Jianwei Sun, PhD

Jianwei Sun is a Professor at the Department of Physics and Engineering Physics at Tulane University whose research focuses on developing advanced computational methods for discovering and understanding materials for energy and quantum technologies. He is internationally recognized for his contributions to density functional theory, including the development of the widely used SCAN and r²SCAN methods for accurately predicting materials properties. His current research includes integrating first-principles physics with artificial intelligence to accelerate the discovery of superconductors, magnetic materials, and other quantum materials, including through his leadership of a DOE Genesis Mission project on physics-enhanced AI for unconventional superconductor discovery. Sun is a recipient of the NSF CAREER Award and the Young Scientist Prize of International Union of Pure and Applied Physics in Computational Physics. His work aims to bridge fundamental physics, AI, and materials innovation to enable faster and more reliable discovery of materials relevant to future energy and computing technologies.