Our Faculty

Background

Hyuna Kwon received her PhD in chemical and environmental engineering from the University of California at Riverside, and her BS in energy resources engineering and chemical biological engineering from Seoul National University. She was a postdoctoral researcher in the Quantum Simulations Group at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory before joining ßÙßÇÂþ»­ as an assistant professor in 2025.

Her research integrates atomistic modeling (such as density functional theory) and machine learning to accelerate materials discovery. She develops generative AI models and data-driven methods for spectroscopy interpretation, materials stability prediction and inverse design. She also applies ML-accelerated molecular dynamics to uncover mechanisms in complex systems, including interfacial reactions and proton transport. Her work supports applications in energy storage, chemical separations and catalysis.

Research Lab

Education

• PhD, Chemical and Environmental Engineering, University of California at Riverside
• BS, Energy Resources Engineering & Chemical Biological Engineering, Seoul National University

Research Interests

• Machine learning for materials discovery
• Atomistic modeling and first-principles simulations
• Generative AI for molecular and structural design
• Data-driven materials property prediction
• Surface and interface chemistry