Zuwan Lin-Center For Interdisciplinary Studies

People

Faculty

Zuwan Lin,Ph.D.

▎Materials Science and Engineering Information Technology in Artificial Intelligence Website：https://linzw14.github.io/

▎Intelligent Brain–Computer Interfaces and Bioelectronics LaboratoryEmail：linzuwan@westlake.edu.cn

Biography

Dr. Zuwan Lin will join the School of Engineering at Westlake University in 2027 as an Assistant Professor and Principal Investigator. He received his bachelor’s degree from Tsinghua University in 2018 and his Ph.D. degree from Harvard University in 2024. He then conducted postdoctoral research at the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences.

Dr. Lin’s research lies at the interface of flexible bioelectronics, brain–computer interfaces, multimodal spatial omics, and artificial intelligence. He aims to develop next-generation bioelectronic platforms that enable long-term stable recording, molecularly resolved analysis, and intelligent interpretation of complex biological systems. His research connects neural signals, tissue microenvironments, molecular states, and behavioral phenotypes, with the goal of developing engineering tools for high-resolution measurement, mechanistic discovery, and intelligent intervention in living systems.

Research

The Intelligent Brain–Computer Interfaces and Bioelectronics Laboratory at Westlake University develops engineering technologies at the interface of flexible bioelectronics, brain–computer interfaces, spatial omics, artificial intelligence, and laboratory automation. We aim to build soft, stable, and intelligent bioelectronic systems for measuring, analyzing, and modulating complex biological systems across electrical, molecular, spatial, and behavioral dimensions.

Our research focuses on the following directions:

1. Flexible bioelectronics and long-term brain–computer interfaces: developing minimally invasive, tissue-integrated, and stable bioelectronic devices for long-term recording and modulation of neural activity, tissue function, and brain–computer interface signals;

2. Multimodal functional–molecular mapping: integrating electrophysiology, spatial omics, imaging, and perturbation experiments to construct multiscale maps that connect neural signals, tissue microenvironments, molecular states, and behavioral phenotypes;

3. AI agents for complex biological data analysis: developing AI-agent-based methods for automated analysis, quality control, mechanistic reasoning, and scientific discovery from brain–computer interface, spatial omics, and behavioral datasets;

4. Laboratory automation and closed-loop intelligent systems: combining automated experimental platforms, intelligent decision-making models, and closed-loop modulation strategies to explore new engineering approaches that connect living systems with intelligent machines.

Representative Publications

1. Z. Lin*, A. Marin-Llobet*, J. Baek, Y. He, J. Lee, W. Wang, X. Zhang, A. J. Lee, N. Liang, J. Du, J. Ding, N. Li, and J. Liu. Spike sorting AI agent. bioRxiv, 2025 (Accepted, Nature Neuroscience)

2. Q. Li*, R. Liu*, Z. Lin*, X. Zhang*, I. G. Silva, S. D. Pollock, J. R. Alvarez-Dominguez, and J. Liu. Implanted flexible electronics reveal principles of human islet cell electrical maturation Science, 391(6787):eaeb3295, 2026

3. Z. Lin*, W. Wang*, R. Liu*, Q. Li*, J. Lee, C. Hirschler, and J. Liu. Cyborg organoids integrated with stretchable nanoelectronics can be functionally mapped during development. Nature Protocols, 20(9):2528–2559, 2025

4. H. Sheng*, R. Liu*, Q. Li*, Z. Lin*, Y. He, T. S. Blum, H. Zhao, X. Tang, W. Wang, L. Jin, Z. Wang, E. Hsiao, P. Le Floch, H. Shen, A. J. Lee, R. A. Jonas-Closs, J. Briggs, S. Liu, D. Solomon, X. Wang, N. Lu, and J. Liu. Brain implantation of tissue-level-soft bioelectronics via embryonic development. Nature, 642(8069):954-964, 2025 (Nature Cover)

5. Q. Li*, Z. Lin*, R. Liu*, X. Tang*, J. Huang, Y. He, X. Sui, W. Tian, H. Shen, H. Zhou, H. Sheng, H. Shi, L. Xiao, X. Wang, and J. Liu. Multimodal charting of molecular and functional cell states via in situ electro-sequencing. Cell, 186(9):2002–2017 e21, 2023 (Cell Cover)

6. Z. Lin*, J. C. Garbern*, R. Liu*, Q. Li, E. Mancheno Juncosa, H. L. T. Elwell, M. Sokol, J. Aoyama, U. S. Deumer, E. Hsiao, H. Sheng, R. T. Lee, and J. Liu. Tissue-embedded stretchable nanoelectronics reveal endothelial cell-mediated electrical maturation of human 3D cardiac microtissues. Science Advances, 9(10):eade8513, 2023 (Highlighted by EurekAlert!)

