[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ fullwidth=”on” _builder_version=”3.14″][et_pb_fullwidth_image src=”https:\/\/magazine.mcs.cmu.edu\/physics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2019\/11\/mandelbaum_cover2.jpg” _builder_version=”3.14″][\/et_pb_fullwidth_image][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”3.14″ custom_padding=”0|0px|29px|0px|false|false”][et_pb_row custom_padding=”2px|0px|0|0px|false|false” _builder_version=”3.14″][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”3.14″ parallax=”off” parallax_method=”on”][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/magazine.mcs.cmu.edu\/physics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2019\/11\/Faculty-Notes.png” align=”right” always_center_on_mobile=”off” _builder_version=”3.14″ filter_hue_rotate=”262deg” filter_saturate=”200%” filter_brightness=”53%” filter_contrast=”128%” filter_invert=”77%” mix_blend_mode=”color”][\/et_pb_image][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row custom_padding=”0|0px|0|0px|false|false” _builder_version=”3.14″][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”3.14″ parallax=”off” parallax_method=”on”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.14″ header_font=”|700||on|||||” header_text_color=”#bf3f00″ header_font_size=”64px” header_font_size_tablet=”62px” header_font_size_phone=”46px” header_font_size_last_edited=”on|phone” header_text_shadow_style=”preset3″ header_text_shadow_blur_strength=”0.19em” header_text_shadow_color=”#ffffff” header_2_font=”||||||||” header_2_text_color=”#bf3f00″ header_2_font_size=”37px” header_2_font_size_tablet=”35px” header_2_font_size_phone=”25px” header_2_font_size_last_edited=”on|phone” header_2_text_shadow_style=”preset3″ header_2_text_shadow_blur_strength=”0.14em” header_2_text_shadow_color=”#ffffff”]<\/p>\n
[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row custom_padding=”27px|0px|0|0px|false|false” _builder_version=”3.14″][et_pb_column type=”1_2″ _builder_version=”3.14″ parallax=”off” parallax_method=”on”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.14″]P<\/span>rofessor Rachel Mandelbaum seeks to better understand the universe, how it started and how it came to be as it is today.<\/p>\n She does this by studying weak gravitational lensing. When light from far-away galaxies travels towards Earth \u2014 and the lenses of terrestrial telescopes \u2014 it passes other objects in the universe. The masses of these objects bend the path taken by light as it travels past, resulting in distorted images. Mandelbaum studies the slightest of these distortions, which contain valuable information about how matter was distributed in the early universe and how matter evolved to the large-scale structure we see today. It also holds clues to the nature of dark matter and dark energy.<\/p>\n \u201cRachel is a leader in the field of gravitational lensing, and her work is paving the way for exciting discoveries over the coming decade,\u201d said Department Head Scott Dodelson.<\/p>\n Mandelbaum, who is a member of the McWilliams Center for Cosmology, is particularly known for her work that pairs cosmological observations with computer science, statistics and data science. To accurately measure the tiny weak lensing distortions, researchers must collect data from tens of millions of galaxies. They also need to correct for other causes of blurring caused by telescopes or the atmosphere. Mandelbaum creates algorithms that take sources of observational and theoretical uncertainty into account to learn about how galaxies relate to their dark matter halos and to measure cosmological parameters from large telescope datasets.<\/p>\n These algorithms are used by leading astronomical surveys, including the Hyper Suprime-Cam Survey, the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST), Euclid and WFIRST projects.<\/p>\n Earlier this year, Mandelbaum was elected as the spokesperson for the LSST Dark Energy Science Collaboration (DESC) and began her two-year term in July. The LSST, an 8.4-meter ground-based telescope in Cerro Pach\u00f3n, Chile, is in its final phases of construction and plans to collect its first commissioning data in 2021. As spokesperson, Mandelbaum will lead the DESC in the final stages of preparation for the LSST\u2019s first observations, including overseeing its scientific, computing and technical direction and overall collaboration, as well as overseeing its finances by serving as a liaison to funding agencies. Mandelbaum was also named a 2019 Simons Investigator by the Simons Foundation. She is the first Carnegie Mellon faculty member to be selected for this prestigious program that supports outstanding scientists as they undertake the long-term study of fundamental questions.