Biography

Dr. Wen received his B.S. in chemical engineering at Zhengzhou University. He obtained his doctoral degree in applied physics from Technical University of Ilmenau, Germany in 2016. He was then promoted as a senior scientist in the IMN MacroNano® (ZIK), Technical University of Ilmenau. Since 2017, he started his post-doctoral research in Institute of Materials Science, University of Connecticut. He was recognized with the Chinese Government Award for Outstanding Students Abroad on 2015 and was the recipient of PostDoc Seed Grant Funding Award from the University of Connecticut as well as Best Oral Paper Prize from CMOC (IEEE CT) on 2018. Dr. Wen joined the School of Engineering in September 2019 as an assistant professor (independent PI).

Research

Large-scale array of micro/nanostructures are the fundamental for many modern and future devices/systems, such as electronics, sensing, biomedicine, separation, and so on. Dr. Wen’s research interest focuses on using anodized aluminium oxide (AAO) template for micro/nanostructure fabrication and their device assembling. Dr. Wen has developed a brand-new multi-component nanostructuring technique based on multi-pore AAO template for plasmonic surface lattice resonance, water splitting, and nanowire transistor. Currently, Dr. Wen pursuing innovative vision revolves around several platforms (e.g., hierarchical and flexible architectures) for highly effective systems with a nature inspired approach for multi-functional devices and large-area processing, mainly including 1) Wearable/implantable biosensor, 2) Recyclable adhesion, 3) Self-cleaning/hydrophobicity, 3) Light/thermal management, and 4) Energy conversion/storage.    

Representative Publications

1. Dang, Y.L; Wu, T.L; Tan, H.Y; Wang J.L; Cui, C.; Kerns, P.; Zhao, W.; Posada, L.; Wen, L.Y.*; Suib, S*. Partially reduced Ru/RuO2 composites as efficient and pH-universal electrocatalysts for hydrogen evolution. Energy & Environmental Science, 2021, DOI: 10.1039/D1EE02380B. 

2. Zhu, M.; Li, L.; Zhang, Y.; Wu, K.; Yu, F.; Huang, Z.; Wang, G.; Li, J.; Wen, L.Y.*.; Liu, H.-K.; Dou, S.-X.; Yu, Y.; Wu, C.*, An in-situ formed stable interface layer for high-performance sodium metal anode in a non-flammable electrolyte. Energy Storage Mater. 2021, 42, 145-153.

3. Xu R.⁺,Wen L.Y.⁺, Wang Z., Zhao H., Mu G., Zeng Z., Zhou M., Bohm S., Zhang H., Wu Y., Runge E., Lei Y.*, Programmable Multiple Plasmonic Resonances of Nanoparticle Superlattice for Enhancing Photoelectrochemical Activity, Advanced Functional Materials, 2020, 2005170. (⁺contributed equally)

4. Cui C., Hu X.S., Wen L.Y.*, Recent progress on nanostructured bimetallic electrocatalysts for water splitting and electroreduction of carbon dioxide, Journal of Semiconductors, 2020, 41, 091705.

5. Wen L.Y.⁺, Xu R.⁺, Cui C., Tang W.X., Mi Y., Lu X.X., Zeng Z.Q., Suib S.S, Gao P.X.*, Lei Y.*, Template-Guided Programmable Janus Heteronanostructure Arrays for Efficient Plasmonic Photocatalysis, Nano Letters, 18, 4914–4921, 2018 (⁺contributed equally).

6. Wen L.Y., Xu R., Yan M., Lei Y.*, Multiple nanostructures based on anodized aluminum oxide templates, Nature Nanotechnology, 12, 244–250, 2017.

7. Xu R.⁺,Wen L.Y.⁺,Wang Z.J., Zhao H.P., Xu S.P., Mi Y., Xu Y., Sommerfeld M., Fang Y.G., Lei Y.*, Three-dimensional plasmonic nanostructure design for boosting photoelectrochemical activity, ACS Nano, 11, 7382-7389, 2017 (⁺contributed equally).

8. Yan M.⁺, Wen L.Y.⁺, Xu R., Wang Z.J., Cao D.W., Fang Y.G., Lei Y.*, Constructing AZO/TiO₂ core/shell nanocone array with uniformly dispersed Au NPs for enhancing photoelectrochemical water splitting, Advanced Energy Material, 6, 1501496, 2016 (⁺contributed equally)

9. Wen L.Y.⁺, Zhou M.⁺, Wang. C.L.⁺, Mi Y., Lei Y.*, Nanoengineering energy conversion and storage devices via atomic layer deposition, Advanced Energy Materials, 6, 1600468, 2016 (⁺contributed equally)

10. Mi Y.⁺, Wen L.Y.⁺, Wang Z.J., Cao D.W., Xu R., Fang Y.G., Zhou Y.L., Lei Y.*, Fe(III) modified BiOCl ultrathin nanosheet towards high-efficient visible-light photocatalyst, Nano Energy, 30, 109, 2016 (⁺contributed equally)

11. Wang Z.J., Cao D.W., Wen L.Y., Xu R., Obergfell M., Mi Y., Zhan Z.B., Nasori, Demsar. J, Lei Y.*, Manipulation of charge transfer and transport in plasmonic-ferroelectric hybrids for photoelectrochemical applications, Nature Communication, 7, 10348, 2016.

12. Wen L.Y., Wang Z.J., Yan M., Xu R., Yu S.H.*, Lei Y.*, Designing heterogeneous one-dimensional nanostructure arrays based on AAO template for energy applications, Small, 11, 3408, 2015

13. Liang L.Y., Xu Y., Wang C.L., Wen L.Y., Fang Y.G., Mi Y., Zhou M., Zhao H.P., Lei Y.*, Large-scale Highly Ordered Sb Nanorod Arrays Anode with High Capacity and Rate Capability for Sodium-Ion Batteries, Energy & Environmental Science, 8, 2954, 2015

14. Wen L.Y., Mi Y., Wang C.L., Fang Y.G., Grote F., Zhao H.P., Zhou M., Lei Y.*, Cost-effective atomic layer deposition synthesis of Pt nanotube arrays: application for high performance supercapacitor, Small, 10, 3162, 2014.

15. Cao D.W., Wang Z.J., Nasori, Wen L.Y., Mi Y., Lei Y.*, Switchable Charge-Transfer in the Photoelectrochemical Energy-Conversion Process of Ferroelectric BiFeO₃ Photoelectrodes, Angewandte Chemie International Edition, 126, 11207, 2014.

16. Wen L.Y., Wong K.M., Fang Y.G., Wu M.H., Lei Y.*, Fabrication and characterization of well-aligned, high density ZnO nanowire arrays and their realizations in Schottky device applications using a two-step approach, Journal of Materials Chemistry, 21, 7090, 2011.

17. Wen L.Y., Shao Z.Z., Fang Y.G., Wong K.M., Lei Y.*, Bian L.F.*, Wilde G., Selective growth and piezoelectric propriety of vertical ZnO nanowires on the ultra-thin alumina membranes, Applied Physics Letters, 97, 053106, 2010.