Advanced Materials and Devices
Theory Group
Our group members are highly motivated to drive science forward by working on cutting edge problems at the interface of materials science, condensed matter physics, optics, and computational physics.
Prof. Lilia M. Woods, PI
Dr. Woods is a Professor in the Department of Physics at the University of South Florida. She works in theory and simulations in the broad area of condensed matter physics.
Selected Awards and Recognition:
- Distinguished Faculty Speaker, 2023/2024
- Humboldt Research Award, 2022
- Outstanding Faculty Award, 2020
- AAAS Fellow, elected 2019
- APS Fellow, elected 2017
- Jewell Excellence Award, 2016
- Member of the National Academy of Inventors, since 2015
Dr. Thi Xuan Diem Dang
Diem Dang has obtained her PhD degree in computational condensed matter physics in 2026. She is joining our group as a Postdoctoral researcher to work on advanced methods from first principles of novel materials properties and fluctuation induced interactions. Diem will be working on a Wannier Function/ Density Functional Theory frameworks for van der Waals materials and their interactions. She will develop methods for many-body multipolar response contributions bridging concepts in molecular chemistry and condensed matter physics.
Long Ma, PhD Candidate
Long Ma holds a Master's degree from University of Florida, where he worked on repulsive van de Waals interactions by obtaining experimental results and modeling them with the Lifshitz approach. He has also made conference presentations on dust mitigation and repulsive van der Waals interactions. He is currently interested in thermoelectricity. By using computational methods he aims at the design and optimization of materials for enhanced thermoelectric conversion as well as the discovery of novel physics for the understanding of transport phenomena.
Rohin Sharma, PhD Student
Rohin holds a master’s degree in physics from Kathmandu University in Nepal. He joined our group in Fall of 2024. Having research interest and inclination towards condensed matter theory and materials simulation, his prior research experiences were in formulation of relativistic tight-binding model for graphene to investigate the electronic properties, simulation of upconversion in graphite from first principles simulation and mathematical modeling of modulated optical trap. Currently, Rohin is investigating the electronic and magnetic properties of 2D materials, layered materials and their heterostructures from an electronic and spintronics device application point of view. What drives and motivates his research on van der Waals phenomenon is the prospect of uncovering novel properties that could be ultimately harnessed to enable innovative devices and technologies in the future.
Bektur Konushbaev, PhD Student
Bektur Konushbaev is a second-year PhD student at the University of South Florida. His current research focuses on Casimir–Polder and van der Waals interactions, particularly nonlinear contributions to these interactions. He is currently working on the interaction between two dipoles using analytical and numerical methods. More broadly, his research interests include light–matter interactions and related theoretical problems involving dispersion forces and quantum phenomena.
Carlos Andrés Vélez González, PhD Student
Carlos holds a Bachelor's degree in Engineering Physics from the National University of Colombia, where he worked in the low-dimensional systems research group. He went on to earn a Master's degree in physics from the University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez, gaining hands-on experience in experimental research focusing on vanadium oxide thin films. Prior to beginning his doctoral studies, Carlos further developed his analytical skills by working as a data scientist in the mining and electrical energy industries. He joined our group in the Fall of 2026. Carlos is currently interested in using his computational background to explore the physics of materials and discover novel properties.
Previous Students:
Thi Xuan Diem Dang, PhD
Wencong Shi, PhD
Troy Stedman, Master's and PhD,
Artem R. Khabibullin, PhD
Nam Le, PhD
Anh D. Phan, Master's
Adrian Popescu, PhD
Jakub Pritz, Master's and PhD
Yaroslav Shtogun, PhD
Kevin Tatur, PhD
Previous Postdocs:
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Dr. Dai-Nam Le
Dr. Modi Ke
Dr. Ranjan Barik Kumar
Dr. Adrian Popescu
Dr. Artem Khabibullin
Dr. Pablo Rodriguez-Lopez
Dr. David Drosdoff
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Want to Join Our Team?
Send Email: lmwoods@usf.edu