Our Vision

J2 Lab, Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Cornell University, USA

Jingjie Yeo

Our lab focuses on a single, complex issue: the rapid aging of the global human population. The United Nations estimates that by 2020, the number of people under the age of 5 will be outnumbered by those over 65. The World Health Organization projects that rapid global aging will severely exacerbate the burden of noncommunicable diseases for populations who can least afford treatments. Therefore, humanity urgently needs to dramatically improve the prevention and treatment of these diseases, especially by developing soft, adaptive, and responsive biomaterials at a low cost for drugs or drug delivery vehicles with specific targeting mechanisms, environmentally sensitive implants for tissue engineering, or for dynamic health monitoring.

We will achieve this vision through interdisciplinary studies of material and biological phenomena by advancing multiscale, multi-physics computational methods and simulations. We aim to characterize and predict the mechanical, chemical, optical, and electrical structure-function relationships of polymers, bio-polymers, and bio-inspired materials of various morphologies. With additional techniques from machine learning and computational biology, we investigate phenomena related to the human microbiome as a living material for engineering purposes. Through our research, we will propel the development of dynamically-responsive, living materials and design synthetic biological platforms for engineering and medical applications.

About the PI

J2 Lab, Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Cornell University, USA

Jingjie Yeo

Prof. Jingjie Yeo is an assistant professor in Cornell University’s Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering. He is the Principal Investigator at the J² Lab for Engineering Living Materials. The overarching goal of his research program is to lead advances in computationally designing and characterizing environmentally sustainable materials, with a focus on bacteria-based engineered living materials (ELMs) and the biopolymers that they produce. He is also a co-instructor in Station1, a social nonprofit organization dedicated to building the foundations of the university of the future through educational opportunity and socially-directed frontier STEM education, research, and internships. Prof. Jingjie Yeo is the recipient of multiple awards, including the NSF's most prestigious award, the NSF CAREER award, and the highest teaching award in Cornell's College of Engineering, the Dennis G. Shepherd Excellence in Teaching Award. Before joining Cornell University in 2020, Prof. Yeo was a research scientist in the Institute of High Performance Computing, Singapore where he helped develop cutting-edge, silk-based cosmeceuticals. Prior, he was a postdoc at both Tufts University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he developed and performed numerous multiscale simulations with density functional theory and fully-atomistic to coarse-grained molecular dynamics modeling on a broad variety of biomaterials such as squid skin, silk and silk-elastin-like proteins, and graphene. He received both his Ph.D. and his B.Eng. degrees from the School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering in Nanyang Technological University Singapore.

Awards and Honors
2024: PI: NSF CAREER award #2338518 “CAREER: Nanomechanics of Bacterial Mucoadhesion and Growth on Healthy and Diseased Human Gut Mucus”. Featured on: Cornell Engineering News.
2023: Recipient of the highest teaching award in Cornell's College of Engineering, the Dennis G. Shepherd Excellence in Teaching Award. Featured on: Cornell Engineering News and Cornell Engineering List of Awardees.
2022: Co-PI: NSF EFRI ELiS Grant #2223785 “EFRI ELiS: Mechanically Adaptive Living Structural Materials”
2021 - 2023: PI: NSF XSEDE Grant #BIO210063 “Mitigating aging-related disorders by innovating and characterizing bio-polymeric, dynamically responsive materials”
2020: Emerging Investigators – RSC ChemComm
2020: Co-PI: NSF BMMB Grant #2038057 “A Multiscale Investigation of Fatigue Induced Damage Progression in Tendon”
2020: PI: Cornell China Center ZJU-Cornell Joint Seed Fund “Multistimuli-responsive silk-elastin-like protein hydrogels for dynamic biomaterials”
2020: Emerging Investigators – RSC Journal of Materials Chemistry B
2016: Most Inventive Business Idea (Massachusetts Institute of Technology Innovation@ONE Boot Camp and Business Plan Pitch). Featured on: MIT News.
2016: Best Industry Project Award (Institute of High Performance Computing, Singapore)
2016: Postdoctoral Fellowship (A*STAR Graduate Academy, Singapore)
2010: Graduate Scholarship (A*STAR Graduate Academy, Singapore)

