Mechanics of Mixed Ionic–Electronic Conductors
Project Description
Organic mixed ionic–electronic conductors (OMIECs) are an emerging family of materials crucial in the development of flexible, bio-, and optoelectronics. In IMIECs, the cyclic redox reaction is often associated with a mechanical breathing strain which deforms the active material and degrades the device reliability. The goal of the project is to understand the fundamental coupling between mechanics and electrochemistry in a variety of mixed ionic and electronic conductors, including battery materials, organic electrochemical transistors, and organic electrochromic polymers. The research project will be carried through by well-coordinated material synthesis, in-situ/operando mechanical characterization, and computational modeling. The mechanical measurement of breathing strain, rational design of organic materials through mechanical reliability analysis, and theoretical understanding on the intimate coupling between the redox kinetics and mechanical stresses will be the focus of study. The research is highly interdisciplinary involving two research groups of complementary expertise on mechanics and material chemistry.
Start Date
Spring-summer, 2026
Postdoc Qualifications
Candidates should have PhD degree in mechanics, material science, chemistry, or related fields. Candidates with career goal in academia are preferred.
Candidates should have demonstrated expertise in mechanics (computational or experimental), material synthesis, and electrochemical analysis.
Candidates must have excellent team spirit, scientific writing capability, English communication skills, and design sense. Candidates need to be able and willing to work in a highly interdisciplinary environment.
Co-advisors
Kejie Zhao, kjzhao@purdue.edu, School of Mechanical Engineering, https://engineering.purdue.edu/kjzhao/index.html
Jianguo Mei, jgmei@purdue.edu, James Tarpo Jr. and Margaret Tarpo Department of Chemistry, https://www.jianguomei.com/
Bibliography
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1. Xiaokang Wang, Ke Chen, Luize Scalco de Vasconcelos, Jiazhi He, Yung C. Shin, Jianguo Mei, Kejie Zhao. Mechanical breathing in organic electrochromics. Nature Communications. 11, 211 (2020). 2. Xiaokang Wang, Xuefei Li, Jianguo Mei, Kejie Zhao. Doping kinetics in organic mixed ionic-electronic conductors: Moving front experiments and the stress effect. Extreme Mechanics Letters. 54, 101739 (2022). 3. Xiaokang Wang, Kejie Zhao. A continuum theory of organic mixed ionic-electronic conductors of phase separation. Journal of the Mechanics and Physics of Solids. 172, 105178 (2023). 4. Xixian Yang, Hong Sun, Xiaomei He, Kejie Zhao. Molecular mechanism of mechanical breathing in organic mixed ionic-electronic conductors. Macromolecules. 58, 45-60 (2025). 5. Xiaokang Wang, Xixian Yang, Jianguo Mei, Kejie Zhao. Mechanics and dynamics of organic mixed ionic-electronic conductors. Applied Mechanics Reviews. 77, 030801 (2025) |