The Institute of Theoretical Physics (ITP) at East China Normal University (ECNU), aspiring to be open, cooperative, and competitive, has built a high-quality research team that has been dedicated to many cutting-edge fields. ITP also provides practicable advices to young researchers and help them conduct domestic and international collaborations. The research areas of ITP are diverse, ranging from the origin of the universe to the evolution of social and biological systems. Among them, the five major ones are: 1. Complex Networks and Nonlinear Dynamics; 2. Nuclear Physics; 3. High-Energy Physics and Particle Physics; 4. Quantum Information Theory; 5. Cosmology and General Relativity.

ITP currently consists of 14 faculties (7 full professors and 7 associate professors). So far, ITP has granted the PhD degrees to more than 30 students and the master’s degrees to 80 students. The institute has gained consistent financial supports from many organizations, including the National Natural Science Foundation, the Ministry of Education (MoE), and Shanghai Education Commission. The institute has published more than 300 research papers on high-standard journals, such as Physics Reports, PNAS, Nature Communications and Physical Review Letters, and has published three monographs. Recently, the institute has been awarded the second prize of the Science and Technology Achievement Award of MoE (2019) and the second prize of the Shanghai Teaching Achievement Award (2017).

Graduate students at ITP should finish public courses and the following professional courses: advanced quantum mechanics, quantum statistical physics, advanced solid state physics, quantum optics, time series analysis, nonlinear optics and quantum information, and scientific methodology and paper writing.

Atomic and molecular physics is one of the most important secondary subjects in physics. It is a science that studies the structure, properties, interaction of atoms and molecules and their interaction with the surrounding environment. Atomic and molecular physics has a wide range of applications and plays an important role in energy, materials, environment, medicine, life science and national defense research. In addition, the research in this field has also contributed to many important high and new technologies such as laser, atomic clock, atomic magnetometer, quantum communication, quantum computing and so on. The major of atomic and molecular physics in ECNU is quantum optics, atom optics, and precision measurement. There are several international-level experimental research platforms, including quantum light sources, quantum interference technology, photon manipulation, and cold atom manipulation. This subject has relatively wide employment opportunities. Our graduate doctoral students have become teachers of higher education institutions, scientific researchers of the Institute of Chinese Academy of Sciences, R & D engineers of technology companies, etc., and students have gone abroad for postdoctoral research. After graduating from a master degree, most of them go abroad to study for a doctorate, some of them are teachers, company technicians, etc.

There are 12 faculty members in this major who teach the discipline, four of them are PhD student Supervisors. Most of them are young and have overseas study and research background. Their research interests include quantum metrology, quantum interference, matter wave optics, and interaction between atoms and light. They have solid cooperation relations with well-known international research institutions in these fields, such as NIST and University of Arizona in the U. S., ENS, the Max Planck Institute, and the Danish Bohr Research Institute in the Europe. Except for the theoretical researches, there are several high-level experimental platforms for quantum coherence and quantum materials in the institute, by which they have carried out projects from national 973 plans and key projects form NSFC several times. The research group has more than 40 graduate students, majoring in experimental or theoretical quantum optics and atomic physics. Most of the graduates become college teacher or institute researcher of physics. The major of Atomic and Molecular Physics develops the graduate students at two levels of doctoral and master degrees, which are divided into three different training modes: theory, experiment, and combination of theory and experiment. The main goal is to train high-level, comprehensive development professionals who have a solid physical foundation, master proficient experimental technology, stand at the forefront of discipline development, and can independently engage in scientific research, higher education, technology research and development, and management. 

The major courses in the Ph.D. and the Master’s level program of the Atomic and Molecular Physics include Advanced Quantum Mechanics, Quantum Optics, Introduction to Atom Optics, Quantum Statistical Physics, Advanced Solid State Physics, Nonlinear Optics and Quantum Information, Optical quantum information processing, Recent Progress in Complex Networks.

