Bo Qiao

Group Leader

Bo Qiao, Assistant Professor Address: School of Physical Science and Technology, ShanghaiTech University Email: qiaobo@shanghaitech.edu.cn   Bio: 2007 - 2011, B.S. Chemistry Peking University, Beijing, China Advisors: Dahui Zhao, Yuguo Ma, and Xinsheng Zhao   2012 - 2017, Ph.D. Chemistry Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana, USA Advisor: Amar H. Flood   2017 - 2020, Post-doctoral Research Associate Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA Advisors: Jeremiah A. Johnson, Yang Shao-Horn   2020 - Present, Assistant Professor School of Physical Science & Technology,  ShanghaiTech University, Shanghai, China

Research Interests

We use supramolecular chemistry to solve impactful problems in energy, sustainability, and health. We develop novel molecular functions on the basis of non-covalent interactions and selective molecular recognitions and incorporate these molecular functions in polymers and gels to achieve advanced properties of new materials.

Currently, we are actively working on these projects:

(1) Optimizing the non-covalent interactions within lithium electrolytes to achieve high-performance electrolyte materials. 

(2) Light-controlled reversible cross-linking of polymer networks

(3) Data-driven design of novel materials based on statistical analysis of non-covalent interactions 

(4) Precise synthesis of gene-delivery polymers 

Publications

Independent Research 

20. Shen, Z.-N.; Xu, Y.-X.; Wang, C.-Y.; Qiao, B.*  Fine-tuning the thermal relaxtion dynamics of indigo-based photoswitches using selective non-covalent interactions without chemical modification, ChemPhotoChem, 2022, 6, e202200004 (Link).   

Cover Feature:

Before Joining ShanghaiTech 

19. Fadler, R. E.; Al Quahabi, A.; Qiao, B.; Carta, V.; König, N. F.; Gao, X.; Zhao, W.; Zhang, Y.; Lutz, J.-F. Flood, A. H. Chain entropy beats hydrogen bonds to unfold and thread dialcohol phosphates inside cyanostar macrocycles to form [3]pseudorotaxanes, J. Org. Chem. 2021, 86, 4532-4546. 

18. Zhang, W.; Feng, S.; Huang, M.; Qiao, B.; Shigenobu, K.; Giordana, L.; Lopez, J.; Tatara, R.; Ueno, K.; Dokko, K.; Watanabe, M.; Shao-Horn, Y.; Johnson, J. A. Molecularly tunable polyanions for single-ion conductors and poly(solvate ionic liquids), Chem. Mater. 2021, 33, 524-534. 

17. Benson, C. R.; Kacenauskaite, L.; VanDenburgh, K. L.; Zhao, W.; Qiao, B.; Sadhukhan, T.; Pink, M.; Chen, J.; Borgi, S.; Chen, C.-H.; Davis, B. J.; Simon, Y. C.; Raghavachari, K.; Laursen, B. W.; Flood, A. H. Plug-and-play optical materials from fluorescent dyes and macrocycles, Chem, 2020, 6, 1978-1997.

16. Qiao, B.†; Mohapatra, S.†; Lopez, J.; Leverick, G. M.; Tatara, R.; Shibuya, Y.; Jiang, Y.; France-Lanord, A.; Grossman, J. C.; Gomez-Bombarelli, R.; Johnson, J. A.; Shao-Horn, Y. Quantitative mapping of molecular substituents to macroscopic properties enables predictive design of oligoethylene glycol-based lithium electrolytes, ACS Cent. Sci. 2020, 6, 1115-1128. († equal contributions) 

15. Zhao, W.; Tropp, J.; Qiao, B.; Pink, M.; Azoulay, J.; Flood, A. H. Tunable adhesion from stoichiometry-controlled and sequence-defined supramolecular polymers emerges hierarchically from cyanostar-stabilized anion-anion linkages, J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2020, 142, 2579-2591. 

14. VanDenburgh, K. L.; Liu, Y.; Sadhukhan, T.; Benson, C. R.; Cox, N. M.; Erbas-Cakmak, S.; Qiao, B.; Gao, X.; Pink, M.; Raghavachari, K.; Flood, A. H. Multi-state amine sensing by electron transfers in a BODIPY probe, Org. Biomol. Chem. 2020, 18, 431-440. 

