Quantum Theory Project

Congratulations to Dr. Adrian Roitberg on receiving the UF AI Research Excellence Award!

We are pleased to inform you that Dr. Adrian Roitberg has recently received the UF AI Research Excellence Award for accelerating discovery at the molecular level. Dr. Roitberg’s lab recently simulated an early-Earth atmosphere that produced amino acids and other molecules essential for life, a major breakthrough for AI-driven chemistry.

https://news.ufl.edu/2025/10/ai-research-awards/

Congratulations to Dr. Richard Hennig, Director of QTP.

We are pleased to inform you that Dr. Richard Hennig has been named a 2025 American Physical Society Fellow in the Division of Computational Physics!

His groundbreaking work combines artificial intelligence with quantum materials discovery, deriving innovation in energy, electronics and superconductivity.

Passing of Professors John Stanton and Henk Monkhorst

It is with profound sadness that we announce the recent passing of two esteemed members of the Quantum Theory Project at the University of Florida.

Professor John F. Stanton, Director of the Quantum Theory Project and Kenan Professor of Chemistry, passed away unexpectedly on March 21, 2025, at the age of 64 in Boulder, Colorado. Professor Stanton was a leading figure in the field of quantum chemistry, known internationally for his foundational work in electronic structure theory (particularly coupled cluster methodology and algorithms) and predictive calculation of high accuracy molecular spectra. He brought visionary leadership to QTP and was deeply committed to advancing theoretical science through collaboration, innovation, and mentorship. His loss is deeply felt by his colleagues, students, and the broader scientific community. A memorial symposium is being planned, and a tribute page has been created by his family at https://www.forevermissed.com/johnstanton, where friends and colleagues are invited to share memories and photographs.

https://www.compchem.me/jfstanton-obituary

Professor Emeritus Hendrik (Henk) Monkhorst, a long-time friend, collaborator and Sanibel Symposium participant at the University of Utah before joining QTP.  He was a long-serving faculty member in the Department of Physics, passed away on January 22, 2025, at the age of 86. Professor Monkhorst joined the University of Florida in 1978 and officially retired in 2009, though he remained active in research for many years. He was internationally renowned for the Monkhorst-Pack method, a seminal contribution to computational materials physics. He also was co-author of a book on many-body methods, a leader in exacting calculations (e.g. deuteron, triton, muon molecule) to demonstrate the validity of quantum mechanics, and an innovator regarding novel routes to controlled nuclear fusion. He was a respected scholar, a generous mentor, and a steady presence within QTP and the university. His scientific contributions and collegial spirit leave a lasting impact. A memorial page has been posted by the Department of Physics at https://www.phys.ufl.edu/wp/index.php/2025/01/28/in-memoriam-prof-henk-monkhorst/, and an additional tribute site is available at https://www.weremember.com/hendrik-monkhorst/8k8r/memories.

We extend our deepest condolences to the families, friends, and colleagues of Professors Stanton and Monkhorst. Their dedication to science and education will continue to inspire generations to come.

Dec. 13, 2023    Physical Chem. Seminars
The Spring 2024 schedule for Physical Chemistry Seminars now is available at QTP seminar series. Look at the bottom of that page

August 21, 2023    New Leadership
Effective this date, the new Director of QTP is Prof. John Stanton. Prof. Richard Hennig has been re-elected as Associate Director. The election was necessitated by the departure of our long-time colleague Prof. Hai-Ping Cheng to Northeastern University.

August 18, 2023   New Member 
It is a pleasure to announce that Dr. Mingjie Liu, Assistant Professor of Chemistry, has become a member of QTP. After completing her Ph.D. in Materials Science and Nano-engineering at Rice University (2016), she had post-doctoral appointments at Brookhaven National Laboratory and MIT. She joined the UF faculty in Fall 2022. See her group website for more information.

March 3, 2020   Monday next week (March 9) we welcome back Prof. So Hirata, Univ. of Illinois. He will be speaking in Chemistry (2:00 pm, Leigh Hall 309) on “Ab initio condensed-phase chemistry”.

Feb. 12, 2020   Late breaking news:We will have a special QTP seminar this Friday, Feb. 14, 4:00 pm, in NPB 2205. The visitor, Bryan Changala (JILA, Boulder), will speak on “Rovibrational mean-field-based approaches for spectroscopy, dynamics, and thermochemistry of highly anharmonic molecules”

Feb. 2, 2020   Thursday of this week (Feb. 6, 4:00 pm, NPB 2205) there will be a QTP seminar “Materials and Reactions by Design: Machine Learning Meets First Principles” presented by Dr. José Mendoza-Cortes, Dept. of Chemical and Biomedical Engineering, and Dept. of Physics, Florida State Univ.

July 18, 2022
The lengthy process of updating this web site and preparing to move to a more modern web platform has resumed. The first step is updating the pictures of post-docs. Take a look or click on the “Photopage” link at left. The QTP web site was built by QTP faculty member Erik Deumens. It has many features, which makes the underlying code quite intricate. Additionally, updating was not done for some years in the early 2010s owing to staffing issues. The rebuilding is being overseen by Sam Trickey as time allows.

April 10, 2022 Congratulations to John Stanton!
In June 2020, Fulbright Hungary announced a new, distinguished grant for US scholars, the John von Neumann Distinguished Award in STEM. We are happy to announce that Prof. John Stanton has been honored with one of the first such grants. He will be working with colleagues at Eotvos Lorand Univ., Budapest. Funded by the Hungarian Ministry of Innovation and Technology, the award is to attract U.S. scholars to several high-priority research facilities in Hungary. The award is named after Hungarian-American scientist John von Neumann, who was born in Budapest, then emigrated to the US in the early 1930s to Princeton, where he made major contributions in mathematics, physics, economics, computing, and statistics.

March 12, 2022 QTP Action to Condemn the Russian Invasion of Ukraine and Respond
The Quantum Theory Project (QTP) stands in solidarity with the Ukraine Chemistry, Physics, and Materials Science communities and in dismay at the invasion of their country. International science is a hallmark of QTP activity. Indeed, our 16 faculty come from 11 different nations. Within our institutional capacity, therefore, we welcome Ukrainian scientists working in areas relevant to QTP (a broad range of atomic, molecular, and materials chemistry, physics, and materials science theory and computation) to contact our Director (Prof. H-P. Cheng, hping at ufl.edu) if interested in visiting Univ. of Florida and QTP.