Xiaotian ZHANG
Professor
Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
About
Prof. Xiaotian Zhang obtained his Ph.D. in Mechanical Science and Engineering from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) under the mentorship of Prof. Mattia Gazzola. Prior to that, he earned his M.S. degree from the same department. Before joining HKUST, he served as a postdoctoral associate for three years in the Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology at UIUC. Xiaotian’s research focuses on the intersection of mechanical engineering and biology. Specifically, his research aims to understand and take the advantage of biological intelligence to enhance motility, control, and behavior of engineering systems, through the synergy of biophysical simulations, neural engineering, and robotics. His work has been featured in high-profile interdisciplinary journals and highlighted through several cover images.
Last updated: 4/10/2026