Prof. Jiannian Yao, Institute of Molecular Engineering Plus, College of Chemistry, Fuzhou University, China
Prof. Jiannian Yao, an Academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), is a renowned chemist and global scientific leader. He currently serves as Director, Professor, and Doctoral Supervisor at the Institute of Molecular Engineering Plus, College of Chemistry, Fuzhou University. He is Editor-in-Chief of Frontiers in Optoelectronic Science and Technology and Associate Editor-in-Chief of the Encyclopedia of China (Chemistry). A Fellow of both the Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) and the International Society for Nanomanufacturing (ISNM), Prof. Yao has held influential roles including Vice Chairman of the National Natural Science Foundation of China and President of the Chinese Chemical Society. His research focuses on excited-state chemistry, photo-functional materials, and nano-optoelectronics. He has published over 600 papers, authored five books, holds 50+ patents, and is consistently listed among Elsevier’s Most Cited Chinese Researchers. His major awards include the National Natural Science Award and the Ho Leung Ho Lee Prize.
Publication Profile
Scopus
Academic Positions
Prof. Jiannian Yao, a prominent figure in the field of chemistry, currently serves as Director, Professor, and Doctoral Supervisor at the Institute of Molecular Engineering Plus, College of Chemistry, Fuzhou University. He is Editor-in-Chief of Frontiers in Optoelectronic Science and Technology and Associate Editor-in-Chief (Chemistry) for the Encyclopedia of China (3rd Edition). Prof. Yao is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) and the International Society for Nanomanufacturing (ISNM), reflecting his global academic influence. His prior leadership roles include Vice Chairman of the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC), Vice Chairman of the Chinese Peasants’ and Workers’ Democratic Party, and President of the Chinese Chemical Society. He also served as Deputy Director of the Institute of Chemistry, CAS, and was the Founding Editor-in-Chief of CCS Chemistry. Additionally, he held several political and advisory positions, including roles in the National People’s Congress and with the Japan Science and Technology Agency.
Academic Achievements
Prof. Jiannian Yao has established himself as a leading scholar through an outstanding body of academic work that spans over decades. He has published more than 600 high-impact research papers in world-renowned journals such as Nature, Journal of the American Chemical Society, Angewandte Chemie International Edition, and Advanced Materials, contributing significantly to the advancement of chemical sciences and material research. His scholarly output also includes the authorship of five academic books and the co-translation of one influential monograph, further reflecting his dedication to knowledge dissemination and education. In addition to his publications, Prof. Yao holds over 50 authorized patents, showcasing his commitment to innovation and applied science. Since 2014, he has consistently been recognized among Elsevier’s Most Cited Chinese Researchers, underscoring his influence and leadership in global scientific communities and his substantial impact on the fields of chemistry, materials science, and nanotechnology.
Awards and Honors
Prof. Jiannian Yao has been widely recognized for his groundbreaking contributions to science and technology through numerous prestigious awards. He is a two-time recipient of the National Natural Science Award (Second Class), receiving this honor in both 2004 and 2014 as the first awardee, acknowledging his pioneering research and long-standing impact in chemical sciences. In 2015, he was awarded the Ho Leung Ho Lee Foundation Prize for Scientific and Technological Progress, one of the most esteemed honors in China, highlighting his innovative achievements and leadership in advancing scientific research. Further cementing his reputation, Prof. Yao received the CAS Outstanding Scientific Achievement Award in 2016, a testament to his exceptional contributions under the Chinese Academy of Sciences. These accolades collectively reflect Prof. Yao’s enduring commitment to excellence, his influence on both national and international research landscapes, and his role as a visionary leader in modern chemistry and material science.
Research Focus
Prof. Jiannian Yao’s research primarily spans the interdisciplinary frontiers of physical chemistry, materials science, and nanotechnology. His work is deeply rooted in excited-state chemistry, where he explores the behavior of molecules and materials under electronic excitation—a field essential to understanding photophysical and photochemical processes. He is also a leading expert in photo-functional materials, developing compounds that exhibit desirable properties under light, which are critical for applications in solar energy conversion, sensing, and light-emitting devices. In catalytic chemistry, Prof. Yao investigates reaction mechanisms and designs novel catalysts, with a strong emphasis on orbital catalysis, a concept advancing catalytic theory. Additionally, his pioneering studies on low-dimensional materials and nano-optoelectronics contribute to the development of next-generation electronic and photonic devices. Overall, his research focus represents a convergence of fundamental science and advanced technology, placing him in the top tier of global researchers in chemistry, nanomaterials, and photonic systems.
Publication Top Notes
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Topologically reconfigurable room-temperature polariton condensates from bound states in the continuum in organic metasurfaces, Nature Communications, 2025
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Excited-State Antiaromaticity Relief Triggers Singlet Fission in Nonbenzenoid Polycyclic Hydrocarbon, CCS Chemistry, 2025 — 2 citations
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An [Ag₃(dppy)₂(NO₃)₃]n cluster polymer with narrowing fluorescence, iScience, 2025
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Plasmon–Exciton–Polariton Condensation in Organic Semiconductor-Covered Plasmonic Lattices, Laser and Photonics Reviews, 2025 — 1 citation
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Self-Healing 2D Anion-Organic Frameworks for Low-Temperature Water Release, Angewandte Chemie International Edition, 2025 — 1 citation
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Circularly Polarized Lasing from Helical Superstructures of Chiral Organic Molecules, Angewandte Chemie International Edition, 2025 — 12 citations
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The Development, Essence and Perspective of Nitrogen Reduction to Ammonia (Review), [Journal not specified], 2025 — 12 citations
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Trion-Triggered Continuous-Wave Lasing in Lithium Ion-Doped Cuboidal Perovskite Microcrystals, CCS Chemistry, 2025
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Electrocatalytic C─S Cross-Coupling via Engineered Frustrated Lewis Acid-Base Pairs for High-Efficiency Methanesulfonate Synthesis, Angewandte Chemie International Edition, 2025
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Probing Multilevel Chiroptical Activity in Organic Supramolecular Microcrystals for High-Performance Circularly Polarized Lasing, Angewandte Chemie International Edition, 2025