Lorenzo Gavassino
Theoretical and Mathematical physicist
University of Cambridge, UK
Theoretical and Mathematical physicist
University of Cambridge, UK
I received my Bachelor's and Master’s degrees (cum laude) in Physics from the University of Milano “La Statale” in Milan, Italy, and I moved to the Nicolaus Copernicus Astronomical Center of the Polish Academy of Science in Warsaw, Poland, for my doctoral studies (initially with a Della Riccia scholarship). I graduated in June 2022 and obtained my PhD (with distinction) in astronomy and astrophysics with a thesis on “Thermodynamic methods for relativistic hydrodynamics”. I was then a postdoctoral scholar at the department of mathematics of Vanderbilt University, in Nashville, USA, and member of the Vanderbilt Initiative for Gravity, Waves and Fluids (VandyGRAF). Currently, I am a postdoctoral scholar at the Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics (DAMTP) of the University of Cambridge.
I was awarded the MERAC for the Best Doctoral Thesis in Theoretical Astrophysics (year 2024) by the European Astronomical Society.
My article Phys. Rev. X 12, 041001 was selected for commentary in the APS Viewpoint section.
I was nominated Vanderbilt University's postdoctoral fellow of the year 2025.
The article "Causality Constraints on Radiative Transfer" was selected for Editor's Suggestion in Physical Review D.
The article "Life on a Closed Timelike Curve" has drawn significant attention across various media platforms. This study explores the internal dynamics of a hypothetical spaceship traveling on a closed timelike curve in an axially symmetric universe, offering new insights into the challenges of time travel and causality. Featured in publications such as Discover Magazine and Life Science Magazine, the research has been widely discussed, with coverage in over 60 magazines, as well as interviews on Italian national television (Studio Aperto), radio (Giornale Radio), and newspapers (e.g. Wired Italia). The work was also the subject of a colloquium at the Mathematics Department, further highlighting its impact. Vanderbilt University reported on Discover Magazine's coverage of the study, contributing to its broader reach. Online, the article has sparked considerable discussion, with 83 mentions on X and YouTube videos on the topic reaching hundreds of thousands of viewers.