Dr. Sergey Samsonau
Dr. Sergey Samsonau brings together physics, AI, data science, and research pedagogy - a rare combination shaped by two decades across academia, industry, and scientific research. At SoTS, he directs five research labs and leads development of the AI Research Mentor platform.
His students - high school and university (formerly Adjunct Professor at CUNY and NYU) - have gone on to study and work at Princeton, MIT, Harvard, UChicago, Johns Hopkins, Berkeley, Google, Amazon, and more.
Research Methodology
Dr. Samsonau's scientific training and experience spans multiple methodologies: theoretical physics, computer simulations, experimental laboratory work, data science, and AI. He guides students through the approach that fits their research questions, or a combination.
Experience
Research Education
- Faculty at PRISMS, ranked among the top private high schools in the US by Niche. Established and directed nanotechnology and data science research labs. Pioneered one of the first high school data science courses in the country. Developed methodologies for combining computer simulations with experiments in calculus-based physics (published in Physics Education) and for integrating authentic research in secondary schools (published in IEEE).
- While at NYU, founded and led AI for Scientific Research (AIfSR), an R&D organization where students worked on real AI projects for researchers across NYU, Langone, and external collaborators. Over 7 semesters, 100+ students, 20+ projects. Developed original methodology for scalable research education (published framework). See what former AIfSR students say.
- Conceptualized and organized AI Meets Science conference, first of its kind for the NYC metro area, with presenters from NASA, NIST, NYU, Cornell, Columbia, Princeton, Arizona State, Simons Foundation, and others.
Panel discussion at the AI Meets Science conference, organized by Dr. Samsonau at the Wasserman Center of NYU in 2024. - With co-authors, formulated foundational methodology now shaping the field: the Research Guide profession, the missing role between classroom teacher and PhD advisor, in arXiv with M. Pearce; and the HumanDevTech class of educational systems, those that develop human capability rather than capture engagement, in EdArXiv with O. Vine and M. Pearce.
AI & Industry R&D
- CEO and Co-Founder of Authentic Research Partners - the company operating Society of Teen Scientists
- Architected and implemented NYU's private GenAI ecosystem - one of the first university implementations nationally. Shared implementation with U.S. university community at Notre Dame AI Forum alongside Harvard and Arizona State.
Presenting NYU's GenAI ecosystem at the Notre Dame AI Forum. - Built infrastructure used by dozens of courses and thousands of students at NYU
- Finance industry R&D (Credit Suisse, Tethys Technology, Nilitis) - solutions recognized for innovation
- Radiology AI (CIVIE) - developed AI adoption strategy, established AI team
Scientific Research
Published in peer-reviewed journals across research education, materials science, and medical research. PhD research focused on nanotechnology (carbon nanofilms, graphene-like materials). Methods included high-vacuum systems, thin film growth (chemical vapor deposition, molecular-beam epitaxy), nanofabrication (photolithography, plasma etching, clean room processing), characterization (atomic force microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, Raman spectroscopy, optical microscopy, low-temperature electrical measurements). Computational work included numerical simulations on high-performance computing clusters (Quantum Espresso for density functional theory calculations), analytical modeling with MATLAB and Wolfram Mathematica, R for advanced statistical analysis, and NI LabVIEW for automated experimental data acquisition and device control.
Materials Science Papers
Research Education Papers
Current Work
Dr. Samsonau's current work is shaping how scientific research will be done in the AI era: defining the practitioner profession, the open workflow, the software standards, and the verification infrastructure.
Teaching Experience
In over 15 years of teaching, has designed curricula and taught hundreds of students at all levels: middle school, high school, undergraduate and graduate students, professional education for Fortune 500, Big Four firms, and Columbia University researchers. Positions include Adjunct Professor at NYU Tandon School of Engineering and CUNY, and faculty at PRISMS, where he adapted college-level quantum mechanics for high school students.
His curricula span the full methodological stack of modern science: theoretical modeling in Wolfram Mathematica, statistical analysis in R, machine learning in Python, and experimental laboratory work in microscopy and spectroscopy.
Education
During school years, Dr. Samsonau was trained in the physics-mathematics school tradition in Belarus - a methodology that produced generations of Nobel laureates, Fields Medalists, and scientists who shaped modern science and technology.