13. Xue, W.; Shi, Z.; Huang, M.; Feng, S.; Wang, C.; Wang, F.; Lopez, J.; Qiao, B.; Xu, G.; Zhang, W.; Dong, Y.; Gao, R.; Shao-Horn, Y.; Johnson, J. A.; Li, J. FSI-inspired solvent and “full fluorosulfonyl” electrolyte for 4 V class lithium-metal batteries, Energy Environ. Sci. 2020, 13, 212-220

12. Huang, M.; Feng, S.; Zhang, W.; Lopez, J.; Qiao, B.; Tatara, R.; Giordano, L. Shao-Horn, Y.; Johnson, J. A. Design of S-substituted Fluorinated Aryl Sulfonamide Tagged (S-FAST) anions to enable new solvate ionic liquids for battery applications, Chem. Mater. 2019, 31, 7558-7564. 

11. Zhao, W.; Qiao, B.; Tropp, J.; Pink, M.; Azoulay, J. D.; Flood, A. H. Linear supramolecular polymers driven by anion-anion dimerization of difunctional phosphate monomers inside cyanostar macrocycles, J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2019, 141, 4980-4989. 

10. Qiao, B.; Leverick, G. M.; Zhao, W.; Flood, A. H.; Johnson, J. A.; Shao-Horn, Y. Supramolecular recognition of anions enhances conductivity and transference number of lithium in liquid electrolytes, J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2018, 140, 10932-10936. 

9. Sheetz, E. G.; Qiao, B.; Pink, M.; Flood, A. H. Guest-triggered rotamers control stackable macrocycle complexes despite entropy penalty, J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2018, 140, 7773-7777. 

8. Zhao, W.†; Qiao, B.†; Chen, C.-H.; Flood, A. H. High fidelity multi-state switching with anion-anion and acid-anion dimers of organophosphates in cyanostar complexes, Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2017, 56, 13083-13087. († equal contribution) 

7. Qiao, B.; Hirsh, B. E.; Lee, S.; Pink, M.; Chen, C.-H.; Laursen, B. W.; Flood, A. H. Ion-pair oligomerization of chromogenic triangulenium cations with cyanostar-modified anions controls emission in hierarchical materials, J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2017, 139, 6226-6233. 

6. Qiao, B.; Liu, Y.; Lee, S.; Pink, M.; Flood, A. H. High-yield synthesis and acid-base response of phosphate-templated [3]rotaxanes, Chem. Commun. 2016, 52, 13675-13678.  

5. Qiao, B.; Anderson, J. R.; Pink, M.; Flood, A. H. Size-matched recognition of large anions by cyanostar macrocycles is saved when solvation-bias is avoided, Chem. Commun. 2016, 52, 8683-8686. 

4. Qiao, B.; Sengupta, A.; Liu, Y.; McDonald, K. P.; Pink, M.; Anderson, J. R.; Raghavachari, K.; Flood, A. H. Electrostatic and allosteric cooperativity in ion-pair binding: a quantitative and coupled experiment–theory study with aryl-triazole-ether macrocycles, J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2015, 137, 9746-9757. 

3. Hirsch, B. E.; McDonald, K. P.; Qiao, B.; Tait, S. L.; Flood, A. H. Crystal switching and anion binding in surface monolayers modulated by electric fields from scanning probes, ACS Nano 2014, 8, 10858-10869. 

2. McDonald, K. P.; Qiao, B.; Twum, E. B.; Lee, S.; Gamache, P. J.; Chen, C.-H.; Yi, Y.; Flood, A. H. Chloride-binding poly(methyl methacrylate) copolymers bearing aryl-triazole side chains induce changes in polymer size and enhance salt extraction, Chem. Commun. 2014, 50, 13285-13288. 

1. Hirsch, B. E. Lee, S.; Qiao, B.; Chen, C.-H.; McDonald, K. P.; Tait, S. L.; Flood, A. H. Anion-induced dimerization of 5-fold symmetric cyanostars in 3D crystalline solids and 2D self-assembled crystals, Chem. Commun. 2014, 69, 9827-9830.

Group Members