FACULTY AND STAFF UPDATES
New Faculty and Staff
Professor Yu Chen-Hua, Douglas
Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
Professor Douglas Yu spent 30+ years in TSMC responsible for TSMC wafer process module pathfinding and development from 0.8 micron to 28nm, including Cu and Low-K interconnect technology. Prior to TSMC, he developed sub-micron SoC devices and process technology at AT&T Bell Labs, USA. He received the IEEE Rao Tummala Award, IEEE EPS Microelectronics Manufacturing Award, and Presidential Science Prize (Taiwan). He is also an IEEE Fellow, a TSMC Distinguished Fellow, a member of the National Academy of Engineering (NAE, USA), and an Academician of Academia Sinica. Dr Yu holds a BSc (Physics)/MSc (Materials Science and Engineering, MSE) from National Tsing-Hua University, Taiwan, and a PhD in MSE from Georgia Institute of Technology, USA.
Associate Professor Christoffel Jacobus Meyer
Department of Architecture
Associate Professor Christoffel Jacobus Meyer is a UK-registered architect, educator and founder of his own practice. Prior to joining NUS, he taught, held academic leadership roles, and practised architecture across the United Kingdom, Thailand, and Singapore, combining professional practice with design teaching and research. His work explores design-through-making as a mode of architectural inquiry, investigating how experimental drawings and models, making as process and output, and emerging technologies can generate new forms of architectural knowledge and practice. His teaching centres on the design studio as a space for curiosity, critical inquiry, and experimentation, encouraging students to develop architecture through making while engaging with real-world contexts.
Assistant Professor Justin Matthew Kollar
Department of Architecture
Assistant Professor Justin Matthew Kollar is a planner and urban designer whose research examines the territorial consequences of the digital economy. He studies how semiconductor fabs, AI data centres, and the industrial policies supporting them reorganise land, water, energy, and regional development. He earned a PhD in Urban and Regional Planning from MIT, alongside master’s degrees in Urban Planning and Architecture from the Harvard Graduate School of Design. Before entering academia, he practised as a planner and urban designer at Sasaki on projects throughout the United States and Asia.
Assistant Professor Du Bowen
Department of the Built Environment
Assistant Professor Du Bowen completed his postdoctoral training at EPFL, Switzerland, after earning a PhD in Civil Engineering, specialising in Psychology and Neuroscience, from the University of Toronto, Canada. He also holds both his Bachelor's and Master's degrees from Tongji University, China. His research focuses on the health and cognitive impacts of air pollutants, building ventilation and air filtration, and data-driven methods for identifying and controlling indoor pollution sources.
Assistant Professor Yoel Rene Cortes-Pena
Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
Assistant Professor Yoel Cortes-Pena completed his postdoctoral research in Chemical Engineering at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, his MSc/PhD in Environmental Engineering at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, and his BS in Chemical Engineering at the Georgia Institute of Technology. His research interests lie at the heart of process systems engineering, with a focus on developing rigorous process models of emerging technologies to analyse their potential economic/environmental impacts, navigate trade-offs, and guide research and investment. Outside the lab, Dr Cortes-Pena enjoys dancing with the local Latin dance and Hip Hop communities.
Assistant Professor Bodhinanda Chandra
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
Assistant Professor Bodhinanda Chandra obtained his PhD in Geomechanics and Geosystems Engineering from UC Berkeley. His interdisciplinary research explores the behaviour of geomaterials under extreme and complex conditions – from subsurface geomechanics and landslides to extraterrestrial regolith mechanics for future space exploration. His work combines continuum mechanics, constitutive modelling, particle-based numeral methods, and high-performance computing to advance understanding of multiphysics and multiphase processes in soils, rocks and granular materials.
Assistant Professor Hong Junyuan
Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
Assistant Professor Hong Junyuan earned his PhD in Computer Science and Engineering from Michigan State University. Previously, he was trained at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, and at the University of Texas at Austin. His research focuses on trustworthy machine learning, with an emphasis on privacy, fairness, robustness, and safety of AI. A major direction of his work explores how AI can support cognitive health, including language-based conversational interventions for older adults with mild cognitive impairment. He was recognised as one of the MLSys Rising Stars in 2024 and received a Best Paper Nomination at VLDB 2024. His work has been covered by multiple major media, including Nature News, The White House, WIRED, Forbes, and FORTUNE.
