PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
Dr. Younan Xia was born in Jingjiang, Jiangsu, China. He received his Ph.D. degree in physical chemistry from Harvard University (with Professor George M. Whitesides) in 1996, M.S. degree in inorganic chemistry from University of Pennsylvania (with the late Professor Alan G. MacDiarmid) in 1993, and B.S. degree in chemical physics from the University of Science and Technology of China (USTC) in 1987. He came to the United States in 1991.
Contact:
901 Atlantic Drive
Atlanta, GA 30332-0400
Office: MoSE 3100J (3rd Floor)
Phone: (404) 385-3209
BUSINESS ADMINISTRATOR
Fenxiang Lu was born in Henan, China. She received her B.S. degree in mechanical & electronic engineering from Shenyang Institute of Technology in 1998. She worked at the Institute of Physics, CAS with Deputy Director for 4 years. In October 2021, she joined the Xia Group as a business administrator for research to manage the business activities of the lab and work with Dr. Xia on a number of different projects.
POSTDOCTORAL FELLOWS
Contact:
901 Atlantic Drive
Atlanta, GA 30332-0400
Office: MoSE 3120C (3rd Floor)
Phone: (404) 385-2054
Fax: (404) 385-7493
Dr. Dong Zhang was born in Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China. He received his Ph.D. degree in chemical engineering from The University of Akron (with Professor Jie Zheng) in December 2022, M.E. & M.S. degrees in materials engineering and polymer science from Zhejiang University of Technology (ZJUT) and NIMTE-CAS in 2019, and B.S. degree in materials science and engineering from ZJUT in 2016, respectively. He joined the Xia group as a postdoctoral fellow in early 2023. His research interests include the rational design and synthesis of polymers, biomaterials, hydrogels, and nanostructured materials for biological and biomedical applications.
Dr. Min Hao was born in Shandong, China. She received her Ph.D. degree in inorganic chemistry from Shandong University in June 2023, where she worked on the design and fabrication of nanomaterials for regulating the fate of stem cells. Min joined the Xia group as a postdoctoral fellow in July 2023. Her research interests include the rational development of nanomaterials and scaffolds for biomedical applications.
GRADUATE STUDENTS
Yidan Chen was born in Jiangsu, China. She received her B.E. (Engineering Product Development) degree with Summa Cum Laude in Material Science from Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD) in 2018. She worked as a research assistant with Dr. Shaoying Huang from SUTD on additive manufacturing of radiofrequency electronics and a Startup project from 2018 to 2020. She joined the Xia group in 2021 and is working on synthesis of nanostructured materials for biomedical applications.
Kei Kwan Li was born and raised in Hong Kong. He received his B.S. degree in Chemistry from The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) in 2022. At CUHK, he worked on the synthesis of metal nanocrystals. He is pursuing a Ph.D. degree in Chemistry at Georgia Tech. He joined the Xia group in the Fall of 2022 and is working on the synthesis and application of metal nanocrystals for heterogeneous catalysis.
Jianlong He was born in Rizhao, Shandong, China. He received his M.S. degree in materials science from Shandong University in 2021. During this period of time, he was engaged in the design and synthesis of nanomaterials for the regulation of stem cell fate. Earlier, he obtained a B.S. degree in inorganic non-metal material engineering from Jilin University. He joined the Xia group in the fall of 2023. He is currently pursuing a Ph.D. degree, with a focus on the synthesis and application of new biomaterials.
Yuxuan Meng was born in Chifeng, Inner Mongolia, China. She received her M.S. degree in Advanced Materials science and Engineering from Imperial College London in 2023 and B.E. degree in Polymer Materials and Engineering from Beijing University of Chemical Technology in 2022, working on nanostructured materials for biomedical applications. She is pursuing her Ph.D. in chemistry at Georgia Tech. She joined the Xia group in the Fall of 2023 and her research interest includes the rational development of polymers and composites for biomedical applications.