Editorial Positions
2023 - now: Section Editor, STEM Education, the official journal for STEM education of the American Institute of Mathematical Sciences (AIMS)
2020 - 2022: Editor-in-Chief, STEM Education, the official journal for STEM education of the American Institute of Mathematical Sciences (AIMS)
2019 - now: Editorial Board Member, International Journal of Applied Mechanics
2018: Early Career Editorial Advisory Board, ACS Biomaterials Science & Engineering. Featured on: ACS Axial
2017 - now: Editorial Board Member, International Journal of Computational Materials Science and Engineering

Ph.D. Students

J2 Lab, Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Cornell University, USA

Jingjie Yeo

Haoyuan Shi's LinkedIn
Haoyuan Shi is a Ph.D. student ('24) in our group. He received his Bachelor’s degree in Energy and Power Engineering from Tianjin University in 2019. His research interests are in multiscale computational modeling of biomaterials and he is currently working on modeling protein-based biomaterials, such as regenerated silk and silk-based materials. Outside of his research, he enjoys watching basketball games, traveling, and playing video games.

Tianjiao Li's LinkedIn
Tianjiao Li is from Shaanxi, China, and he is a Ph.D. student ('24) in our group. He obtained his Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering from Xi'an Jiaotong University in 2017, and his Master's degree in Mechanical Engineering from Northwestern University in 2019. His research interests are in machine learning/deep learning in materials informatics, multiscale simulations, and data-driven material design and discovery. In his free time, he likes to cook, work out, and play video games. He is a big fan of the Nintendo game franchises. He also enjoys reading about the practical philosophy of logic, epistemology, and history.



Liming Zhao's LinkedIn
Liming Zhao is a Ph.D. student ('25) in our group. He received his Bachelor's degree in Materials Science and Engineering in 2019 from Southern University of Science and Technology, a young and rapidly ascending university located in Shenzhen, China’s Silicon Valley. He then obtained his Master's degree in Materials Science and Engineering from University of California, Irvine, in 2020. His research interests lie in the exploration of the aggregation and mechanical properties of complex biomaterial systems by multiscale computational simulations and stochastic process methods. Beyond his research, he enjoys cooking and baking.

Kaiyang Wang's LinkedIn
Kaiyang Wang is from Xi’an, China and he is a PhD student ('24/25) in our group. He graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Materials Science and Engineering from Tsinghua University in 2017. Subsequently, he received his master’s degree from Cornell University in 2019 and his thesis focused on 3D printing and soft matter. He developed a keen interest in computational materials science since diving into the PhD program. He is particularly passionate about the intersection of machine learning and materials design. Beyond his research, he enjoys skiing, jogging, tennis, basketball, and playing the piano.



Yen-Yu Lai is from Taipei, Taiwan, and she is a Ph.D. student ('27) in our group. She received her Bachelor's degrees in civil engineering and mechanical engineering from National Taiwan University in 2022. Her research interests mainly lie in computational mechanics, specifically in employing multiscale computational modeling to understand material properties. Beyond her research, she enjoys cooking, reading, and playing the violin.

Ruye Li is from Shijiazhuang, China, and she is a Ph.D. student in our group. She received her Bachelor’s degree in Chemistry from Nankai University in 2019. She spent two years working as a research assistant in Tsinghua-Berkeley Shenzhen Institute before she enrolled in Cornell in 2021. Her research interests lie in the interdisciplinary area of physics, chemistry and material, with an emphasis on methodology development and application of multiscale simulations of biological material. Beyond research, she is a big fan of anime, and she enjoys playing mobile games and travelling as well.