Assistant Professor Tu Jiaobing
Department of Materials Science and Engineering
Assistant Professor Tu Jiaobing received her BEng in Materials Science and Engineering from Imperial College London and her MSc and PhD in Medical Engineering from the California Institute of Technology, where her research focused on wearable bioelectronics for continuous molecular monitoring. She conducted her postdoctoral research at the Institute for Protein Design, University of Washington, developing computational approaches for de novo protein design and programmable biomolecular systems. She is a recipient of the 2024 IUPAC–Solvay International Award for Young Chemists and the Materials Research Society Graduate Student Gold Award. Her research focuses on engineering programmable protein–material interfaces for molecular sensing, adaptive biomaterials, and bioelectronic technologies.
Dr Saravanan Ramanathan
Lecturer, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
Dr Saravanan Ramanathan earned his MSc in Embedded Systems and a PhD in Computer Science and Engineering from Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. Prior to joining NUS, he held academic positions at Singtel Cognitive and Artificial Intelligence Lab for Enterprises (SCALE@NTU) and TUMCREATE Singapore. His research primarily revolves around designing predictable, high-performance computing structures, a field in which he has authored several peer-reviewed articles. Dedicated to hands-on learning, he will teach core courses that bridge digital logic and practical, real-time system development. Dr Ramanathan is a member of the IEEE and serves as a reviewer for several leading international journals and on technical program committees for real-time systems conferences. In his personal time, he enjoys hiking and strategic games.
Ms Charleen Phor Xiu Hui (Fu Xiuhui)
Assistant Senior Manager, Office of Research and Technology, Dean’s Office
Ms Charleen Phor brings over a decade of experience in innovation, entrepreneurship, and venture ecosystem development across higher education and startups. Having previously been part of the NUS innovation ecosystem, she is excited to return and contribute to its growth. Her expertise lies in supporting early-stage ventures, designing innovation programmes, and fostering collaboration among founders, industry partners, and investors. Passionate about connecting people, she looks forward to plugging into the College's vibrant community.
Mr Wong Jing Jie
Executive, Communications and Marketing, Dean’s Office
Mr Wong Jing Jie is a graduate from SUSS School of Business, with a Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing. He has joined the CDE Communications and Marketing team, bringing his experience in content writing and stakeholder management. Jing Jie will be maintaining the CDE website and he looks forward to working with the teams at CDE. In his free time, he enjoys cycling and exploring new places.
Mr Matthew Png (Fang Dian'en)
Executive, Department of Biomedical Engineering
Mr Matthew Png's role is to support the BME department in facilitating the business development of the bGood programme, and to serve as teaching support staff for undergraduate courses affiliated with the bGood programme in BME. He also oversees the daily operations at the Community Co-iHub.
Miss Aw Yong Ming Min
Executive, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
Miss Aw Yong Ming Min holds a Bachelor of Communications (Honours) in Journalism from Hong Kong Baptist University. With experience spanning media and the public sector — including an internship at Forbes Asia and a role at Singapore's National Youth Council — Ming Min brings a strong foundation in communications and stakeholder engagement. She is passionate about connecting with diverse audiences and looks forward to contributing to the NUS community through her work.
Promotions
| Name of Staff | Department/Division | Promotion to with effect from 1 January 2026 |
| Ye Zhisheng | Industrial Systems Engineering and Management | Full Professor with retrospective effect from 1 July 2026. |
| Mario Lanza Martinez | Materials Science and Engineering | Full Professor with retrospective effect from 1 Jan 2026. |
| Du Hongjian | Civil and Environmental Engineering | Associate Professor on open contract with retrospective effect from 1 January 2026 |
| Francois Dominique Joseph Blanciak | Architecture | Associate Professor on open contract with retrospective effect from 1 January 2026 |
Appointments
| Name of Staff | Department/Division | Appointment |
| Assistant Professor Yueming Jin | Biomedical Engineering | Presidential Young Professorship |