Harnessing Light at the Nanoscale
Since 2018, Nianqiang "Nick" Wu has been recognized each year as one of the world's most highly cited researchers by Clarivate, placing him among the top one percent of scientists in his field.
At UMass Amherst, where he has held the Armstrong/Siadat Endowed Professorship in Materials Science and Engineering from 2020-2025, Wu leads research at the intersection of electrochemistry, nanomaterials, and photonics. His work centers on understanding how charge and energy move through materials—and then applying that knowledge to create technologies for medical and environmental biosensing, medical therapies, fuel synthesis, energy storage, and more.
Wu’s lab has developed a range of medical devices designed to make testing faster and more accurate. For example, his team has created an optical paper- based test strip that could detect COVID-19 coronavirus earlier than many commercial options, while also reducing false negative alarms.
His lab also designed a groundbreaking HIV diagnostic tool that works with just a single drop of blood. The device can identify HIV biomarkers within two weeks of infection—a major step forward given how low these markers are in the bloodstream at that stage.
Wu is also exploring medical therapies. By combining plasmonic metals and semiconductors into tiny core–shell nanoparticles, his lab has created particles that can both find and treat diseased cells. When illuminated with near-infrared light, they generate reactive oxygen species that selectively kill targeted cells, a technique known as photodynamic therapy. Because these same particles can also carry imaging agents, they serve a “theranostic” role, potentially helping doctors both locate and treat disease with precision.
Another central focus of Wu’s research is using sunlight— via photoelectrochemical cells and photocatalysts—to power chemical reactions that use solar energy in a fuel synthesis process. For example, his lab explores hybrid nanostructures where metal nanoparticles interact with semiconductors. This interaction can enhance how light excites electrons and promote energy transfer, improving the efficiency of solar-driven reactions, and bringing the vision of solar fuel generation closer to reality.
In this area, Wu’s team made an unprecedented discovery of the plasmon-induced resonance energy transfer (PIRET) mechanism, which has paved a new avenue to harvesting light energy and converting it to electrons and holes. This theory has since been widely used in solar cells, photocatalysis, photoluminescence, biosensing and imaging, as well as phototherapy.
In parallel, Wu’s team is work ing on next-generation batteries and capacitors for storing renewable energy. T hey are developing new solid-state electrolytes and composite materials that make lithium batteries safer, longer-lasting, and capable of holding more energy—features that are especially important for electric vehicles. Ultimately, what sets Wu’s research apart is its range—few scientists move so seamlessly between medical diagnostics, materials design, and renewable energy—and this expansive approach has attracted wide recognition and support. Since joining UMass Amherst in 2020, Wu was involved in multiple extramural grants of more than $27 million as a principal or co-investigator.
Wu emphasizes that his work begins with fundamental science, with basic questions about how electrons and energy flow through materials—but his research illustrates how the answers to these questions can ripple outward into technologies with global impact.