CoS welcomes new faculty in AY2025/2026 Semester 2
This semester, we have nine new faculty joining the College of Science.
Asian School of the Environment
- Assistant Professor Voon Hui Lai
School of Biological Sciences
- Assistant Professor Yang Tianjin
- Nanyang Assistant Professor Ding Lianggong
- Assistant Professor Xiao Yufeng
School of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology
- Assistant Professor Shao Huiling
- Assistant Professor Kensaku Matsunami
- Nanyang Assistant Professor Sanjoy Adak
School of Physical and Mathematical Sciences
- Assistant Professor Ding Shilei
- Professor (Practice) Stéphane Vannitsem (Joint appointment with ASE)
Voon Hui Lai is an observational seismologist interested in understanding seismic waveform complexities at very high frequency, generated by dynamic natural hazard processes and fine-scale structural heterogeneities in Earth's subsurface. She obtained her PhD in Geophysics from California Institute of Technology and conducted postdoctoral research in Australian National University.
Yang Tianjin is a biophysical chemist specializing in microfluidics, single-molecule spectroscopy, droplet-based optofluidic systems, and quantitative analysis of biomolecular interactions. She earned her PhD in Applied Chemistry and Biosciences from ETH Zurich, followed by a postdoctoral appointment at the University of Zurich.
Ding Lianggong is a metabolic biologist specializing in adipose tissue biology, lipid metabolism, thermogenesis, mitochondrial dynamics, and cellular regulation of energy homeostasis. He obtained his DSc in Physiology from Peking University and was a postdoctoral fellow at ETH Zurich.
Xiao Yufeng is a chemical biologist specializing in small-molecule drug discovery, targeted protein degradation, proximity-inducing modalities, epigenetic regulation, and translational cancer and immunotherapy research. After earning a PhD in Organic and Medicinal Chemistry from the Chinese Academy of Sciences, he went on to pursue postdoctoral training in the University of Florida.
Shao Huiling is a computational chemist specializing in quantum chemistry, physical organic chemistry, organometallic catalysis, and polymer chemistry. She completed her PhD in Computational Chemistry in the University of Pittsburgh and conducted postdoctoral research in the University of Minnesota.
Kensaku Matsunami specialises in process systems engineering, hybrid modelling, and sustainable pharmaceutical manufacturing. He earned his PhD in Chemical Engineering and from the University of Tokyo, followed by postdoctoral appointments in Ghent University and Purdue University.
Sanjoy Adak specialises in enzyme function discovery, metabolic pathway characterization, and drug discovery. His work aims to make significant impact to human health, agriculture, and environmental sustainability. After completing his PhD in Biochemistry in Texas A&M University, he became a postdoctoral researcher at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography.
Ding Shilei’s research focuses on spintronics and orbitronics, exploring how spin, orbital, and interfacial effects govern magnetism and charge transport in low-dimensional and heterostructured materials. He earned his PhD in Condensed Matter and Materials Physics in Peking University and pursued postdoctoral research in ETH Zurich.
Stéphane Vannitsem’s research focuses on atmospheric physics, climate and weather variability, statistical postprocessing of forecasts, and the dynamics of errors and variability in atmospheric and coupled ocean–atmosphere systems. He holds a PhD in Physics from the Université Libre de Bruxelles and was a postdoctoral researcher at the Royal Meteorological Institute of Belgium.
Let us welcome them to the college!
