The Department of Physics of Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU) was established in 1928. It was one of the earliest physics departments in China. In 1978, an applied physics program was re-established in SJTU. In 2007, SJTU made a strategic decision to rebuild a top-class and full scale physics program. Fueled by adoption of tenure-track system (2009, one of the earliest in China) and recruiting of many outerstanding faculty members from worldwide, the Department underwent a decade of rapid growth. In 2013, the Department established a strong program of Astronomy and Astrophysics, and was subsequently renamed as the Department of Physics and Astronomy. In 2017, the Department was further renamed as the School of Physics and Astronomy (SPA).

Taking the value of “high starting point, strong foundation, strict requirements, emphasis on practice and innovation”, SPA aims to cultivate top-notch innovative talents, pursue cutting edge scientific discoveries and technological innovations, and build a world-class school of physics and astronomy.

After a decade of rapid growth, SPA has become one of the most vigorous and comprehensive physics departments nationwide. It covers a broad range of research areas in the field of physics and astronomy, including particle and nuclear physics, condensed matter physics, optics, atomic and molecular physics, laser plasma physics, astronomy and astrophysics, computational physics, and interdisciplinary physics. SPA hosts a national collaborative innovation center, three key laboratories of the Ministry of Education and one Shanghai key laboratory, and a computational physics platform, a micro-nano machining and testing platform and other public platforms. Now SJTU physics is the National First-Class Subject, and was ranked 33th worldwide (4th in China) by 2023 US News Subject Rankings.

SPA currently has 160+ faculty members in total, and most members have oversea study and/or research experiences. In the past five years, SPA faculty members have made influential contributions to many research fields. They have published more than 2800 peer-reviewed papers, with 460+ papers are published in top journals such as Science (series), Nature (series), and PRL/PRX. We have been approved 344 research programs from the central government agencies, with a total budget of more than RMB 700 million.