student!

April 2019 – Welcome Wei to join our group as a Postdoc!

April 2019 – Sihong was invited to present the Molecular Engineering Information Session during the Spring Open House of the University of Chicago.

March 2019 – Welcome Huawei to join our group as a Postdoc!

Feb. 2019 – Welcome Yang to join our group as an incoming PME Ph.D. student!

Jan. 2019 – Welcome Alexandra, Nickolas and Tony to join our group as undergraduate researchers!

Nov. 2018 – Welcome our inaugural batch of Ph.D. students, Yahao and Nan, to join our group!

Nov. 2018 – Sihong gave a talk in the 2018 MRS Fall Meeting.

Nov. 2018 – Sihong gave an invited talk in the Xiamen Soft Matter Forum 2018 in Xiamen, China.

Sept. 2018 – Sihong joined the Institute for Molecular Engineering at the University of Chicago as an Assistant Professor.

June 2018 – Sihong gave an invited talk in the 4th International Symposium of Flexible and Stretchable Electronics in Wuhan, China.

Feb. 2018 – The intrinsically stretchable transistor arrays and circuits paper was published in Nature. It was featured on Nature Biotechnology, MRS Bulletin, Stanford NewsXinhua NewsMedgadget, Tech XploreUnited Press International, Electronic Design, LinkedIn, Tech Explorist, The O&P Edge, etc.

Jan. 2017 – The intrinsically stretchable polymer semiconductor paper was published in Science. It was featured on Science, Nature Nanotechnology, Clinical ChemistryChemical & Engineering News, Physics Today, Physics World, Phys.org, ScienceDaily, Electronic Component News, New Scientist, etc.