Xuenan Li

Email: xl3383 at columbia dot edu

I am a Chu Assistant Professor at Department of Applied Physics and Applied Mathematics, Columbia University and my supervisor is Michael I. Weinstein.

I completed my PhD in applied math at Courant Institute of Mathematical Sciences, New York University, advised by Robert V. Kohn.

You can download my CV here.

I am currently on the tenure-track faculty job market for positions beginning in Fall 2026.

My research interests:

• Calculus of Variations, PDE and Spectral Theory

with particular focus on problems from physics, mechanics, and materials science.

• New Methods for Designing Higher-order Rigid Frameworks

including an optimization-based approach to finding new tensegrity structures.