Ruohong Chen is from Beijing, China, and she is currently a Ph.D. student in our group. She received her Bachelor’s degrees in Civil and Environmental Engineering from Wuhan University in 2018. Her research interest mainly lies in multiscale modeling of solid materials, specifically in employing MD simulations to analyze the mechanical properties of engineered living materials. Beyond her research, she enjoys tennis and traveling.

Jelissa Kamguem is a PhD student ('28) in our group and she is co-advised by Prof. Nikolas Bouklas, MAE. She received her bachelor's degree in chemical engineering from Lafayette College and did her undergraduate thesis working with Prof. Heather Kulik in MIT. Her research interest is in multiscale computational modeling of biomaterials and is currently working on modeling body tissues such as collagen fibres in tendons. Outside of research, Jelissa loves playing basketball, playing piano, singing and dancing to afro beats.



Masters Students

J2 Lab, Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Cornell University, USA

Jingjie Yeo

Junjie Wu is from Hefei, China, and he is currently a MS student in our group. He received his Bachelor’s degree in Materials Science and Engineering from Sichuan University and University of Pittsburgh. His research interest is on applying machine learning in materials design. Outside of research, he enjoys traveling, biking, and reading.

Zhongyu Yan is from Wuxi, China. He is currently a MS student of Material Science and Engineering in our group. He received his Bachelor’s degree in Material Science and Engineering from Guangdong Technion-Israel Institute of Technology. He is interested in simulation of biomaterials and biomedical area. Beyond research, he has a passion for soccer and movies.



Naveen Roppin Suresh Kumar is from Chennai, India. He is currently pursuing his MS in Materials Science and Engineering. He completed his Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering from Anna University, Chennai in 2022. His research focuses on developing novel bio-inspired materials by combining multiscale computational simulations with artificial intelligence to investigate the structure-property relationship of emergence in biological materials. In his leisure, he enjoys hiking, birdwatching, swimming, playing board games, and, cooking.

Zehui Lin is from Shenzhen, China. He is currently a MS student of Material Science and Engineering in our group. He received his Bachelor's degrees in Material Science and Engineering and Mathematics with Computer Science from Guangdong Technion-Israel Institute of Technology. He is interested in AI models for optimizing Flexible Hybrid Electronics. Beyond research, he enjoys cooking, movies and playing Gundam models.



Zhiyu An is an M.Eng student in our group. He received his Bachelor’s degree in Materials Science and Engineering from Central South University in 2023. His research interests are in computational modeling of High Entropy alloy and he is currently working on modeling element datasets. Outside of his research, he enjoys playing badminton and watching basketball games.



Undergraduate Students

J2 Lab, Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Cornell University, USA

Jingjie Yeo

Yikai Ong is a first-year undergraduate student from Singapore studying Mathematics and Computer Science. His research interests are in studying the sustainability of biomaterials and in life cycle analysis. In his free time, he enjoys running and hiking.



J2 Lab Alumni

J2 Lab, Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Cornell University, USA

Jingjie Yeo

Isuru Herath is a third-year undergraduate student from Ellicott City, Maryland studying Chemistry and Computer Science. His research interests are in drug delivery and using machine learning and molecular dynamics simulations to study protein-protein and protein-ligand interactions. In his free time, he enjoys drawing, playing the saxophone, and running.



Hanfeng Zhai's LinkedIn and Website
Hanfeng Zhai is from Beijing, China. He is currently an MS student of Mechanical Engineering in our group. He received his Bachelor’s degree in Theoretical and Applied Mechanics from Shanghai University. His research interests are mainly on computational modeling, multiscale mechanics theories, and physics-informed deep learning. Beyond research, he is a huge fan of sports and was an American football player in his college.

Menglin Wang is from Shi Jiazhuang, China. He is currently a MS student of Materials Science and Engineering in our group. He received his Bachelor’s degree in New Energy Materials and Devices from Anhui University. His interest are in machine learning/deep learning in materials design and discovery. Beyond research, he enjoys traveling and hiking.



