Wenlin Zhang
Assistant Professor of Chemistry
Our group uses multi-scale simulations and statistical mechanics to study soft matter, such as polymers and liquid crystals. We are interested in how chemical structures and compositions, together with processing conditions, can affect phase behaviors, assembly, and material properties. The physical understanding of material behaviors at different length and time scales helps us navigate the vast design parameter space for high-performance materials.
Contact
Department(s)
Chemistry
Education
- B.S. University of Minnesota, 2009-2012
- Ph.D. Pennsylvania State University 2012-2017
- Post-doc, University of Michigan, 2017-2020
Selected Publications
"Interfaces and soft confinement promote crystallization in polymer nanodroplets", Liu, C.; Duraes, D.S.; Jiao, E.L.; Zhang, W., MRS Advances, 2024.
"Effects of entanglement on polymer crystal growth and inter-crystalline phase formation", Zou, L.; Zhang, W., Macromolecules, 2024, 57, 4410–4420.
"Direct measurement of polymer chain-end-to-end distances by using RAFT chain transfer agent as the FRET acceptor", Wang, Y.; Fortenberry, A.; Zhang, W.; Simon, Y.; Qiang, Z., The Journal of Physical Chemistry B, 2023, 127, 3100–3108.
"Mismatch in nematic interactions leads to composition-dependent crystal nucleation in polymer blends", Zhang, W.#; Zou, L, Macromolecules, 2023, 56, 2234–2245. #Corresponding author