# Artem R. Oganov
Artem R. Oganov is a crystallographer and materials scientist, Distinguished Professor at Skoltech, known for the USPEX structure prediction code and for the discoveries of post-perovskite and partially ionic high-pressure boron. He is the creator of USPEX, a crystal structure prediction code used by more than 10,600 researchers worldwide.[1](https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7082-9728) • [2](https://uspex-team.org/en)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Signature work | According to *Evolutionary Crystal Structure Prediction as a Method for the Discovery of Minerals and Materials* (2010), the USPEX evolutionary structure-prediction method (developed 2004–2006); MgSiO3 post-perovskite (Nature 2004); ionic high-pressure boron (Nature 2009) |[2](https://uspex-team.org/en) • [3](https://www.stonybrook.edu/commcms/geosciences/people/_researchfaculty/oganov.php)
| Training | MSc Moscow State University 1997; PhD University College London 2002 (advisors G.D. Price, J.P. Brodholt); Habilitation ETH Zurich 2007[4](https://www.ae-info.org/ae/Member/Oganov_Artem/CV) |
| USPEX adoption | Used by more than 10,600 researchers worldwide[2](https://uspex-team.org/en) |
## Education and career
He moved to the United Kingdom in 1998 and completed a PhD in [Crystallography](https://www.edgepedia.org/crystallography) at [University College London](https://www.edgepedia.org/university-college-london) in 2002 with the thesis *Computer Simulation Studies of Minerals*, supervised by G.D. Price and J.P. Brodholt.[4](https://www.ae-info.org/ae/Member/Oganov_Artem/CV) • [7](https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10101578/1/Computer_simulation_studies_of.pdf)
He then moved to [Stony Brook University](https://www.edgepedia.org/stony-brook-university) in the United States as Associate Professor in 2008, was promoted to Full Professor in January 2010, and is listed there as Research Professor as of January 2018.[3](https://www.stonybrook.edu/commcms/geosciences/people/_researchfaculty/oganov.php)
From 2013 he combined the American post with Russian positions: Head of Laboratory and Professor at the [Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology](https://www.edgepedia.org/moscow-institute-of-physics-and-technology) (MIPT) from 2013 to 2020, Professor at MISIS University from 2020 to 2024, and Head of the Laboratory of Crystal Chemistry at the [Russian Academy of Sciences](https://www.edgepedia.org/russian-academy-of-sciences)' Institute of Geochemistry and Analytical Chemistry from 2021 to 2024.[6](https://coreacad.org/Member.aspx?ProId=126) He has been Professor at Skoltech since 2015 and Distinguished Professor there since 2024.[5](https://uspex-team.org/static/file/CV-new-format-2026-05-24.pdf) • [1](https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7082-9728) His 2025 curriculum vitae lists both the MISIS department headship and the RAS laboratory headship as ending in 2024.[11](https://uspex-team.org/static/file/CV-short-Oganov_2025-04-08.pdf) • [8](https://www.ae-info.org/ae/Member/Oganov_Artem) • [6](https://coreacad.org/Member.aspx?ProId=126)
## USPEX and crystal structure prediction
USPEX (Universal Structure Predictor: Evolutionary Xtallography; "uspekh" is Russian for success) is an evolutionary algorithm, developed in Oganov's laboratory since 2004, that searches that space the way a genetic algorithm searches: candidate structures are generated, their energies are computed from first principles (ab initio), the most stable ones are selected, and new candidates are produced by combining and mutating the survivors.[2](https://uspex-team.org/en) • [9](https://doi.org/10.2138/rmg.2010.71.13)
The method needs only the chemical composition and the pressure-temperature conditions of interest; it relies on no experimental data about the structure.[2](https://uspex-team.org/en) • [9](https://doi.org/10.2138/rmg.2010.71.13) In tests mostly on systems of up to 28 atoms per unit cell (a few up to 128), the success rate was nearly 100%.[9](https://doi.org/10.2138/rmg.2010.71.13) The code is now used by more than 10,600 researchers worldwide, including several companies.[2](https://uspex-team.org/en) • [1](https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7082-9728) According to the USPEX team's website, the 23rd USPEX workshop, held online on 11–12 November 2025, drew over 600 participants from more than 60 countries, and a new release, USPEX 25, has been issued.[2](https://uspex-team.org/en)