Condensed matter physics is the largest subfield of physics. Research in the condensed matter physics groups is extensive, from generic particle packing, thermodynamics, and kinetics, mechanical and magnetic properties of a whole family of atomically thin, two-dimensional materials to the physics of glass and crystal/melt phases of metal and alloy. The research projects focus on critical problems of the origins and nature of matter, where many interacting constituents can combine to produce novel properties. Experimental group create materials with new properties, and current techniques are manipulating materials at the quantum level. Theoretical group provide insight into the fundamental causes of new properties, as well as first principles predictions. Our research is supported by extensive, cutting-edge facilities in the State Key Laboratory of Precision Spectroscopy and Key Laboratory of Polar Materials and Devices (Ministry of Education), including clean-room microfabrication, measurements, and characterization, as well as the supercomputing center of the ECNU.

“There are 20 faculty members (including 10 full professors and 10 associate professors)” in the experimental group and the theoretical group doing research relating the frontier of the condensed matter physics, under the funding supported by the fundings from NSFC, provincial and ministerial scientific research projects. Within the last decade, they have produced more than 100 research papers in academic journals including Physical Review Letters, Nature Materials, JACS, Angew. Chem, Adavnce Materials, Acta Materialia and other top-ranking international academic journals. The faculty members also maintain close academic collaborations with their collaborators in many top academic institutions at home and abroad, such as: University of California, Berkeley, Max Planck Institute, University of Kansas, Fudan University, Shanghai Institute of Ceramics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo Institute of Materials, Chinese Academy of Sciences, etc.

The major courses in the Ph.D. and the Master’s level program of the condensed matter physics include Advanced Quantum Mechanics, Quantum Statistical Physics, Advanced Solid State Physics, Quantum Optics, Recent Progress in Complex Networks, Experimental Methods for Solid State Physics, Magnetoelectronics, and Introduction to the Soft Condensed Matter Physics.

The Radio Physics major is based in Shanghai Key Laboratory of Magnetic Resonance. As the name suggests, our lab focuses on the study of magnetic resonance. Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) is both an important physics phenomenon and an important physics tool. NMR is widely used in many fields and at least 7 scientists have been awarded the Nobel Prize for their contributions in the field of NMR development and application. Out lab is one of the initiators of the NMR field in our country and one of the most important bases for NMR development and education. The study of NMR includes Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy, which is mainly used to study the molecular structures, and Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), which is used to study the anatomy and functions of human body.

Besides, our laboratory also commits to the development of new technologies of strategic importance, including artificial intelligence, measurement of electromagnetic field (5G included), materials and components related to new energy etc.Main fields of interest include:

1. Study of MRI techniques and system development, including the study of advance MRI pulse sequences and applications of artificial intelligence in MRI;

2. Functional MRI and its application in cognitive science and clinical diagnosis;

3. High resolution NMRS and its applications in physics, chemistry, and materials science;

4. Applications of NMRS and MRI in life science;

5. Development of new functional materials, including electrode materials used in lithium battery and solar battery, solid electrolyte, functional polymer, materials for super capacitor, sensors, and photocatalyst;

6. Study of bio-electromagnetism, including theoretical calculation of electromagnetic field, study of electromagnetic field exposure, bio-materials.

NMR is a multidisciplinary field, so our faculties also have a multidisciplinary background, with more than 20 professors and associate professors with different academic background including physics, chemistry, materials science, electronics, biomedical engineering, clinical radiology, and psychology. We can ensure that you get a multidisciplinary training which makes you ready for the future competition.

Major specialized courses include Introduction to Magnetic Resonance, Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy: Principles and Experiments, Introduction to Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Fundamentals of Materials Science, Applications of Magnetic Resonance, MR Instrumentation: Hardware and Software, Artificial Intelligence in Magnetic Resonance.

Materials and optoelectronics relies on “Engineering Research Center for Nano-photonics and Advanced Instrument”，it has the right to grant master's and doctor's degree. Materials and optoelectronics is based on condensed matter physics, materials, chemistry, solid-state electronics  and other disciplines. It  integrates with advanced photonics theory and optoelectronics technology，and the theory is closely combined with experiment. This is an emerging discipline that combines science and engineering, and it's multidisciplinary. The research field includes natural science, applied science, and engineering science. It has the characteristics of academic foresight and intersection of multi-subject, and pays attention to the close combination of theory and experimental work. This professional laboratory has advanced experimental instruments, modern laboratories and industrialization bases, and is committed to cultivating materials, microelectronics and optoelectronic devices (semiconductor lighting, flat panel display, solar cell, optoelectronic sensor, optoelectronic purification, etc.) that are urgently needed by the country.

