Research
My research connects fundamental physics with practical challenges in distributed sensing: how to synchronise, calibrate, model, and coherently combine signals from many instruments.
DOCTORAL RESEARCH
In Phase With the Cosmos
Mass Composition of Cosmic Rays via Radio Interferometry
PhD awarded on 6 October 2026 at Radboud University, Netherlands. Read the thesis in the Radboud Repository. Research conducted within Radboud University, the Pierre Auger Collaboration and Nikhef.
Defence records: Radboud University · Nikhef.
Results at a Glance
Research Contributions
Interferometric reconstruction
Developed and tested methods that coherently combine radio signals from spatially separated detector stations to reconstruct very inclined cosmic-ray air showers.
The work included optimisation of geometric and timing parameters, coherent-sum diagnostics, noise-aware validation, and the first successful interferometric reconstruction of a very inclined event achieved during the project.
Precision timing calibration
Used continuous radio carriers and phase measurements to diagnose and correct relative timing across a distributed array.
Independent discrete-phase and cosine-scan approaches were cross-validated, with broadcast carriers providing sub-nanosecond timing verification under suitable signal conditions.
Antenna and environmental systematics
Studied how antenna response, detector coordinates, atmospheric refractivity, and measured background noise affect reconstructed signals.
These studies connected calibration choices to physics performance and supported robust diagnostics for array-wide reconstruction.
Cosmic-ray composition
Advanced radio-based methods for probing the development and mass composition of ultra-high-energy cosmic rays.
Radio measurements can operate with a much higher duty cycle than fluorescence observations, offering a complementary route to composition-sensitive reconstruction.