How long have you been working in sPHENIX and at what institution?
I’ve been part of sPHENIX for almost 3 years now, first as a grad student and currently as a project aide at Stony Brook University.
What is the focus of your work on the sPHENIX experiment? And what was your thesis title?
I started with assisting the construction of the sPHENIX TPC, but my primary focus has been the development of the TPC line laser calibration system. I’m not currently enrolled in a PhD program (maybe soon though!), but my master’s thesis title was “Programming the Motorized Steering and Controls for the Directed Line Laser Calibration System of the sPHENIX TPC at RHIC”.
Where did you grow up and what is your educational background before your current position?
I was born and raised in Berkeley, California. I started my undergraduate studies at UCLA in Mechanical Engineering, but on a whim I chose to take extra physics courses. I fell in love with it and added Astrophysics as a second degree, then continued my graduate studies at Stony Brook.
Awards or biggest talk highlight?
I haven’t yet had the privilege to give a talk or receive any awards, but I hope to contribute enough to the field one day to do so!
How did you decide to go into heavy ion or spin research?
I tried to get into research in my third year of undergrad, but by then COVID-19 had halted much of the work in labs on campus. I was lucky in my last year to work on computational molecular dynamics research with Mathieu Bauchy studying fracture modes in amorphous solids. This and my astrophysics labs gave me good experience, but I wanted to do more hands-on work. During my first year at Stony Brook, I met Ross and a fellow grad student Julian, both of whom encouraged me to join Tom’s TPC group.
What do you like to do in your spare time?
I spend most of my spare time these days reading (primarily non-fiction and historical fiction) and going for walks in the park. When I have more time I like to play classical piano and crochet (I'm just starting out). I also enjoy trying new food in and around NYC - I have a growing list of hundreds of places to try.
Fun fact?
I've been playing piano since I was 5 and don't have any plans to stop.