1. 1
Chao Li
Postdoctoral Researcher
Department of Materials Science and
Engineering
University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
Biointerfaces Institute NCRC 026-111N
2800 Plymouth Road
Ann Arbor, MI 48109-2800
Ph: +1-612-203-7367; Email: licha@umich.edu
Research Interests
Bio-inspired functional surfaces/interfaces, micro/nanoengineering, surface modification, patterning
and functionalization
Static/dynamic wetting, special (extreme) wettability and related applications, such as self-cleaning,
chemical shielding, anti-fogging, anti-icing, anti-biofouling, drag reduction, oil-water separation,
surface-enhanced heat transfer, water collection, droplet- or bubble-based microfluidic devices
Control of small-volume fluid in low Reynolds number and/or Weber number, open microfluidics
Cell-materials interaction, cell culture with open microfluidic devices
Self-organized system, self-assembly of nanomaterials and biomaterials, biomolecule-directed
self-assembly, chirality at mesoscale
Education
Institute of Chemistry Chinese Academy of Sciences (ICCAS) & National Center for Nanoscience and
Technology (NCNST), Beijing, China 2010
Ph.D in Physical Chemistry
Ph.D. Thesis ― Functional self-assembly of liquid crystalline polymer and bio-coordination polymer
Advisor: Prof. Lei Jiang (ICCAS)
Co-advisor: Prof. Zhiyong Tang (NCNST)
Jilin University, Changchun, China 2003
B.E. in Polymer Materials and Engineering
B.E. Thesis ― Interfacial self-assembled nanostructures based on surfactant BP10
Advisor: Prof. Xi Zhang
Experience
Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Michigan 2012-present
Postdoctoral Researcher (Advisor: Prof. Anish Tuteja)
Research Highlight: Extreme wettabilities on surface and related applications in microfluidics and
biological research. Paper-based microfluidic devices for all kinds of liquid, advanced fluidic control
(such as surface oil-water separation, surface liquid-liquid extraction, surface emulsification, and
all-liquid 3D channels), and cell culture with open microfluidic devices.
Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Minnesota 2011-2012
Postdoctoral Researcher (Advisor: Prof. Rusen Yang)
Research Highlight: Growth and structural control of piezoelectric nanomaterials on various substrates

2. 2
(inorganic/polymeric), piezoelectric thin film and nanowire array.
Department of Molecular Design and Engineering, Graduate School of Engineering, Nagoya University,
Nagoya, Japan 2010-2011
Postdoctoral Researcher (Advisor: Prof. Eiji Yashima)
Research Highlight: Training in organic synthesis and product analysis. Modular design of
supramolecular helical-ligand metal-organic frameworks.
Institute of Chemistry Chinese Academy of Sciences (ICCAS) & National Center for Nanoscience and
Technology (NCNST), Beijing, China 2005-2010
Ph.D Student Researcher (Advisor: Prof. Lei Jiang (ICCAS), Co-advisor: Prof. Zhiyong Tang (NCNST))
Research Highlight: (I) Biomimetic design of functional interfaces for control of dynamic wetting/wet
adhesion, superhydrophobic smart surfaces realized by liquid-crystal polymer/elastomer. (II)
Self-assembly, structural control and analysis of biocoordination polymers, and medical applications.
Publications
1. Chao Li, Mathew Boban, Sarah A. Snyder, Sai P. R. Kobaku, Gibum Kwon, Geeta Mehta
*
and
Anish Tuteja
*
, Paper-based Surfaces with Extreme Wettabilities for Novel, Open-Channel
Microfluidic Devices, Adv. Funct. Mater. 2016 (DOI: 10.1002/adfm.201601821).
2. Ren Zhu, Wengui Zhang, Chao Li and Rusen Yang
*
, Uniform Zinc Oxide Nanowire Arrays Grown
on Nonepitaxial Surface with General Orientation Control, Nano Lett. 2013, 13, 5171−5176.
3. Yong Liu, Chao Li, Yaling Liu and Zhiyong Tang
*
, Helical Silver(I)-Glutathione Biocoordination
Polymer Nanofibres, Phil. Trans. R. Soc. A 2013, 371, 20120307.
4. Chao Li, Yuanyuan Zhang, Jie Ju, Futao Cheng, Mingjie Liu, Lei Jiang and Yanlei Yu
*
, In Situ Fully
Light-Driven Switching of Superhydrophobic Adhesion, Adv. Funct. Mater. 2012, 22, 760–763.
5. Chao Li, Futao Cheng, Jiu-an Lv, Yong Zhao, Mingjie Liu, Lei Jiang and Yanlei Yu
*
, Light-Controlled
Quick Switch of Adhesion on a Micro-Arrayed Liquid Crystal Polymer Superhydrophobic Film, Soft
Matter 2012, 8, 3730–3733.
6. Yong Liu, Wanshun Ma, Wenwen Liu, Chao Li, Yaling Liu
*
, Xinyu Jiang and Zhiyong Tang
*
,
Silver(I)-Glutathione Biocoordination Polymer Hydrogel: Effective Antibacterial Activity and Improved
Cytocompatibility, J. Mater. Chem. 2011, 21, 19214–19218.
7. Chao Li, Zhiyong Tang
*
and Lei Jiang, Easy Patterning of Silver Nanoparticle Superstructures on
Silicon Surfaces, J. Mater. Chem. 2010, 20, 9608–9612.
8. Chao Li, Ke Deng, Zhiyong Tang
*
and Lei Jiang, Twisted Metal-Amino Acid Nanobelts: Chirality
Transcription from Molecules to Frameworks, J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2010, 132, 8202–8209.
9. Chao Li, Renwei Guo, Xi Jiang, Shuxin Hu, Lin Li, Xinyu Cao
*
, Huai Yang
*
, Yanlin Song, Yongmei
Ma and Lei Jiang
*
, Reversible Switching of Water-Droplet Mobility on a Superhydrophobic Surface
Based on a Phase Transition of a Side-Chain Liquid-Crystal Polymer, Adv. Mater. 2009, 21,
4254–4258.
10. Shuxin Hu, Xinyu Cao
*
, Yanlin Song, Chao Li, Ping Xie and Lei Jiang
*
, New Responsive Property
of Poly(ε-caprolactone) as the Thermal Switch from Superhydrophobic to Superhydrophilic, Chem.
Commun. 2008, 2025–2027.

3. 3
Patent
1. Silane Based Surfaces with Extreme Wettabilities, Anish Tuteja and Chao Li, patent number, CA
2926947 A1; PCT number, PCT/US2014/060162; publication date, Apr 16, 2015; Filing date, Oct 10,
2014.