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are thrilled that the Simons Foundation has acknowledged the importance of her work,\u201d said Dodelson.<\/p>\n Mandelbaum will use the funding from the Simons Foundation to support her research group as it begins to explore the new datasets created by upcoming cosmological surveys.<\/p>\n \u25a0\u00a0Jocelyn Duffy<\/em><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_gallery gallery_ids=”828,829,830″ fullwidth=”on” _builder_version=”3.14″ auto=”on” auto_speed=”3000″][\/et_pb_gallery][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ disabled_on=”on|off|off” _builder_version=”3.14″ use_background_color_gradient=”on” background_color_gradient_start=”#660000″ background_color_gradient_end=”#cecece” background_image=”https:\/\/magazine.mcs.cmu.edu\/physics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2019\/11\/stripes_white_aigu.png” background_size=”initial” background_position=”center_left” background_repeat=”repeat-y” custom_padding=”0|0|4px|0px|false|false”][et_pb_row _builder_version=”3.14″][et_pb_column type=”1_3″ _builder_version=”3.14″ parallax=”off” parallax_method=”on”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.14″ text_font=”||||||||” text_text_color=”#ffffff” text_text_shadow_style=”preset3″ text_text_shadow_color=”#000000″ header_font=”||||||||” header_text_color=”#ffffff” header_text_shadow_style=”preset3″ header_text_shadow_blur_strength=”2em” header_text_shadow_color=”#000000″ header_2_font=”|700||on|||||” header_2_text_color=”#ffffff” header_2_text_shadow_style=”preset3″ header_2_text_shadow_color=”#000000″]<\/p>\n Assistant Professor Benjamin Hunt was named a 2019 Cottrell Scholar in recognition of his leadership in integrating science teaching and research. Hunt is one of the United States\u2019 top early career scientists to receive the designation from the Research Corporation for Science Advancement.<\/p>\n Hunt will use the support from the scholar program to further his research in the role of crystal symmetry in superconductivity and create a comprehensive undergraduate condensed matter lab that will give students the opportunity to investigate 2D materials and to create their own experiments. Assistant Professor Jyoti Katoch received a prestigious early career grant from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). She is one of 73 scientists to receive funding under the DOE\u2019s Early Career Research Program.<\/p>\n The grant will allow Katoch to study quantum materials using advanced technologies. Specifically, she will probe the spatially resolved electronic band structure of 2D quantum materials and engineer the materials\u2019 properties by making nanoscale perturbations in superlattices and adatoms found in the materials\u2019 heterostructures. She will also further develop in-operando nanoARPES, an experimental technique that combines spectroscopy and microscopy to study the band structures of quantum systems under non-equilibrium conditions. Professor Di Xiao has been awarded a fellowship by the Simons Foundation.<\/p>\n Xiao, whose research centers around quantum condensed matter theory, is using the year-long sabbatical enabled by the fellowship to study the \u201cexotic arrangements\u201d of electric and magnetic charges and currents found in some crystalline solids.<\/p>\n \u201cMy plan is to develop a theory to describe these quantum states,\u201d Xiao said. \u201cIt is going to be a challenging problem and the Simons Fellowship will allow me to focus my time on it.\u201d<\/p>\n The Simons Foundation was founded in 1994 to support research in mathematics and the basic sciences.<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/magazine.mcs.cmu.edu\/physics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2019\/11\/facnotes_xiao.jpg” _builder_version=”3.14″][\/et_pb_image][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ disabled_on=”off|on|on” _builder_version=”3.14″ use_background_color_gradient=”on” background_color_gradient_start=”#590000″ background_color_gradient_end=”#8e8e8e” background_size=”initial” background_position=”center_left” background_repeat=”repeat-y” custom_padding=”0|0px|4px|0px|false|false”][et_pb_row custom_padding=”2px|0px|0|0px|false|false” _builder_version=”3.14″][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”3.14″ parallax=”off” parallax_method=”on”][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/magazine.mcs.cmu.edu\/physics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2019\/11\/Faculty-Notes.png” align=”right” always_center_on_mobile=”off” _builder_version=”3.14″ filter_hue_rotate=”262deg” filter_saturate=”200%” filter_brightness=”53%” filter_contrast=”128%” filter_invert=”77%” mix_blend_mode=”color”][\/et_pb_image][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=”3.14″][et_pb_column type=”1_3″ _builder_version=”3.14″ parallax=”off” parallax_method=”on”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.14″ text_font=”||||||||” text_text_color=”#ffffff” text_text_shadow_style=”preset3″ text_text_shadow_color=”#000000″ header_font=”||||||||” header_text_color=”#ffffff” header_text_shadow_style=”preset3″ header_text_shadow_blur_strength=”2em” header_text_shadow_color=”#000000″ header_2_font=”|700||on|||||” header_2_text_color=”#ffffff” header_2_text_shadow_style=”preset3″ header_2_text_shadow_color=”#000000″]<\/p>\n Assistant Professor Benjamin Hunt was named a 2019 Cottrell Scholar in recognition of his leadership in integrating science teaching and research. Hunt is one of the United States\u2019 top early career scientists to receive the designation from the Research Corporation for Science Advancement.<\/p>\n Hunt will use the support from the scholar program to further his research in the role of crystal symmetry in superconductivity and create a comprehensive undergraduate condensed matter lab that will give students the opportunity to investigate 2D materials and to create their own experiments. Assistant Professor Jyoti Katoch received a prestigious early career grant from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). She is one of 73 scientists to receive funding under the DOE\u2019s Early Career Research Program.<\/p>\n The grant will allow Katoch to study quantum materials using advanced technologies. Specifically, she will probe the spatially resolved electronic band structure of 2D quantum materials and engineer the materials\u2019 properties by making nanoscale perturbations in superlattices and adatoms found in the materials\u2019 heterostructures. She will also further develop in-operando nanoARPES, an experimental technique that combines spectroscopy and microscopy to study the band structures of quantum systems under non-equilibrium conditions. Professor Di Xiao has been awarded a fellowship by the Simons Foundation.<\/p>\n Xiao, whose research centers around quantum condensed matter theory, is using the year-long sabbatical enabled by the fellowship to study the \u201cexotic arrangements\u201d of electric and magnetic charges and currents found in some crystalline solids.<\/p>\n \u201cMy plan is to develop a theory to describe these quantum states,\u201d Xiao said. \u201cIt is going to be a challenging problem and the Simons Fellowship will allow me to focus my time on it.\u201d<\/p>\n The Simons Foundation was founded in 1994 to support research in mathematics and the basic sciences.<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/magazine.mcs.cmu.edu\/physics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2019\/11\/facnotes_xiao.jpg” _builder_version=”3.14″][\/et_pb_image][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”3.14″ background_color=”#e0e0e0″ box_shadow_style=”preset6″ custom_padding=”30px|0px|30px|0px|false|false”][et_pb_row custom_padding=”0|0px|0|0px|false|false” _builder_version=”3.14″][et_pb_column type=”1_2″ _builder_version=”3.0.47″ parallax=”off” parallax_method=”on”][et_pb_button button_url=”\/physics\/issue-2019\/dept-letter\/” button_text=”Letter from Physics Department Head” _builder_version=”3.14″ custom_button=”on” button_text_color=”#e09900″ button_border_color=”rgba(0,0,0,0)” button_font=”||||||||” button_icon=”%%179%%” button_icon_color=”#e09900″ button_icon_placement=”left” button_on_hover=”off” button_border_color_hover=”#e09900″][\/et_pb_button][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_2″ _builder_version=”3.0.47″ parallax=”off” parallax_method=”on”][et_pb_button button_url=”\/physics\/issue-2019\/faculty-notes2\/” button_text=”More Faculty Notes” button_alignment=”right” _builder_version=”3.14″ custom_button=”on” button_text_color=”#e09900″ button_border_color=”rgba(0,0,0,0)” button_font=”||||||||” button_icon=”%%180%%” button_icon_color=”#e09900″ button_on_hover=”off” button_border_color_hover=”#e09900″][\/et_pb_button][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" RACHEL MANDELBAUM HONORED BY