## Representative work
**Post-perovskite.** In 2004 Oganov took part in the joint theoretical and experimental discovery of MgSiO3 post-perovskite, the structure adopted by the dominant mineral of Earth's lowermost mantle (the D'' layer) at pressures near the core-mantle boundary; the discovery was published in Nature and has been confirmed by independent studies.[3](https://www.stonybrook.edu/commcms/geosciences/people/_researchfaculty/oganov.php)
**Ionic boron.** His group's 2009 Nature paper reported that elemental boron adopts a partially ionic form of a single element under high pressure.[3](https://www.stonybrook.edu/commcms/geosciences/people/_researchfaculty/oganov.php) • [10](https://doi.org/10.1021/ar1001318) The same year his group predicted the transparent insulating phase of sodium, another case in which pressure drives an element away from its familiar metallic behavior.[3](https://www.stonybrook.edu/commcms/geosciences/people/_researchfaculty/oganov.php)
**Impossible compounds and superconducting hydrides.** USPEX applications include "forbidden" compounds such as Na3Cl, in which sodium takes an oxidation state not accessible at ambient conditions, and a series of superconducting hydrides (ThH10, ThH9, YH6, (La,Y)H6, and (La,Y)H10) predicted to superconduct at very high temperatures under compression.[6](https://coreacad.org/Member.aspx?ProId=126)
## High-pressure materials chemistry
His group's predictions span high-pressure structures of the elements (carbon, nitrogen, calcium), hydrides (silane, germane, stannane, lithium hydrides), xenon oxides, and helium chemistry under pressure.[3](https://www.stonybrook.edu/commcms/geosciences/people/_researchfaculty/oganov.php) • [6](https://coreacad.org/Member.aspx?ProId=126) His prediction of the hydrous compound Mg2SiO5H2 inspired a new hypothesis on the origin of Earth's hydrosphere.[6](https://coreacad.org/Member.aspx?ProId=126)
## Industry roles
In 2017 Oganov founded and, until 2020, directed the International Center for Materials Discovery at Northwestern Polytechnical University in China.[6](https://coreacad.org/Member.aspx?ProId=126)
## Honors and recognition
Since 2023 he has chaired the Scientific Committee of the VYZOV Prize.[8](https://www.ae-info.org/ae/Member/Oganov_Artem)
## Recent developments
Three developments mark the recent record. He was made Distinguished Professor at Skoltech in 2024.[5](https://uspex-team.org/static/file/CV-new-format-2026-05-24.pdf) And in 2026 he took the Chief Scientific Officer role at SberUniversity.[5](https://uspex-team.org/static/file/CV-new-format-2026-05-24.pdf)
## References
1. Artem R. Oganov, ORCID record. https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7082-9728
2. USPEX laboratory site. https://uspex-team.org/en
3. Artem Oganov, Department of Geosciences, Stony Brook University. https://www.stonybrook.edu/commcms/geosciences/people/_researchfaculty/oganov.php
4. CV, Academy of Europe (Academia Europaea). https://www.ae-info.org/ae/Member/Oganov_Artem/CV
5. Curriculum Vitae Professor Artem R. Oganov (24 May 2026). https://uspex-team.org/static/file/CV-new-format-2026-05-24.pdf
6. Artem R. Oganov, CORE Academy member record. https://coreacad.org/Member.aspx?ProId=126
7. Computer Simulation Studies of Minerals, PhD thesis, University College London, 2002. https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10101578/1/Computer_simulation_studies_of.pdf
8. Oganov Artem, Academy of Europe member record. https://www.ae-info.org/ae/Member/Oganov_Artem
9. Evolutionary Crystal Structure Prediction as a Method for the Discovery of Minerals and Materials, Reviews in Mineralogy & Geochemistry, 2010. https://doi.org/10.2138/rmg.2010.71.13
10. How Evolutionary Crystal Structure Prediction Works, and Why, Accounts of Chemical Research, 2011. https://doi.org/10.1021/ar1001318
11. CV short Oganov 2025 04 08 (uspex-team.org). https://uspex-team.org/static/file/CV-short-Oganov_2025-04-08.pdf
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Technology and the built world › Engineers and computer scientists › Engineers and materials scientists › Researchers in materials science and nanotechnology › Crystal growth and phase transformations*
*Initially written Sep 21, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 25, 2026; Sep 30, 2026 · Edited: Sep 25, 2026; Sep 30, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Last review: Sep 30, 2026*
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