There are currently 15 working researchers in this major, 6 full professors (including academician of the Eurasian Academy of Sciences(EAS), the Ten-thousand Talents Program of the Organization department of the CPC central committee, Zijiang Distinguished Professor, and Zijiang Outstanding Young Scholar, etc.), and 9 associate professors. The faculty has broad oversea experience, established extensive international cooperation, and undertaken more than 100 national, provincial and ministerial scientific research projects including the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC). Besides they have published more than 100 papers in top internationally renowned academic journals including Nat. Commun.、J. Am. Chem. Soc.、Angew. Chem. Int. Ed.、Adv. Mater.、Nano. Lett.、Adv. Energy. Mater. Adv. Funct. Mater, etc.

Main Course:

Fundamentals of Material science

Fabrication of Nano-materials and Application

Optoelectronic Materials and Devices

Principle of Material Composite and New Material Technology

Smart Sensor Technologies

New Energy Technology

Nano Photoelectric Materials and Environmental Purification Technology

Materials Chemistry

Semiconductor physics

First-level Electronic Science and Technology discipline has two graduate majors, including Physical Electronics (Master & PhD), Electromagnetic and Microwave Technology (Master & PhD). Key Laboratory of Polar Materials and Devices, Ministry of Education provides strong supporting for student training with excellent supervisor team and top-class experimental condition.

Physical electronics

With the rapid development of the Internet of Things, big data and artificial intelligence technology, traditional integrated circuit technology is approaching the end of Moore's Law. Therefore, the development direction of electronic science and technology discipline is changing, and the quantum electronics based on quantum information and quantum computing appears as a new and important branch in this discipline. Physical electronics major focuses on the research of multi-field effect including light, electricity, and magnetics integration, which is becoming as a predominant research of electronic information devices and technologies in the near future.

After graduation, the students can enter the research or professions related to the following: semiconductor manufacturing and technology, integrated circuits, photoelectric detection, display lighting, photovoltaic energy, lasers, fiber optic communications, information storage and processing, artificial intelligence and other fields of enterprises.

The research topics include: 

1. Semiconductor materials and devices;

2. Micro-nano electronic technology;

3. Optoelectronic materials and devices;

4. Material calculation design and device simulation

Courses:

• Physics of Electronic Materials

• Semiconductor Device Physics

• Methodology of Physical Electronics

• Solid State Spectroscopy

• Magnetic Electronics

• Chemistry of Electronic Materials

• Laser Device and Laser Technology

• Technology of Photovoltaic Cells

• Ferroelectrics

• Luminescent Devices Display and Lighting

• Technology of Sensors and Transducers

• Synthesis and Crystal Growth of Electronic Materials

• Thin Film Physics and Technology

• Organic Electronics

• Micro-Nanofabrication Technologies, Surface Sciences, etc.

Electromagnetic and microwave technology

With the development of 5G communications, Internet of Things applications, high-speed circuits, high tech talents in the field of microwave and millimeter wave are urgently needed for society. Electromagnetic and microwave technology major focuses on the research of microwave and millimeter wave technology, radar technology, antenna etc. It aims to cultivate students with extensive knowledge of electromagnetic and microwave technology and electronic science and technology. 

After graduation, the students can enter the research or professions related to the following: semiconductor technology, integrated circuits, wireless communication, artificial intelligence and other fields of enterprises.

The research topics include:

1. Electromagnetic field theory and application;

2. Novel antennas and arrays;

3. Microwave / optoelectronic device modeling technology;

4. Application of metasurface / metamaterial;

5. Microwave millimeter wave technology and system;

6. Computational electromagnetics;

7. Radar and microwave imaging;

8. Microwave and millimeter wave communication

Courses:

• Physics of Semiconductor Devices

• Research Methods for Electromagnetic Field and Microwave

• Solid state electronic materials and devices

• RF Circuit and Devices

• Antennas and Wave Propagation

• Magnetic Electronics

• Spectral Analysis of Solid Matters

• Crystal Growth of Novel Electronic Materials

• Modern Display Technology

• Flexible Electronic Devices

• Theory of Advanced Electromagnetics

• Computational Electromagnetics

• Microwave Measurement