About
I am a PhD student at the Institute of Astronomy, University of Cambridge, working on the physics of black holes and gravitational waves. My research centres on quasinormal modes — the characteristic oscillations emitted as a black hole settles following a merger — studied through numerical relativity simulations. More broadly I am interested in science at the intersection of theory and observation. This includes black holes, gravity, cosmology, and fundamental physics. I am also very interested in the philosophy of physics and the intersection of art and science.
Recently my work has focused on the identification of quasinormal modes in high-accuracy Cauchy-characteristic evolved numerical relativity waveforms, using Bayesian inference and a Gaussian process uncertainty model. I am expanding this analysis beyond quasinormal modes, investigating the presence of power-law tails, and prompt response in the post-merger signal. I expect to submit my PhD thesis in March 2027.
Beyond my thesis, I have audited a range of Part III courses including General Relativity, Black Holes, Cosmology, Bayesian Inference, Quantum Field Theory, and Advanced Quantum Field Theory, and I supervise Cambridge undergraduates in Part II quantum mechanics. This work has led to three papers in Physical Review D and Physical Review Letters so far, with a further preprint on arXiv. I am also part of the numerical relativity and gravitational-wave group in the Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics (DAMTP).
Alongside research, I take part in a variety of public engagement activities. Most notably, I am a regular writer for PBS Space Time, a YouTube channel with over three million subscribers. The scripts I have pitched and written have collectively received over 10 million views. I also write popular science articles, give public talks, and produce video content for a combined social media audience of approximately 85,000. My work has featured on StarTalk Radio with Neil deGrasse Tyson, Cheltenham Science Festival, BBC Radio 4's Curious Cases, Cambridge University social media, the Cavendish physics audio tour, and Cambridge Festival. In 2024, I was awarded the FameLab UK audience prize, chosen from a field of more than four hundred entrants.
