Dr. Shanhui Fan stands as a preeminent figure in photonics research and electrical engineering, holding the distinguished position of Joseph and Hon Mai Goodman Professor in the School of Engineering at Stanford University. He serves concurrently as Professor of Electrical Engineering and Professor of Applied Physics by courtesy, demonstrating his interdisciplinary expertise across scientific domains. Following his undergraduate studies in physics at the University of Science and Technology of China from 1988 to 1992, he earned his PhD in Electrical Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1997, where he subsequently continued as a postdoctoral researcher. Dr. Fan joined the Stanford faculty in April 2001, rapidly establishing himself as a leader in theoretical and computational photonics, and later assumed directorship of the prestigious Edward L. Ginzton Laboratory in 2014.
Dr. Fan's pioneering research has fundamentally advanced the theoretical, computational and numerical understanding of photonic structures, with groundbreaking contributions to nanophotonics, photonic crystals, and metamaterials that have transformed energy and information technology applications. His work on topological photonics and plasmonics has yielded significant theoretical insights that have been widely adopted across the scientific community, as evidenced by his remarkable citation count exceeding 139,000 according to Google Scholar. As of 2019, he had been granted approximately 57 patents, demonstrating the practical applications and commercial impact of his theoretical innovations in solar energy conversion and optical technologies. His methodological approaches to modeling electromagnetic phenomena have established new standards in computational photonics, enabling more efficient design of optical devices and renewable energy systems.
Beyond his research achievements, Dr. Fan has assumed significant leadership roles including Director of the Edward L. Ginzton Laboratory from 2014 to 2021 and Senior Fellow at the Precourt Institute for Energy, where he continues to guide strategic research directions in sustainable energy technologies. His exceptional contributions have been recognized with prestigious honors including election to both the National Academy of Sciences and National Academy of Engineering (2024), the R.W. Wood Prize from Optica (2022), and designation as a Simons Investigator in Physics (2021). As a Fellow of IEEE, the American Physical Society, Optica, and SPIE, he actively shapes the intellectual agenda of multiple professional communities through editorial boards and conference leadership. Dr. Fan continues to explore innovative applications of nanophotonic structures for energy harvesting and information processing, with his current research poised to further bridge fundamental physics with transformative technological solutions for global energy challenges.
