New faculty Dr. Peter Yichen Chen brings together physics and AI for real-world computer simulations
Assistant Professor Peter Yichen Chen will lead a cross-disciplinary research group studying physics simulation for wide-ranging applications
Dr. Peter Yichen Chen always loved math, physics and coding. As an undergraduate student, he studied applied math at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and was stoked to start turning mathematical equations into realistic models of the real world.
But the most pivotal moment didn't come from his time tinkering away at his undergraduate research project. In fact, it was over winter break, while visiting family in Houston, when he took his younger niece to see the popular musical movie "Frozen" in theatres.
“I saw this amazing animation of the snow,” he says. “Being able to simulate it in a realistic way with a computer was really cool.”
It turned out that the team that helped create the snow scenes in the movie were mathematicians at UCLA. The researchers used algorithms and engineering principles to create different forms of snow that look true to life — from wet, chunky snow to soft, powdery snow. It was then that everything clicked for Dr. Chen.
“Computer graphics was my gateway into computer science,” he says. “The field combines all my technical interests and engages the math, physics and coding parts of my brain.”
Dr. Chen continued to study physics simulation during his PhD at Columbia University, using physics and artificial intelligence to help engineers design drums that move gravel. While in graduate school, he collaborated with and learned from numerous industry partners, from enhancing simulations for extended reality (XR) applications to modeling how facial features change underwater for the "Avatar 2" movie.
Now at UBC as an Assistant Professor, Dr. Chen hopes to continue his work improving physics simulation to make it more precise, efficient, accessible and generalizable. His research program touches on a wide range of fields — from improving robot controls to modeling how proteins fold to helping artists create realistic three-dimensional computer simulations.
“My work is interdisciplinary, from arts to engineering to science,” says Dr. Chen. His approach combines AI with the foundation of partial differential equations, which are used to model real-world physical systems that vary in space and time.
Coming to UBC to do research was an obvious choice for Dr. Chen.
“UBC Computer Science has always been a centre for visual computing, such as computer graphics and computer vision,” he says. “It’s nice to be surrounded by researchers I grew up admiring. Now they’re colleagues sitting next door to me.”
He has also been enjoying the food scene since coming to Vancouver. “I’m a big foodie, so I love Vancouver. The diverse food scene is beyond imagination.”
As he reflects on his journey in the computer science field, he adds that there are lots of opportunities in research and industry collaborations.
“It’s a wonderful time to work on computer science research,” Dr. Chen says. “When I was a math major, I always thought I was going to be very poor while doing science. But graduate school opens lots of doors. Now, I work with lots of industries and companies that have sponsored my research in one way or another.”