Professor Wenlong Cheng is a Professor in the Department of Chemical Engineering at Monash University and an Ambassador Technology Fellow at the Melbourne Centre for Nanofabrication. He earned his PhD from the Chinese Academy of Sciences in 2005 and his BS from Jilin University, China in 1999. He held positions at the Max Planck Institute of Microstructure Physics and the Department of Biological and Environmental Engineering of Cornell University before joining Monash University in 2010. His research interest lies at the Nano-Bio interface, particularly soft/hard nanohybrids for soft plasmonics, soft electronics and smart theranostics. He has published ~90 journal papers including in Nature Nanotechnology, Nature Materials and Nature Communications. More information can be found in this group webpage: http://users.monash.edu.au/~wenlongc/

Professor Cheng’s nanobionics research laboratory focuses on the rational design of nanobionic materials system by combining design rules in microelectronic and biological systems. He enables this concept through a highly interdisciplinary research program across chemistry, biology, material science and microelectronic engineering. The main goals of the nanobionics laboratory is to synthesize function high quality nanocrystals and conjugate them with biomolecules; rationally program synthesis of nanobiomaterials; elucidate the fundamental structure-function relationships; develop adaptive nanobioelectronic devices.

His research group is currently investigating:

• Synthesis of high-quality size- and shape-controlled metal nanoparticles and their functionalization by biomolecules such as DNA, towards designing exotic smart metamaterials
• Plasmonic nanoparticles for cancer diagnostics and therapeutics. Isogentic health/tumor cell lines have been successfully used for synthesizing tumor cell-specific DNA aptamers, the aptamer-conjugated gold nanoparticles could target cancel cells and enhance tumor cell killing upon light illumination.
• Nano-enabled wearable biomedical diagnostic tools for monitoring key health information anytime anywhere. Ultrathin gold and copper nanowires have been successfully used to synthesize unique electronic skin materials which were then used to fabricate wearable sensors for real-time monitoring wrist pulses, tendon movement, skin/muscle health, etc.

Major professional involvement

Soft skin-like nanopatches for wearable blood pressure monitoring;

Interactive robotics with nanowire-based electronic skin materials

Monash teaching commitment:

• CHE4162 – Particle technology
• CHE3161 – Chemistry and chemical thermodynamics
• CHE3172 – Nanotechnology and materials 1