ZHOU Yuanyuan - The Department of Physics at Southern University of Science and Technology

Personal Profile

Yuanyuan Zhou, Associate Professor in SUSTech. She obtained her Bachelor degree (2012) and Master degree (2015) supervised by Prof. Yanming Ma in Jilin University, then she moved to Berlin Germany and obtained her PhD degree (2020) mentored by Prof. Matthias Scheffler and Prof. Luca M. Ghiringhelli in Fritz Haber institute (FHI) of Max Planck Society. After 1-year working as research associate in FHI, she moved to Copenhagen Denmark and conducted 3-year postdoctoral research advised by Prof Jens K. Nørskov and collaborated with Prof. Ib Chorkendorff in Technical University of Denmark. Afterwards, she joined Leibniz-Institut für Kristallzüchtung as a junior group leader in 2024. Dr. Zhou is mainly interested in developing methods encompassing machine learning, enhanced sampling, statistical learning, and free energy estimation for surface/interfacial phenomena including semiconductor oxide thin film growth, quantum material thin film growth and electrochemical ammonia synthesis, etc.

Research Areas

AI4Surface
Statistical Learning
Large-Scale Simulation

Educational Background

2015– 2020 Ph.D. in Theoretical Physics with Summe cum laude,

supervisor: Matthias Scheffler and Luca M. Ghiringhelli, Fritz Haber Institute of the Max Planck Society/Technical University of Berlin, Berlin, Germany

2012– 2015 M.S. in Condensed Matter Physics with Grade A,

supervisor: Yanming Ma,

Jilin University, Changchun, China

2008– 2012 B.S. in Physics with 95/100, in Finance (minor), Jilin University, Changchun, China

supervisor: Yanming Ma,

Professional Experience

2025.04– now Associate Professor, Department of Physics, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, China

2024.07– 2024.12 Junior group leader, Department of Material Science, Leibniz-Institut für Kristallzüchtung, Berlin, Germany

2021.06– 2024.05 Postdoc working with Jens K. Nørskov, Catalysis Theory Center, Department of Physics, Technical University of Denmark, Copenhagen, Denmark

2020.04– 2021.04 Research associate working with Matthias Scheffler, NOMAD Laboratory, Fritz Haber Institute of the Max Planck Society, Berlin, Germany

Selected Publication

†: co-first author；*:Corresponding author

1. Xianbiao Fu† , Jakob B. Pedersen† , Yuanyuan, Zhou† , Mattia Saccoccio, Shaofeng Li, Rokas Sažinas, Katja Li, Suzanne Z. Andersen, Niklas H. Deissler, Aoni Xu, Jon Bjarke Valbæk Mygind, Chao Wei, Debasish Chakraborty, Jakob Kibsgaard, Peter C. K. Vesborg, Jens K. Nørskov*, and Ib Chorkendorff* “Continuous flow electrosynthesis of ammonia by nitrogen reduction and hydrogen oxidation” Science 379, 707–712, (2023)

2. Yuanyuan,Zhou*,ChunyeZhu,MatthiasSchefflerandLucaM.Ghringhelli“Abinitioapproach for thermodynamic surface phases with full consideration of anharmonic effects– the example of hydrogen at Si(100) ” Phys. Rev. Lett., 128, 246101 (2022)

3. Yuanyuan, Zhou*, Matthias Scheffler and Luca M. Ghringhelli* “Dertermining phase diagram including anharmonic effects” Phys. Rev. B 100, 174106 (2019) Editor suggestions

4. Wenhui Mi, Xuecheng Shao, Chuanxun Su, Yuanyuan, Zhou, Shoutao Zhang, Quan Li, Hui Wang, Lijun Zhang, Maosheng Miao, Yanchao Wang*, and Yanming Ma* “A Real-Space Finite-Difference Implementation of Orbital-Free Density Functional Theory” Comput. Phys. Commun. 200, 87(2016)