Graduate Student

Salma Ahmed

Advisor: Burkhard Militzer I use density function theory and ab-initio molecular dynamics to study matter in extreme conditions, which include the conditions of planet interiors. My latest project was to study high pressure electrides, in which valence electrons of atoms instead localize in the interstitial sites of the material. I received my bachelor's and master's degrees in chemistry at San Francisco State University, where my previous research was simulating superionic metal halides as a proxy for Li-ion batteries. I have also been an NSF-GRFP Fellow since 2023.

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Colin Baciocco

Advisor: Madison Douglas

I am a geomorphologist who studies how the hydroclimate and landscapes interact, particularly in the Arctic. My work involves an interplay between field observations, lab analysis of materials collected in the field, and implementing those observations with geomorphological theory and numerical / analytical modeling. I also develop methods for using very large remote sensing datasets to answer geomorphological questions.

Projects: - Thesis project: Mechanistic models of thermoerosional gully networks in ice-rich permafrost - Second...

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Alexander Bearden

Advisor: Penny Wieser

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Cora Anna Constantinescu

Advisor: Raymond Jeanloz

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Prajna Paramita Das

Advisor: Bruce Buffett

BS-MS degree (Undergraduate) from IISER Kolkata, India

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Kyla De Villa

Advisor: Burkhard Militzer

I use computer simulations (ab initio and machine learning) to study the properties of materials under the extreme conditions of planetary interiors. By calculating equations of state and transport properties of planetary ices, I then perform magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) simulations of ice giant planets to infer the role of radially varying material properties on magnetic field morphologies and heat flows. Similarly, using atomistic shock simulation techniques, I study giant impact induced shock synthesis of prebiotic...