Xueju "Sophie" Wang
Associate Professor
Department of Materials Science and Engineering
Education
-
Ph.D., Mechanical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology (2016)
- M.S., Mechanical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology (2016)
- B.E., Chemical Engineering, Dalian University of Technology (2011)
Research Summary
- Soft, stimuli-responsive materials and multifunctional structures
- Multistability of reconfigurable, magnetically responsive structures
- Flexible/pressure-tolerant/bio-integrated electronics
- Soft robotics and intelligent systems
- Flexible/stretchable/bio-integrated electronics
- In-situ/environmental operando experimental techniques
Honors and Awards
- Office of Naval Research (ONR) Young Investigator Award, 2023
- Soft Matter Emerging Investigator, 2023
- Journal of Materials Chemistry B Emerging Investigator, 2023
- Extreme Mechanical Letters (EML) Young Investigator Award, 2022
- National Institutes of Health (NIH) Trailblazer Award, 2022
- National Science Foundation (NSF) CAREER Award, 2022
- ACS Polymeric Materials: Science and Engineering (PMSE) Young Investigator Award, 2022
- ASME Orr Early Career Award, 2021
- Defense University Research Instrumentation Program (DURIP) Award, 2021
- ASME Haythornthwaite Foundation Research Initiation Award, 2019
- 1907 Women in Engineering Faculty Award, University of Missouri, 2019
- Richard Wallace Faculty Incentive Grant Award, University of Missouri, 2019
- Coulter Program Award, Coulter Biomedical Accelerator, University of Missouri, 2019
- Gary L. Cloud Scholarship Award, Society for Experimental Mechanics, 2016
- Society of Experimental Mechanics International Student Paper Competition Finalist, 2014
Select Publications
Full Publication List: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=fjXceLIAAAAJ&hl=en
Liquid-based encapsulation for implantable bioelectronics across broad pH environments, H. Sun†, X. Xue†, G. L. Robilotto†, X. Zhang†, C. Son†, X. Chen, Y. Cao, K. Nan, Y. Yang, G. Fennell, J. Jung, Y. Song, H. Li, S. Lu, Y. Liu, Y. Li, W. Zhang, J. He, X. Wang, Y. Li, A. D. Mickle*, Y. Zhang*, Nature Communications, Nat Commun 16, 1019 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-55992-x.
Shaping magnetic liquid metals into 3D leakage-free, shape-programmable structures and electronics, Yongyu Lu, Zizheng Wang, Vagif Abdulla, Jacob Pfund, Shao-Hao Lu, Yi Li, Xincheng Zhang, Gavin Fennell, Yuxuan Zhang, Menka Jain, Yi Zhang, Xueju Wang*, Advanced Electronic Materials, https://doi.org/10.1002/aelm.202500166.
Thermal-gradient-driven heterogeneous actuation of liquid crystal elastomers for a crawling robot, Y. Li, Z. Wang, Y. Lu, H. Li, Z. Weng, J. Sun, Y. Zhang, T. Zhang, X. Wang*, ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, 17 (6), 9992-10003 (2025).
Viscoelasticity of Hyaluronic Acid Hydrogels Regulates Human Pluripotent Stem Cell‐derived Spinal Cord Organoid Patterning and Vascularization Chen, X., Liu, C., McDaniel, G., Zeng, O., Ali, J., Zhou, Y., Wang, X., Driscoll, T., Zeng, C. and Li, Y., 2024. Advanced healthcare materials, p.2402199.
Tough and Elastic Cellulose Composite Hydrogels/Films for Flexible Wearable Sensors. Yang, T., Lu, S.H., Zhu, H., Patetsos, A., McDonald, E., Mellor, M.D., Luo, Y., Rusling, J.F., Wang, X*. and He, J.*, ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, 16(30), pp.40018-40029.
Finding Transition State and Minimum Energy Path of Bistable Elastic Continua through energy landscape explorations. G.C. Wan†, S. J. Avis†, Z.Z. Wang, X.J. Wang*, H. Kusumaatmajac*, T. Zhang*, Journal of the Mechanics and Physics of Solids (JMPS),183, 105503 (2023).
Functional materials for powering and implementing next-generation miniature sensors
B.B. Wua†, H. Ouro-Kouraa†, S.H. Lu, H.D. Li, X.J. Wang, J. Xiao*, Z. D. Deng*, Materials Today, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mattod.2023.09.001 (Invited Review Paper).
Soft, Flexible Pressure Sensors for Pressure Monitoring Under Large Hydrostatic Pressure and Harsh Ocean Environments (Invited paper for the Soft Matter Emerging Investigators Series)
Y. Li†, A. Villada†, S.H. Lu, H. Sun, J.L. Xiao*, X.J. Wang*, Soft Matter, https://doi.org/10.1039/D3SM00563A
Soft, flexible conductivity sensors for monitoring ocean salinity (Invited paper for the 2023 Emerging Investigators Themed Issue)
S.H. Lu, Y. Li, X.J. Wang*, Journal of Materials Chemistry B, https://doi.org/10.1039/D3TB01167D.
Fracture Resistance of Chemo-mechanically Coupled Solid Solutions(Invited paper for a special issue in honor of Prof. Kyung-Suk Kim’s 70th birthday and his contribution to micro- & nano-mechanics)
X.J. Wang, M. Lu, M. Zhou, S.M. Xia*,
Journal of Applied Mechanics, p1-33 (2023).
Inflammatory Response and Exosome Biogenesis of Choroid Plexus Organoids Derived from Human Pluripotent Stem Cells
Laureana Muok, Chang Liu, Xingchi Chen, Colin Esmonde, Peggy Arthur, Xueju Wang, Mandip Singh, Tristan Driscoll, and Yan Li,*
International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 24(8), 7660(2023).
Covalently Attached Slippery Surface Coatings to Reduce Protein Adsorptions on Poly(dimethylsiloxane) Planar Surfaces and 3D Microfluidic Channels
Yue Cao†, Xingchi Chen†, Avi Matarasso, Zizheng Wang, Song Yang, Guangfu Wu, Xincheng Zhang, He Sun, Xueju Wang, Michael R. Bruchas, Yan Li*, Yi Zhang*, ACS Applied Materials and Interfaces, 15, 7, 9987–9995(2023)

xueju.wang@uconn.edu | |
Phone | 860-486-9288 |
Mailing Address | 25 King Hill Road, Unit 3136, Storrs, CT 06269-3136 |
Office Location | Science 1 - MZ1020 |
Campus | Storrs |
Link | https://www.wangresearchlab.com/ |