Introducing Yanxiang Chen

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by

Sally K.
in ,
A portrait of Yanxiang Chen, a man with short black hair styled neatly. He is wearing round, thin-framed glasses that complement his face. His expression is calm and friendly, with a slight smile. He is dressed in a casual black jacket with a zipper, worn over a plain white t-shirt. The jacket has a textured fabric and a high collar. A distinctive mole is visible on the left side of his neck. The background is a smooth, neutral gray, which keeps the focus on his face. The lighting is even, highlighting his facial features clearly.

My name is Yanxiang Chen, a second-year PhD student at Umeå University in Sweden.

With a background in computational mathematics, I went on to do a master’s degree at Trinity College Dublin, where I began to build systematic knowledge in parallel computing. After graduation, I had the opportunity to work at the Supercomputing Center in Wuxi, where I gained initial experience optimizing real-world codes (like LAMMPS for molecular dynamics simulation) on supercomputers.

A night scene captures the aurora borealis, with vibrant green streaks of light cascading diagonally across the sky. The aurora appears to be shimmering and blending with the partly cloudy sky, creating a dynamic and ethereal effect. In the lower left corner, the silhouette of a tree with a distinct, irregular shape stands out against the illuminated sky. The clouds are faintly visible, adding texture to the scene, while a few stars peek through the gaps in the clouds, enhancing the celestial ambiance. The overall mood is tranquil and awe-inspiring, highlighting the natural beauty of the northern lights.

In the summer of 2023, I learned about Prof. Roman Iakymchuk’s work in parallel numerical methods. I reached out to him excitedly, and he showed me his current research and the goals of the CEEC project. After our discussions, he kindly offered me the chance to collaborate. In December 2023, I relocated to Umeå—an ideal base for chasing northern lights and new research horizons—to join the CEEC project as a research engineer.

Work Within CEEC

After my role as a research engineer, I began my PhD in April 2024 under the supervision of Prof. Roman Iakymchuk. I’m now developing algorithms for our consortium’s CFD applications, focusing on energy-efficient and numerically reliable linear-algebra kernels across large-scale parallel and heterogeneous architectures. These applications and the underlying algorithms often face stability and sustainability challenges at scale, so we integrate auto-tuning frameworks and performance-optimization strategies to ensure both high performance and cross-architecture portability. In addition, we employ mixed-precision methods to boost performance while driving energy-efficient computing. As part of CEEC, I collaborate closely with the CFD application teams at partner institutions such as KTH and BSC. To date, our efforts have resulted in two articles and two research posters.

Ultimate Goals

My ultimate goal is to develop robust solutions that deliver enhanced performance for the consortium’s CFD applications—solutions I hope will be useful not only within CEEC but also more broadly to the scientific community. Because the CEEC project forms the core of my PhD research, I also aim to successfully complete my doctoral degree based on these contributions.

Closing Thoughts

A spacious data center housing the supercomputer MareNostrum5, featuring multiple rows of tall, black server racks arranged in parallel lines. Each rack is equipped with numerous servers, visible through the front mesh panels. On top of the racks, there are neatly organized bundles of black and colored cables, some secured with cable management trays. The floor consists of a metal grid design, allowing for efficient airflow and cable routing. The room is illuminated by bright overhead fluorescent lights, casting an even glow across the space. The walls are painted white, contributing to the clean and orderly environment. In the background, more server racks are visible, extending towards the far end of the room. The overall atmosphere is one of high-tech efficiency and organization, befitting a state-of-the-art supercomputer facility.

Umeå is a magical city—here, the northern lights are surprisingly easy to chase, which wasn’t possible in any of the places I’ve previously studied or worked. Being part of the CEEC project also gives me the chance to collaborate with leading scientists across the EU, which I truly enjoy. I love traveling to visit collaborators, and these visits are often highly productive. One particularly memorable experience was the CEEC F2F meeting in Barcelona, where we toured the new supercomputer MareNostrum5 at BSC.