Jung-Ho Yu

Professor Jung-Ho Yu is innovating multiplexed bioanalytical platforms to measure numerous molecular signals in complex live biological systems, with the goal of deepening our understanding of disease and enabling personalized health solutions. Currently, his lab is developing a nanotechnology-based solution to encode multiple biomolecules with high-resolution vibrational spectra to capture their dynamic changes in live cells, tissues, and potentially humans.

Prof. Yu received his Ph.D. in Chemical and Biological Engineering from Seoul National University and completed postdoctoral training in Materials Science and Engineering at Stanford University. Before joining the University of Waterloo, he was a Research Scientist at the Molecular Imaging Program at Stanford, where he began his work in biomedical imaging and bioanalytical chemistry.

His research integrates chemical spectroscopy, molecular imaging, and nanotechnology, ranging from the fundamental study of semiconductor quantum dots to the development of surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) for preclinical cancer imaging. During his doctoral and postdoctoral training, he developed atomic-scale digital doping chemistry of semiconductor nanoclusters, which led to the development of biocompatible nanocrystal phosphors and the first demonstration of in vivo three-photon microscopy. At Stanford, he established a translatable SERS technology by engineering a biodegradable and excretable supramolecular platform.

• Chemical Spectroscopy

• Molecular Imaging

• Nanotechnology

• Bioanalytical Chemistry

• 2010, PhD, Chemical and Biological Engineering, Seoul National University, South Korea

• 2003, BS, Chemical Engineering, Seoul National University, South Korea

• Canadian Society for Chemistry

• American Chemical Society

• Society for Applied Spectroscopy

• World Molecular Imaging Society

• Waterloo Institute for Nanotechnology

• Centre for Bioengineering and Biotechnology

• CHEM 221 - Multi-Component Analysis
  • Taught in 2024, 2025
• CHEM 400 - Special Topics in Chemistry
  • Taught in 2025
• CHEM 720 - Selected Topics in Analytical Chemistry
  • Taught in 2025

* Only courses taught in the past 5 years are displayed.

• View all Jung-Ho Yu's publications on Google Scholar.

• J.H. Yu*, M.-S. J., E.O. Cruz, I.S. Alam, S.K. Tumbale, A. Zlitni, S.Y. Lee, H.-Y. Chuang, Y.-I. Park, K. Ferrara, S.-H. Kwon, S.S. Gambhir, and J. Rao*, “Highly Excretable Gold Supraclusters for Translatable In Vivo Raman Imaging of Tumors.” ACS Nano 2023, 17, 2554-2567.

• J.H. Yu*, I. Steinberg, R.M. Davis, A.V. Malkovskiy, A. Zlitni, R.K. Radzyminski, K.O. Jung, D.T. Chung, L.D. Curet, A.L. D'Souza, E. Chang, J. Rosenberg, J. Campbell, H. Frostig, S.-m. Park, G. Pratx, C. Levin, and S.S. Gambhir*, “Noninvasive and Highly Multiplexed Five-Color Tumor Imaging of Near-Infrared Resonant Surface-Enhanced Raman Nanoparticles In Vivo.” ACS Nano 2021, 15, 19956-19969.

• J. E. Olson, J.H. Yu*, R. L. Thimes, J.P. Camden* “Vibrational Two-Photon Microscopy for Tissue Imaging: Short-Wave Infrared Surface-Enhanced Resonant Hyper-Raman Scattering.” J. Biophotonics 2021, e202100158 (*Co-corresponding Author).

• S. Park, A. Aalipour, O. Vermesh, J.H. Yu, and S.S. Gambhir, “Toward Clinically Translatable in vivo Nanodiagnostics (Invited Review).” Nat. Rev. Mater. 2017, 2, 17014.

• J.H. Yu*, S.-H. Kwon*, Z. Petrášek, O.K. Park, S.W. Jun, K. Shin, M. Choi, Y.I. Park, K. Park, H.B. Na, N. Lee, D.W. Lee, J.H. Kim, P. Schwille, and T. Hyeon, “High-resolution three-photon biomedical imaging using doped ZnS nanocrystals.” Nat. Mater. 2013, 12, 359-366 (see also “Bioimaging: Illuminating the deep.” Nat. Mater. 2013, 12, 285-287 (News and Views)).

• J.H. Yu*, X. Liu*, K. E. Kweon, J. Joo, J. Park, K.-T. Ko, D.W. Lee, S. Shen, K. Tivakornsasithorn, J.S. Son, J.-H. Park, Y.-W. Kim, G. S. Hwang, M. Dobrowolska, J.K. Furdyna, and T. Hyeon, “Giant Zeeman Splitting in Nucleation-Controlled Doped CdSe:Mn2+ Quantum Nanoribbons.” Nat. Mater. 2010, 9, 47-53.