In a previous life, Stefaan Cottenier has been educated as an experiment physicist. In the mid-nineties, he got seduced by the opportunities offered by the then newly appearing user-friendly computer codes for applying density-functional theory to crystals. Since that time, he enjoys applying DFT to a variety of fundamental and applied solid state problems, often in collaboration with experimental partners. Stefaan has a special interest in the methodology of teaching, and uses insights from this field to train new generations of (experimental) materials scientists in the use of quantum-based simulation tools for solids.

Prof. Christopher M Wolverton is Professor of Materials Science and Engineering at the McCormick school of Engineering, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL. His research group works on computational materials science, in particular first-principles quantum mechanical simulation tools. These computational tools have advanced to the point now where materials may be "synthesized virtually", with their properties predicted on a computer before ever being synthesized in a laboratory.

Current research efforts center on materials for alternative energies and sustainability (hydrogen, batteries, light-weight metals, fuel cells, thermoelectrics), including the discovery of novel hydrogen storage materials, phase transformations in metallic and ceramic alloys, microstructural evolution during aging, and the theoretical prediction of new materials. In addition to application, Prof. Wolverton also works on method development. While current first-principles electronic structure methods are very accurate for a wide class of materials, they suffer from unfavorable scaling with system size, making the treatment of large-scale structures unfeasible. By coupling first-principles with, e.g., Monte Carlo methods (capable of simulating millions of atoms based on statistical techniques) allows for truly predictive models of microstructural evolution and mechanical properties in novel materials.