Hi, I’m Kaizhong — welcome to my bio page!

I am currently pursuing my PhD in the Zhang Group, focusing on enhancing cyanobacteria-based biohybrid systems. Cyanobacteria are photosynthetic microorganisms that capture sunlight and carbon dioxide, converting them into chemical energy and exporting it to their surroundings.

The goal of my PhD is to better understand the biotic–abiotic interface and to design redox-active polymers that can encapsulate cyanobacteria within a conductive matrix, efficiently harnessing their exported energy. This energy is collected by electrodes for sustainable energy and chemical production — in short, re-wiring photosynthesis.

We believe that improving biohybrid performance can help drive critical societal changes in carbon capture, renewable energy generation, and sustainable food and chemical production.

I particularly enjoy the highly interdisciplinary nature of our research, which combines chemistry, materials science, and biology to understand and engineer better biohybrid systems.

Outside of research, I’m an avid car enthusiast, often planning my next roadtrip, and I also enjoy going to live music events.