MAE Seminar: Soft magnetoelastic bioelectronics for healthcare

Details

MAE Seminar: Soft magnetoelastic bioelectronics for healthcare
Date: February 5, 2026
Time: 12:50 PM Location: MAE-A 303

Dr. Yihao Zhou
Postdoctoral Scholar
Department of Bioengineering
UCLA

Abstract
The coupling between mechanics and magnetism in soft systems enables a distinct mechanical-to-magnetic transduction mechanism, in which deformation is directly mapped to measurable magnetic outputs for quantifying biomechanics and motion. This framework supports compliant, wireless platforms that conform to soft tissues and track biomechanical biomarkers for healthcare monitoring across diverse diseases. In this seminar, I will introduce our recent progress in the understanding and engineering of magneto-mechanically coupled soft systems and demonstrate how these insights translate into the design and development of new bioelectronic devices. In the first part, I will present our understanding of magnetomechanical coupling in soft magnetoelastic composites and its application in developing portable bioelectronics for quantitative tissue mechanics sensing, including modulus measurement and spatial mapping. In the second part, I will present our understanding of magnetomechanical coupling in permanent fluidic magnets, a material platform that intrinsically integrates flowability with magnetic functionality, enabling injectable liquid bioelectronics for minimally invasive monitoring of cardiovascular biomechanics. I will conclude with a perspective on integrating functional soft systems, bioelectronics, and artificial intelligence to enable multimodal sensing, signal processing, and system-level integration toward next-generation personalized digital healthcare.

Biography
Dr. Yihao Zhou is a Postdoctoral Scholar at UCLA, Department of Bioengineering. He received his B.S. from Nanjing University and earned his Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science from Duke University. His research focuses on soft bioelectronics, including wearable bioelectronics, portable medical devices, and biomedical implants. He leverages theoretical understanding and computational modeling to design and manufacture AI-assisted bioelectronics to address critical healthcare challenges, with applications ranging from skin cancer progression monitoring to artificial electronic skin. Dr. Zhou has developed expertise in soft magnetoelastic bioelectronics, leading to several first-author and co-first-author papers in leading journals, including Nature Materials, Nature Electronics, and Science Advances. His research work was featured in Nature, Science, Nature Materials, Nature Review Bioengineering, UCLA News, etc. He is listed as the Top 2% Scientists in the world by Stanford University and Elsevier. He is a Clarivate Highly Cited Researchers (cross-field) in 2025.

Faculty Host: Dr. Xin Tang