LSST, SIMONS FOUNDATION Professor Rachel Mandelbaum seeks to better understand the universe, how it started and how it came to be as it is today. She does this by studying weak gravitational lensing. When light from far-away galaxies travels towards Earth \u2014 and the lenses of terrestrial telescopes \u2014 it passes […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"parent":720,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"on","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-790","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/magazine.mcs.cmu.edu\/physics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/790","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/magazine.mcs.cmu.edu\/physics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/magazine.mcs.cmu.edu\/physics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magazine.mcs.cmu.edu\/physics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magazine.mcs.cmu.edu\/physics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=790"}],"version-history":[{"count":49,"href":"https:\/\/magazine.mcs.cmu.edu\/physics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/790\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1462,"href":"https:\/\/magazine.mcs.cmu.edu\/physics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/790\/revisions\/1462"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magazine.mcs.cmu.edu\/physics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/720"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/magazine.mcs.cmu.edu\/physics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=790"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\n[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_2″ _builder_version=”3.14″ parallax=”off” parallax_method=”on”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.14″]\u201cLSST is going to be a game changer for our understanding of the cosmological model of the universe. I am very excited to lead the LSST DESC at such a critical time in its preparation for this amazing new dataset,\u201d Mandelbaum said.<\/p>\nBENJAMIN HUNT NAMED 2019 COTTRELL SCHOLAR<\/h2>\n
\n[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/magazine.mcs.cmu.edu\/physics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2019\/11\/facnotes_hunt.jpg” _builder_version=”3.14″][\/et_pb_image][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_3″ _builder_version=”3.14″ parallax=”off” parallax_method=”on”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.14″ text_font=”||||||||” text_text_color=”#ffffff” header_font=”||||||||” header_2_font=”|700||on|||||” header_2_text_color=”#ffffff”]<\/p>\nJYOTI KATOCH TO PROBE QUANTUM MATTER UNDER DOE EARLY CAREER GRANT<\/h2>\n
\n[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/magazine.mcs.cmu.edu\/physics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2019\/11\/facnotes_katoch.jpg” _builder_version=”3.14″][\/et_pb_image][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_3″ _builder_version=”3.14″ parallax=”off” parallax_method=”on”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.14″ text_font=”||||||||” text_text_color=”#ffffff” header_font=”||||||||” header_text_color=”#ffffff” header_2_font=”|700||on|||||” header_2_text_color=”#ffffff”]<\/p>\nDI XIAO AWARDED SIMONS FELLOWSHIP<\/h2>\n
BENJAMIN HUNT NAMED 2019 COTTRELL SCHOLAR<\/h2>\n
\n[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/magazine.mcs.cmu.edu\/physics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2019\/11\/facnotes_hunt.jpg” _builder_version=”3.14″][\/et_pb_image][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_3″ _builder_version=”3.14″ parallax=”off” parallax_method=”on”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.14″ text_font=”||||||||” text_text_color=”#ffffff” header_font=”||||||||” header_2_font=”|700||on|||||” header_2_text_color=”#ffffff”]<\/p>\nJYOTI KATOCH TO PROBE QUANTUM MATTER UNDER DOE EARLY CAREER GRANT<\/h2>\n
\n[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/magazine.mcs.cmu.edu\/physics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2019\/11\/facnotes_katoch.jpg” _builder_version=”3.14″][\/et_pb_image][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_3″ _builder_version=”3.14″ parallax=”off” parallax_method=”on”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.14″ text_font=”||||||||” text_text_color=”#ffffff” header_font=”||||||||” header_text_color=”#ffffff” header_2_font=”|700||on|||||” header_2_text_color=”#ffffff”]<\/p>\nDI XIAO AWARDED SIMONS FELLOWSHIP<\/h2>\n