7. P. Le Floch*, Q. Li*, Z. Lin*, S. Zhao, R. Liu, K. Tasnim, H. Jiang, and J. Liu. Stretchable mesh nanoelectronics for 3D single-cell chronic electrophysiology from developing brain organoids. Advanced Materials, 34(11):e2106829, 2022 (Advanced Materials Cover)

8. X. Sui*, J. A. Lo*, S. Luo, Y. He, Z. Tang, Z. Lin, Y. Zhou, W. X. Wang, J. Liu, and X. Wang. Scalable spatial single-cell transcriptomics and translatomics in 3D thick tissue blocks. Nature Methods, 22(12):2574-2584,2025

9. G. M. Anand, H. C. Megale, S. H. Murphy, T. Weis, Z. Lin, Y. He, X. Wang, J. Liu, and S. Ramanathan. Controlling organoid symmetry breaking uncovers an excitable system underlying human axial elongation. Cell, 186(3):497–512 e23, 2023

10. H. Shi*, Y. He*, Y. Zhou*, J. Huang, K. Maher, B. Wang, Z. Tang, S. Luo, P. Tan, M. Wu, Z. Lin, J. Ren, Y. Thapa, X. Tang, K. Y. Chan, B. E. Deverman, H. Shen, A. Liu, J. Liu, and X. Wang. Spatial atlas of the mouse central nervous system at molecular resolution. Nature, 622(7983):552–561, 2023 (Nature Cover)

11. X. Tang*, J. Zhang*, Y. He*, X. Zhang, Z. Lin, S. Partarrieu, E. B. Hanna, Z. Ren, H. Shen, Y. Yang, X. Wang, N. Li, J. Ding, and J. Liu. Explainable multi-task learning for multi-modality biological data analysis. Nature Communications, 14(1):2546, 2023

12. J. Ren*, H. Zhou*, H. Zeng*, C. K. Wang, J. Huang, X. Qiu, X. Sui, Q. Li, X. Wu, Z. Lin, J. A. Lo, K. Maher, Y. He, X. Tang, J. Lam, H. Chen, B. Li, D. E. Fisher, J. Liu, and X. Wang. Spatiotemporally resolved transcriptomics reveals the subcellular RNA kinetic landscape. Nature Methods, 20(5):695–705, 2023

13. S. Zhao*, X. Tang*, W. Tian*, S. Partarrieu*, R. Liu, H. Shen, J. Lee, S. Guo, Z. Lin, and J. Liu. Tracking neural activity from the same cells during the entire adult life of mice. Nature Neuroscience, 26(4):696–710, 2023

14. Y. He*, X. Tang*, J. Huang, J. Ren, H. Zhou, K. Chen, A. Liu, H. Shi, Z. Lin, Q. Li, A. Aditham, J. Ounadjela, E. I. Grody, J. Shu, J. Liu, and X. Wang. Clustermap for multi-scale clustering analysis of spatial gene expression. Nature Communications, 12(1):5909, 2021

15. M. Gao, J. Huang, X. Jiang, Y. Yuan, H. Pang, S. Luo, N. Wang, C. Yao, Z. Lin, D. Pu, S. Zhang, P. Sun, Z. Liu, Y. Xiao, Q. Wang, Z. Hu, and H. Yin. Regulation of aerobic glycolysis to decelerate tumor proliferation by small molecule inhibitors targeting glucose transporters. Protein & Cell, 11(6):446-451, 2020

16. Q. Li*, K. Nan*, P. Le Floch*, Z. Lin, H. Sheng, T. S. Blum, and J. Liu. Cyborg organoids: Implantation of nanoelectronics via organogenesis for tissue-wide electrophysiology. Nano Letters, 19(8):5781–5789, 2019

Contact Us

Email: linzuwan@westlake.edu.cn

The Intelligent Brain–Computer Interfaces and Bioelectronics Laboratory at Westlake University welcomes applications from prospective PhD students, postdoctoral fellows, research assistants, and visiting students. The laboratory works at the intersection of flexible bioelectronics, brain–computer interfaces, multimodal spatial omics, AI agents, and laboratory automation. We aim to develop next-generation bioelectronic platforms for long-term stable recording, molecularly resolved analysis, intelligent data interpretation, and closed-loop modulation of complex biological systems.

Candidates with backgrounds in electronic engineering, materials science, biomedical engineering, neuroscience, computer science, artificial intelligence, automation, computational biology, spatial omics, organoids, bioinformatics, or related fields are encouraged to apply. We especially welcome applicants with strong interdisciplinary interests, independent research ability, engineering skills, and long-term passion for scientific discovery.

The laboratory is committed to providing an open, supportive, and collaborative research environment. We will support lab members in developing independent research directions, participating in international collaborations and academic conferences, exploring visiting and exchange opportunities, and pursuing career development in academia, industry, or interdisciplinary innovation.

Interested applicants should send a CV, a brief statement of research interests, and representative work to the email address above. Please use the subject line“Name + Position + Research Direction”.