Faculty

Chair: Joseph Barranco
Associate Chair: Huizhong Xu
Astronomy Graduate Coordinator:  Adrienne Cool 
Physics Graduate Coordinator: Maarten Golterman 
Undergraduate Major Advisors - Astronomy: John Brewer, Charli Sakari 
Undergraduate Major Advisors - Physics: Weining Man, Huizhong Xu 
Advisor for K12 Teacher Preparation: Kim Coble

Tenured & Tenure Track Faculty

Joe Barranco
Joseph Barranco (He/Him/His)
Professor, Department Chair
Astrophysical and geophysical fluid dynamics.
barranco@sfsu.edu
(415) 338-2450
John Brewer
John Brewer (He/Him/His)
Associate Professor
Exoplanetary science.
jmbrewer@sfsu.edu
Kim Coble
Kim Coble (She/Her/Hers)
Professor
Physics and astronomy education research.
kcoble@sfsu.edu
Adrienne Cool
Adrienne Cool (She/Her/Hers)
Professor, Director of SF State Observatory and Hagar Planetarium, Astronomy Graduate Coordinator
Galactic astronomy, globular clusters.
cool@sfsu.edu
Maarten Golterman
Maarten Golterman (He/Him/His)
Professor, Physics Graduate Coordinator
Theoretical high-energy physics.
maarten@sfsu.edu
Eileen Gonzales
Eileen Gonzales (She/Her/Hers)
Assistant Professor
Low mass stars, brown dwarfs, and giant exoplanets.
egonzales@sfsu.edu
Jeff Greensite
Jeff Greensite
Professor (on leave Spring 2025)
Theoretical high-energy physics.
greensit@sfsu.edu
Oscar Macias headshot.
Oscar Macias (He/Him/His)
Assistant Professor
High energy astrophysics and cosmic ray astronomy
macias@sfsu.edu
Weining Man
Weining Man (She/Her/Hers)
Professor
Quantum optics and photonics.
weining@sfsu.edu
Ron Marzke
Ron Marzke (He/Him/His)
Associate Dean of College of Science and Engineering
Extragalactic astronomy.
marzke@sfsu.edu
415-338-2955
Charli Sakari
Charli Sakari (She/Her/Hers)
Associate Professor
Extragalactic astronomy, galactic archaeology.
sakaricm@sfsu.edu
Huizhong Xu
Huizhong Xu (He/Him/His)
Professor, Associate Chair
Nano-optics and biophysical imaging.
huizhong@sfsu.edu
415-338-1602

Lecturer Faculty & Adjunct Faculty

Salma Begum
Salma Begum (She/Her/Hers)
Lecturer Faculty
salmab19@sfsu.edu
Jeanne Digel
Jeanne Digel (She/Her/Hers)
Lecturer Faculty
digel@sfsu.edu
Jessica Fielder
Jessica Fielder (She/Her/Hers)
Lecturer Faculty
Supplemental Instruction Program Director
jfielder@sfsu.edu
Violeta Grigorescu
Violeta Grigorescu
Lecturer Faculty
vgrigore@sfsu.edu
Arefa Hossain
Arefa Hossain (She/Her/Hers)
Lecturer Faculty
arefa16@sfsu.edu
Katie Kooistra
Katie Kooistra (She/Her/Hers)
Lecturer Faculty
kkooistr@sfsu.edu
Chris McCarthy
Chris McCarthy
Adjunct Assistant Professor
Exoplanetary science.
planets@sfsu.edu
Elaine Tennant
Elaine Tennant (She/Her/Hers)
Lecturer Faculty
et1083@sfsu.edu
Aaron White
Aaron White (He/Him/His)
Lecturer Faculty
aaronwh@mail.sfsu.edu
Polin Yadak
Polin Yadak
Lecturer Faculty
Instructor for Pre-Health Post-Baccalaureate Certificate Program
poliny@sfsu.edu

Faculty Emeriti

Roger Bland
Roger Bland
Professor Emeritus
Experimental Physics, Underwater Acoustics.
bland@sfsu.edu
Zhigang Chen
Zhigang Chen
Professor Emeritus
Quantum optics and photonics.
zhigang@sfsu.edu
Gerald Fisher
Gerald Fisher
Professor Emeritus
Oliver Johns
Oliver Johns
Professor Emeritus
Susan Lea
Susan Lea (She/Her/Hers)
Professor Emerita
Theoretical astrophysics.
slea@sfsu.edu
Jim Lockhart
Jim Lockhart
Professor Emeritus
Experimental General Relativity.
jmlock@sfsu.edu
Barbara Neuhauser
Barbara Neuhauser
Professor Emerita
Solid state physics & cryogenic electronics.
barbjn@sfsu.edu
Jim Peters
Jim Peters
Professor Emeritus
Jeffrey Royer
Professor Emeritus
Charles Shapiro
Charles Shapiro
Professor Emeritus

In Memoriam

Akm Newaz
AKM Newaz
Associate Professor
Quantum materials and nanodevices.