Nuclear Theory Group

Professor of Physics 

publications

I work on many aspects of theoretical nuclear physics, including its overlaps with particle phenomenology and atomic physics. Current interests include proton structure, effects of QCD in nuclei, effective field theory approaches to nuclei, studies of fundamental symmetries in nuclei, and nuclear reaction theory at low energies.

Professor of Physics

publications

I work on quantum many-body  physics and related systems. My research is lately focused on the structure, phase transitions and dynamic properties of strongly interacting systems of many fermions, typically nucleons and cold atoms. I employ a wide spectrum of many-body techniques, among them: quantum Monte Carlo for evaluation of path integrals and density functional theory.

                  Professor of Physics

                                publications

My research is focused on nuclear theory, broadly defined, including the study of few-body systems using effective field theory and lattice gauge theory  techniques as well as new methods from quantum information science. Currently I am working on understanding the relevance of non-relativistic conformal field theory to physical systems of importance in nuclear physics.

Affiliate Professor of Physics 

(Professor Emerita, Seattle U)

publications

My work in nuclear theory is focused on the study of hadron structure and interactions. Topics have included exotic atoms, strangeness production in proton-antiproton interactions, and the determination of parton momentum and spin distributions in the proton, pion and kaon. Current interests are the evolution of these distributions to different experimental scales for comparison to lattice calculations and global parton distribution fits to experimental data.

Visiting Scholar

Publications

My research lies at the interface between QCD and the electroweak sector of the Standard Model (SM). I work on interesting problems in hadronic and nuclear physics that directly impact the forefront of searches of physics Beyond the Standard Model (BSM), in particular through precision tests of the SM. One of my recent goals is to perform high-precision calculations of the SM theory inputs in hadronic and nuclear beta decays that could further sharpen the signal of the observed anomalies in the determination of the quantities Vud and Vus, which is now one of the most promising avenues to search for BSM physics.

Postdoctoral Scholar

Publications

I investigate how quantum information and algebraic tools can help better understand nuclear many-body physics. Recent topics that I have explored include collective flavor oscillations of neutrinos from dense astrophysical environments, and Hamiltonian formulations of gauge theories to simulate on quantum computers. Reciprocally, I design quantum algorithms for nuclear theoretical problems as well as more general applications, overlapping with condensed matter physics and quantum chemistry. 

                Postdoctoral Scholar

      Neutrino Theory Network @ FNAL

Publications

I study electroweak interactions with nucleons and nuclei. Recent work includes forbidden transitions for low-energy neutrino scattering, final-state interactions in one nucleon knockout, and pion production on nucleons and nuclei. I provide calculations of neutrino-nucleus cross sections used in the analysis of current and future neutrino scattering experiments, and contribute to the development of neutrino event generators.

Graduate Student

Personal web page       Publications

My research is focused on the quantum many-body problem, specifically the theory of systems of many interacting fermions. I use density functional theory, in conjunction with high performance computing, to study the structure and dynamics of atomic nuclei, with a particular emphasis on nuclear fission.

Graduate Student

Publications

My research is focused on nuclear theory and its overlaps with particle phenomenology — working towards understanding the interplay between nuclear physics and QCD. Using theories that approximate QCD at low energies, I work on understanding how the momenta of partons inside nucleons are modified when placed inside a nuclear environment.

Postdoc  2022-2025

Publications

PhD 2024

Postdoctoral scholar 

Caltech

Publications

PhD 2022

Postdoctoral scholar

University of Arizona

Publications