AIS Faculty Recognized in Research.com’s Best Scientists in the World by Discipline 2025

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Recognition

AIS Faculty Recognized in Research.com’s Best Scientists in the World by Discipline 2025

02/07/2025

Thumbnail — Kudos to our top-notch AIS faculty members for their contributions and influence in their respective fields!

Kudos to our top-notch AIS faculty members for their contributions and influence in their respective fields!

#shiningwithoutboundaries

The Academy of Interdisciplinary Studies (AIS) at HKUST celebrates the recognition of sixteen faculty members among the 2025 World’s Best Scientists by Disciplines, compiled by the leading academic platform Research.com.

The recognized faculty members have been featured across various disciplines, including chemistry, computer science, earth science, electronics and electrical engineering, engineering and technology, environmental sciences, materials science, and mechanical and aerospace engineering. Notably, some are recognized in more than one area, showcasing their interdisciplinary backgrounds and the diversification of their research efforts.

Among the distinguished faculty, Prof. YU Jianzhen, Chair Professor in the Division of Environment and Sustainability, and Prof. ZI Yunlong, Associate Professor in the Division of Integrative Systems and Design, have been named among the top 100 in the national rankings for Environmental Sciences and Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, respectively.

The rankings are based on a scientist's D-index (Discipline H-index), using information compiled from OpenAlex and CrossRef and a detailed examination of 166,880 researchers determined from a variety of bibliometric data sources, which includes exclusively publications and citation metrics for an examined discipline.

This recognition highlights the exceptional caliber of AIS faculty, as well as AIS’s pursuit of excellence and relentless drive to push the boundaries of knowledge by fostering collaboration and innovation across various fields of study. Kudos to our top-notch faculty members for their contributions and influence in their respective fields!

The AIS faculty listed as the best scientists by Research.com across eight disciplines are (in alphabetical order by Division and surname):

Division of Emerging Interdisciplinary Areas (EMIA)

Image	Prof. HUI Pan Chair Professor, EMIA at HKUST; Thrust of Computational Media and Arts at HKUST (GZ) Discipline(s): Computer Science (#1912 globally; #234 nationally) Expertise: Mobile computing; Computer networking; Data analytics; Human-computer interaction
Image	Prof. Kei May LAU Research Professor, EMIA Discipline(s): Electronics and Electrical Engineering (#1379 globally; #201 nationally) and Materials Science (#5757 globally; #1689 nationally) Expertise: Compound semiconductor materials and devices; III-V on Si integration by epitaxy; Photonics devices; Power semiconductor devices
	Prof. QU Huamin Dean, AIS Head, EMIA Chair Professor, Department of Computer Science and Engineering (CSE) Discipline(s): Computer Science (#3901 globally; #464 nationally) Expertise: Information visualization; Big data; Human-computer interaction; Artificial intelligence; Mobile augmented reality
Image	Prof. SONG Yangqiu Associate Professor, EMIA; CSE; Department of Mathematics (MATH) Discipline(s): Computer Science (#4299 globally; #516 nationally) Expertise: Artificial intelligence; Language modeling; Data mining; Machine learning; Knowledge representations

Division of Environment and Sustainability (ENVR)