Changhwi Han's LinkedIn
Changhwi Han is an M.S. student ('23) in our group. He received his B.S. degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) in 2017. Upon graduating, Changhwi Joined Samsung Electronics in Korea as a Display Mechanical Engineer and worked there for four years before joining our group. His research interests include machine learning, optimization, and data mining. Beyond his research, he enjoys cooking and watching political news.

Shengjie Tang's LinkedIn
Shengjie Tang is from Chongqing, China. He is currently an MS student of Mechanical Engineering in our group. He received his dual Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering from Dalian University of Technology and University of Leicester. He is interested in thermodynamics and material mechanics, aiming to use computational methods to predict material properties.



Yu Yang's LinkedIn
Yu Yang is from Wuhan, China. He is currently a MS student of Mechanical Engineering in our group. He received his Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from Florida Institute of Technology. His research interests are mainly on materials discovery and design using machine learning/deep learning. Beyond his research, he enjoys playing basketball and video games.

Deepa Korani's Website and Google Scholar
Deepa Korani is from Dubai, United Arab Emirates. She is currently a MS student in the Material Science and Engineering department. She received her Bachelor's degree in Chemical Engineering and Chemistry from Purdue University. She is passionate about the intersection of Machine Learning and Deep Learning in areas of polymer informatics. Beyond her research she enjoys reading/writing, swimming and cooking.



Chenxi Zhai's Website
Chenxi Zhai is from Qingdao, China, and he was a postdoctoral scholar in our group. He obtained his Bachelor's degree from the University of Jinan, his Master's Degree from Tianjin University, and his Doctoral degree from Florida State University. His research interests are in multiscale computational materials design and molecular mechanics/dynamics, especially in the slow dynamics of polymeric materials. In his spare time, he has broad interests in soccer, football, table tennis, fitness, economy and history, thrillers, and chess. He was a professional 400-meter race athlete when he was 18 (national rank level-3, < 56s).

Haolin Yu's LinkedIn
Haolin Yu was a M.Eng student of Computer Science in our group. He received his dual Bachelor's degree in Computer Science and Applied Mathematics from Stony Brook University. He is interested in training machine learned models with high-throughput chemical simulations to parameterize molecular models. In his leisure time, he enjoys drawing pixel arts and programming.



Jiahao Liu is from Guangdong, China, and he is recently an undergraduate student majoring in Engineering Mechanics at Xi'an Jiaotong University. He joined the J2 Lab in 2022 as a summer research intern and focused on the multidisciplinary combinations of mechanics, computational modeling and machine learning. In his spare time, he enjoys traveling, reading, playing badminton and tennis, and watching sports games.

Andrew Helwig is from Framingham, Massachusetts: I am a sophomore studying mechanical engineering, and in my free time I enjoy playing guitar, reading, and doing crossword puzzles.



Dayton Shor was a M.Eng. student in our group working on platforms for extracting data from materials databases and performing machine learning to assist our group in developing novel, soft biomaterials. He is now in industry as a data scientist.

Colin Whitten is from Stuttgart, Germany, and he was a M.Eng. student in our group. He obtained his Bachelor's degree in Civil Engineering from Cornell University in 2019. His research interests are in performing machine learning to assist our group in molecular dynamics simulations. In his spare time he enjoys playing basketball and guitar.



Rossie Luo was an MPS student in food science with a research focus on sensory impact of yeast and bacteria fermentation. She has a strong interest in microbiology and polymer science, and hopes to understand more about biofilm formation and antimicrobial surface engineering through computer simulation. Outside of school, she enjoys cooking/baking, home brewing, watching movies, painting, playing tennis and running.

George Orellana was a second semester M.Eng student with an interest in utilizing software engineering to solve complex problems in the mechanical engineering field. His experience in robotics, research, and entrepreneurship has given him an extensive skill set to solve problems and tackle modern challenges.