People

Jean Barbier

I’m Jean Barbier, a Research Scientist (Tenured Associate Professor) in mathematical physics of signals and learning at the International Center for Theoretical Physics (ICTP), part of both the Quantitative Life Science and Mathematics sections. Prior to joining ICTP,  I did my PhD at École Normale Supérieure of Paris with Florent Krzakala followed by a postdoc at EPFL in Lausanne with Nicolas Macris. The ICTP is a UNESCO institute whose mission is not only the research excellence, but also teaching and scientific capacity building for the developing world: ICTP really is a special place to do top research and make a positive impact, worldwide.

My research interests revolve around information processing systems such as appearing in machine learning, communication and error-correction, signal processing or computer science. I often study these systems and associated algorithms using statistical physics –the language used to describe phase transitions–, its close cousin information theory, and random matrix theory. I try to precisely quantify what is the optimal performance one can aim for when processing (big) data, as well as how close to optimality one can operate when using computationally efficient algorithms.

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Francesco Camilli

Francesco Camilli got his bachelor and master degrees in Physics at the University of Bologna. He was a member of the Collegio Superiore, an institute of excellence of the University of Bologna.

He earned a PhD in Mathematics from the University of Bologna under the supervision of prof. Pierluigi Contucci, and a PhD in Physics in cotutelle with the École Normale Supérieure of Paris under the supervision of prof. Marc Mézard. His PhD thesis, titled "New perspectives in statistical mechanics and high-dimensional inference", was awarded the Indam-UMI-SIMAI national prize for best Italian PhD thesis in applied math.

His research interests range from spin glasses to information theory and high dimensional inference. 

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Daria Tieplova

Dasha earned her bachelor and master degrees in mathematics at the National University of Kharkiv before obtaining her joint PhD on Application of large random matrices to multivariate time series analysis at the LIGM under Philippe Loubaton and the Verkin ILTPE under Leonid Pastur.

At the ICTP, her current research interests lie in applications of random matrix theory to obtaining information-theoretic limits for high-dimensional inference problems. In particular, she is presently studying high-dimensional time series using spin-glass methods and has recently obtained universality results for neural networks stemming from gaussian equivalence principles.

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Anas Rahman

Rahman obtained his DipMS (pure mathematics), BSc (physics), MSc (pure mathematics, with thesis on Moments of the Laguerre β Ensembles under Peter Forrester and Nicholas Witte), and PhD all from the University of Melbourne. His PhD thesis was on Recursive Characterisations of Random Matrix Ensembles and Associated Combinatorial Objects under Peter Forrester, Paul Norbury, and Mario Kieburg.

Interested in a broad range of topics, and especially in their interplay, he has studied classical β matrix ensembles, loop equations/topological recursion, ribbon graph combinatorics, statistical mechanics, and 1/N asymptotics, in addition to other topics revolving around random matrix theory. As of recent, he has been expanding his repertoire with the addition of spin glass theory and information theory with an eye towards obtaining rigorous mathematical results concerning problems in high-dimensional statistical inference and machine learning.

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Gibbs Nwemadji

Gibbs Nwemadji is currently pursuing a PhD in the Theoretical and Scientific Data Science group at the International School for Advanced Studies (SISSA) in Trieste, Italy. His research focuses on utilizing statistical physics to enhance our theoretical comprehension of machine learning systems.

Before joining SISSA, Gibbs excelled in the ICTP postgraduate diploma program in Quantitative Life Science, where he was recognized as the top student of his cohort. His admission to this prestigious program was greatly influenced by the connections he established during his master's studies in mathematical science at AIMS-Cameroon, where he graduated among the top five in his class. Prior to his time at AIMS-Cameroon, Gibbs pursued physics at the University of Douala, where he graduated as the second valedictorian of his master's program.

Outside of academia, Gibbs enjoys immersing himself in books, staying active through activities like basketball and running, and engaging in discussions on topics related to human nature and the purpose of life.