A bit about me
I am an Associate Professor in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at the University of Windsor, where I hold the Canada Research Chair in Advanced Materials Science. My group works on conjugated and semiconducting polymers, and our main goal is to better understand how molecular structure and processing determine the way a polymer assembles, conducts charges, and deforms under strain. Answering these questions allows for us to fabricate stretchable transistors, mixed ionic-electronic conductors, self-healing films, and sensors for various applications.
I trained at Université Laval, where I completed my PhD in 2014 with Jean-François Morin, and then held an FRQNT postdoctoral fellowship at Stanford with Zhenan Bao. I joined Windsor in 2016 and have since built a group that combines synthetic polymer chemistry with device fabrication, including OFETs and OECTs, and the characterization of materials, including the mechanical and spectroscopical exploration of thin films. Recent directions include degradable and sustainable polymers, thermochromic and colorimetric systems, and fluorescent probes for microplastic detection.
Outside the lab, I serve as Graduate Coordinator for our department and as a Principal Editor at the Journal of Materials Research. I founded ChemiConn, an annual event connecting Windsor-Essex industry with academic researchers, and in 2025 I founded JSB Innovations. I work in both French and English, and I care about doing science in public: bilingual outreach, media, and anything that gets the work in front of people who would not otherwise see it.
The journey so far...
Associate Professor (2021 to present)
Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
Canada Research Chair, Tier 2, Advanced Materials Science
Graduate Coordinator
I started my independent group at Windsor in 2016 and was promoted to Associate Professor in 2021. The group works at the intersection of synthetic polymer chemistry and device physics: we make the material, process it, and measure how it behaves in a working device. Current work spans conjugated polymer design and assembly, mixed ionic-electronic conductors, stretchable and self-healing films, thermochromic systems, degradable polymers, and fluorescent probes for microplastic detection.
FRQNT Postdoctoral Fellow
Supervisor: Zhenan Bao
At Stanford I worked on semiconducting polymers for flexible and stretchable electronics. That period taught me to treat polymer design and device engineering as one problem rather than two, and it introduced the characterization approach the group still uses, combining GIWAXS, morphological analysis, and transistor measurement to connect molecular structure to performance.
PhD, Department of Chemistry
Supervisor: Jean-François Morin
My doctoral training focused on synthetic chemistry and molecular self-assembly of macrocyclic materials. It gave me the foundation the group runs on: if you want a specific property, build the molecule that delivers it. I remain closely connected to the Québec materials community and continue to collaborate and publish with colleagues there.
Awards and accolades
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Canada Research Chair (Tier 2) in Advanced Materials Science, 2026
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Ambassador Award, Université du Québec à Chicoutimi (UQAC), 2025
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Macromolecular Science & Engineering Division of the Chemical Institute of Canada NOVA Chemicals EarlyCareer Investigator Award, 2025
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Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC), Polymer Chemistry, Pioneering Investigators, 2025
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University of Windsor - Excellence in Research, Scholarship and Creative Activity - Mid-Career Scholars, 2024
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Faculty of Science/Vice-President Research & Innovation- Research Chair in Advanced Semiconducting Materials,2023
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University of Windsor - Faculty of Science - Research Impact Award, 2023
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University of Windsor - Faculty of Science Student Mentoring Award, 2023
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Canadian Institute of Chemistry, Materials Chemistry Division - Emerging Materials Investigator SymposiumSpeaker, 2021
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University of Windsor - Excellence in Research, Scholarship and Creative Activity, 2020
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University of Windsor - Outstanding Faculty Research Award: Emerging Scholars/Researchers, 2020
Beyond the lab
Editorial
Principal Editor, Journal of Materials Research, Materials Research Society and Springer Nature (2025 to present)
Editorial Board Member, Frontiers in Electronics (2020 to 2021)
Guest Editor, Journal of Chemical Technology and Biotechnology (2020 to 2021)
NSERC
Member and University of Windsor Representative, NSERC Leaders Committee (2026 to present)
Member, and Chair of the Scholarship Program, NSERC Committee on Discovery Research (2025 to present)
Member and Chair, NSERC Scholarships and Fellowships Selection Committee for Chemistry, Committee 179 (2022 to 2025)
Grant reviewer, NSERC Discovery Grants and Strategic Partnership Grants
Other review and evaluation
Grant reviewer, European Research Council
Grant reviewer, Fonds de recherche du Québec, Nature et technologies, NOVA program
Reviewer, Mitacs Canada, Irish Research Council, and the American Chemical Society Petroleum Research Fund
Manuscript reviewer for the Royal Society of Chemistry, the American Chemical Society, and other publishers
Academic community
Executive Committee Member, Macromolecular Science and Engineering Division, Chemical Institute of Canada (2020 to present)
Symposium organizer at the Canadian Chemistry Conference and Materials Research Society meetings
University of Windsor, Graduate Coordinator and Chair of the Graduate Committee, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry (2020 to present)
Member, Senate Research and Innovation
Advisory Committee (2025 to present)
Member, University Senate (2024 to 2025)
Member, Comité francophone (2024 to present)
Member, Research and Development Committee, WE-SPARK Health Institute (2019 to 2024)
Community
Founder and organizer, ChemiConn, Windsor-Essex (annually since 2016)
Founder, Owner and Director, JSB Innovations (2025)
Bilingual science communication, including regular contributions to ICI Radio-Canada Première
My passions
Family. I am the father of twins. Life at home runs on them, which means most of my week runs completely out of plan. Weekends are for games, films, and whatever they have decided we are all doing, and that is, by far, the best part.
Sports. The Montreal Canadiens come first and are not negotiable. The San Francisco 49ers come second. I'm also an active member fantasy football leagues, and I take the draft far more seriously than the results warrant.
Fantasy. The Lord of the Rings and Game of Thrones, both on the page and on screen. Long invented worlds hold up well against long research projects: both reward patience, and both go badly when someone rushes the ending.
Reading. Mostly fantasy and horror. I read to be somewhere else for an hour, and I am always glad to take any recommendation!
Music. Heavy metal, loudly. It is what people hear when I am in the office
Cats. Three of them (!!). They are the true bosses, as one would guess...
