There are two major challenges in integrating crystalline piezoelectric materials with soft biological systems for medical applications. First, they are inherently brittle and rigid, leading to significant mechanical mismatches with biological systems. Second, traditional piezoelectric materials are not degradable, either requiring removal or risking accumulation once implanted. In this talk, I will first discuss my works in engineering piezoelectric structures and devices with tissue/organ-mimetic properties through electric-field-assisted 3D printing. In the second part, I will focus on presenting degradable piezoelectric crystals and devices fabricated through mild solution-based approaches. Finally, I will discuss the opportunities in discovering new piezoelectric crystals enabled by high throughput 2D printing and rapid non-linear optical screening platforms. Overall, my research at the intersection of biomaterials, advanced manufacturing, and biomedical devices aims to address limitations in piezoelectric crystals and open new paths toward next-generation biointegrated electromechanical systems.
Dr. Jun Li is currently an assistant professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering and Biomedical Engineering Program at University of Colorado Boulder. He received his B. Eng. from Zhejiang University, China in 2016 and earned his Ph.D. in Materials Science and Engineering at the University of Wisconsin–Madison in 2021. He then became an IIN postdoc fellow and completed his postdoctoral training in the International Institute for Nanotechnology and the Department of Chemistry at Northwestern University. He has published papers in journals including Science, Nature Communications, Advanced Materials, and Science Advances, with works highlighted by Science, NIBIB News & Events, Forbes, and other media outlets.