Image	Prof. CHEN Guanghao Chair Professor, ENVR; Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering (CIVL) Discipline(s): Chemistry (#8831 globally; #1519 nationally) and Environmental Sciences (#1888 globally; #150 nationally) Expertise: Environmental engineering
Image	Prof. Jimmy FUNG Chair Professor, ENVR; MATH Discipline(s): Environmental Sciences (#4317 globally; #398 nationally) Expertise: Atmospheric science and weather prediction; Regional climate change and variability; Multi-scale air quality modeling; Computational fluid dynamics; Environmental sustainability
Image	Prof. GAN Jianping Chair Professor, ENVR; MATH Head and Chair Professor, Department of Ocean Science (OCES) Discipline(s): Earth Science (#43877 globally; #240 nationally) Expertise: Ocean circulation and ecosystem modeling; Computational fluid dynamics; Physical oceanography; Ocean circulation and ecosystem; Regional climate change modeling
	Prof. Alexis LAU Head and Chair Professor, ENVR Chair Professor, CIVL Discipline(s): Environmental Sciences (#1462 globally; #122 nationally) Expertise: Air quality analysis; forecasts and management; Air pollution exposure and health impact assessment; Climate adaptation and resilience; Sustainable urban environment; Green and sustainable finance
Image	Prof. NING Zhi Associate Dean (Research & Graduate Studies), AIS Professor, ENVR Discipline(s): Environmental Sciences (#3804 globally; #347 nationally) Expertise: Air pollution; Air pollution measurement and modeling; Air pollution exposure and health impact assessment; Microsensors; Instrumentation and measurement
	Prof. YEUNG King Lun Professor, ENVR; Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering (CBE) Discipline(s): Chemistry (#2761 globally; #491 nationally) Expertise: Environmental pollution treatment; Nanoporous and nanostructured materials; Biomedical engineering (BME)
Image	Prof. YU Jianzhen Chair Professor, ENVR Head and Chair Professor, Department of Chemistry (CHEM) Discipline(s): Chemistry (#2365 globally; #423 nationally) and Environmental Sciences (#604 globally; #55 nationally) Expertise: Aerosol chemistry; Analytical chemistry; Atmospheric applications; Environmental analysis; Atmospheric science; Environmental chemistry/instrumentation; Urban ozone formation chemistry

Division of Integrative Systems and Design (ISD)

Image	Prof. CHAN Chi Ming Co-UG Program Coordinator, ISD Co-founder, Dual Degree Program in Technology & Management Professor Emeritus, ENVR Discipline(s): Materials Science (#8632 globally; #2437 nationally) Expertise: Surface and interface science; Polymer blends and alloys; Conductive composite polymers; Crosslinking of polymers; Adhesion phenomena
Image	Prof. LI Zexiang Director of Entrepreneurship Education Professor, ISD; Department of Electronic and Computer Engineering (ECE) Discipline(s): Electronics and Electrical Engineering (#2578 globally; #396 nationally) Expertise: Motion control and manufacturing; Robotics
	Prof. TSUI Chi Ying Director of Entrepreneurship Education Professor, ISD; ECE Discipline(s): Electronics and Electrical Engineering (#2136 globally; #323 nationally) Expertise: AI hardware accelerator; Baseband application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC); Computer architecture; Embedded systems; Energy harvesting; Integrated circuits and systems
	Prof. Sai-Kit YEUNG Professor, ISD; CSE; OCES Discipline(s): Engineering and Technology (#8117 globally; #1321 nationally) Expertise: Computer vision; Computer graphics; Computational design; Marine AI and Systems Design
Image	Prof. ZI Yunlong Associate Professor, ISD at HKUST; Thrust of Sustainable Energy and Environment at HKUST(GZ) Discipline(s): Materials Science (#4686 globally; #1390 nationally) and Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering (#632 globally; #76 nationally) Expertise: High-performance mechanical energy harvesting through triboelectric nanogenerator; Tribo-photonics toward novel self-powered wireless solution; Triboelectric mechanism and breakdown discharging; Multi-modal tactile sensing; Nanomaterials and nano-electronics

View the full lists on Research.com:

Best Chemistry Scientists: https://research.com/scientists-rankings/chemistry
Best Computer Science Scientists: https://research.com/scientists-rankings/computer-science
Best Earth Science Scientists: https://research.com/scientists-rankings/earth-science
Best Electronics and Electrical Engineering Scientists: https://research.com/scientists-rankings/electronics-and-electrical-engineering
Best Engineering and Technology Scientists: https://research.com/scientists-rankings/engineering-and-technology
Best Environmental Sciences Scientists: https://research.com/scientists-rankings/environmental-sciences
Best Materials Science Scientists: https://research.com/scientists-rankings/materials-science
Best Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Scientists: https://research.com/scientists-rankings/mechanical-and-aerospace-engineering

Kudos to our top-notch AIS faculty members for their contributions and influence in their respective fields!