Yanzi Yan was born in Henan, China. She received her M.E. degree in materials processing engineering from Sun Yat-sen University (SYSU) in 2021 and B.E. degree in polymer materials science and engineering from Donghua University (DHU) in 2018. She worked as a research assistant on DNA and mRNA delivery at SYSU from 2021-2022. She is pursuing her Ph.D. in chemistry at Georgia Tech. She joined the Xia group in the fall of 2023 and her research interest includes the synthesis of nanomaterials for biological applications.
Po Ting Niki Siu was born in Hong Kong. She received her B.S. degree in Chemistry from The Chinese University of Hong Kong(CUHK) in 2023. She is pursuing a Ph.D. degree in Chemistry at Georgia Tech. She joined the Xia group in the Fall of 2023 and her research interest includes the synthesis of nanomaterials for biological applications.
Zhiqi Wang was born in Jilin, China. He received his B.S. degree in material chemistry from the University of Science and Technology of China (USTC) in 2023, where he worked on the mechanisms of nanomaterial synthesis and their applications in catalysis. He is pursuing his Ph.D. in chemistry at Georgia Tech. He joined the Xia group in the Fall of 2023 and is working on the nucleation and growth mechanisms of nanocrystals for their controllable synthesis and potential applications in electrocatalysis and energy conversion.
Qijia Huang is the third-year PhD student of Chemistry and Biochemistry at Georgia Tech. His academic records include a BS in Chemistry from Nankai University, China and an MS in Chemistry from Stevens Institute of Technology. Qijia transferred to the Xia Lab in Spring 2024 and he is currently working on in situ fingerprinting spectroscopy for characterizing metal-molecule interactions on the outermost surface layer of metal nanocrystals in a liquid phase or other ambient environments. He is also working on the development of surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) for probing the catalytically active bimetallic surfaces with an isocyanide molecule.
Hansong Yu was born in Shenyang, China. His academic records include a BE in Materials Science and Engineering from Northeastern University, China and a MS in MSE from Georgia Tech. He joined the Xia Lab in Spring 2024 and is currently pursing a Ph.D. degree in Materials Science and Engineering. He is working on the rational design and synthesis of Ag-based multimetallic nanocrystals for their applications in heterogeneous catalysis.
Minghong Wu was born in Guangdong, China. He received his M.S. degree in Materials Science and Engineering in 2024 and his B.S. degree in Polymer Materials and Engineering in 2021, both from South China University of Technology. He is currently pursuing his Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering at Georgia Tech. Minghong joined the Xia group in the Fall of 2024, and his research interest includes the design of polymers and nanomaterials for biomedical applications.
Qinheng Pu was born in Anhui, China. She received her M.S. degree in Advanced Materials Science from University College London in 2022 and her B.E. degree in Materials Science and Engineering from Jingdezhen Ceramic University in 2021. She worked as a research assistant in biomaterials and gene delivery at Westlake University from 2023 to 2024. She is currently pursuing her Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering at Georgia Tech, with research interests focusing on the synthesis of nanomaterials for biological applications.
Yutong Wang was born in Beijing, China. She received her MSci Chemistry degree from University College London (UCL) in July 2024. She is currently pursuing her Ph.D. degree in Chemistry at Georgia Tech, and she joined Xia group in Fall of 2024. Her research interest includes nanomaterials and nanocrystal synthesis.
Jiaqi Guan was born in Henan, China. He received his B.S. degree in physical chemistry from University of Science and Technology of China (USTC) in 2023. He worked as a research assistant in inorganic chemistry at USTC from 2023 to 2024, where he focused on the rational synthesis of surfaces and interfaces and related electrocatalytic applications. He is currently pursuing his Ph.D. in Chemistry at Georgia Tech, and he joined the Xia group in the Fall of 2024. His research interests include the synthesis of nanomaterials for electrocatalytic and biological applications.
VISITING GRADUATE STUDENTS
Xintong Huang was born in Anhui, China. She received her B.S. degree in chemical engineering from Xiamen University in 2021. She is currently pursuing her Ph.D. in chemical engineering at Tsinghua University, focusing on the continuous synthesis of metallic nanomaterials with controlled properties for electrocatalytic applications. In 2025, She joined the Xia Lab as a visiting student to expand her research training in the rational design and synthesis of functional nanomaterials for applications in catalysis and energy conversion.