nolanchu
MS Computer Science (Thesis Track), Virginia Tech HEAP Lab · Advised by Prof. Xun Jian
I am a master’s student at Virginia Tech in the Computer Science department, advised by Prof. Xun Jian. My research (so far) has been in computer architecture, specifically hardware memory compression: devising specialized compression hardware to expand effective DRAM capacity by 3-4x. My work spans compression algorithms, hardware accelerator design, and the memory subsystem. More broadly, I’m drawn to challenging problems at the intersection of algorithms and computer architecture, where solutions require great ideas paired with great execution.
I did my BS in Computer Science (with a math minor) at Virginia Tech, graduating with a 4.0. In summer 2026, I’ll be joining AMD Research & Advanced Development as a research associate working on compression.
Publication
Nolan Chu, Yoon Lee, Gagandeep Panwar, and Xun Jian. “Random-Access Hardware Sequence Compression.” 52nd International Symposium on Computer Architecture (ISCA 2026). Accepted. [Code] [Artifact] [Explainer]
Current
- Starting at AMD Research in June 2026, working on compression in the group led by Lucian Petrica.
- Continuing research in hardware memory compression, building on RST.
Old Projects
Some things from undergrad and earlier:
Q-less Solver · A client and solver for “Q-less,” a crossword solitaire game. qless.nolanchu.com
Pixipher · A web app that encodes text into images (and back) using Huffman coding. pixipher.nolanchu.com
GPU Genetic Algorithm · A parallel genetic algorithm on CUDA that approximates pi using inclined plane simulations. Python, Numba.
Physics Simulations · Soft-body, orbital mechanics, ideal gas, and lattice-Boltzmann fluid simulations using Euler and Verlet integration. Python, Pygame.
Polynomial Factorizer · A simple online tool I made for my math tutees. factor.nolanchu.com
Last updated April 2026.