What is the topic of your Ph.D. thesis?

The topic of my thesis is "Thermal Gyrofluid Turbulence in Full-F." This means that I do theoretical work (full-f gyrofluid theory) and try to extend current models to include more physics (thermal effects). Then, I perform direct numerical simulations of our non-linear systems to learn more about turbulent transport and the physics behind it.

What is the focus of research?

My research so far focuses on two parts. One is the mathematical modeling within full-f gyrofluid theory. The goal is to have a model that is complicated enough to include all the relevant physics while still being simple enough to be implemented in a simulation program.

Another focus of my research is the interaction of turbulence and zonal flows in tokamaks. Here, I have also spent some time working with simpler models to better understand what is happening at a fundamental level.

What is the benefit for fusion research?

That remains to be seen. =) Most of what we do here is fundamental research. We aim to better understand how turbulence works at the edge of the confined plasma. If we can improve our theoretical understanding of the physics, it will hopefully help make fusion reactors more efficient in the future.

What are the biggest challenges?

Personally, my biggest challenge is the fact that the field is so broad. I need to know something about how tokamaks are built in order to model them correctly. I also need to know enough mathematics to understand and develop the models. However, most of my time is actually spent implementing our models in our codes, so I need to know something about programming and software as well. Only after all that do I get to focus on the physics, which is quite complicated in itself. Sometimes, I struggle with feeling adequate in any of these fields.

What plans do you have for your future? What will you be doing in five years? Would you like to continue research or are you going to work in the industry?

I don't know yet. I used to work as a physics teacher in high school. Maybe I will go back to doing that and motivate the next generation of researchers to be interested in fusion.

What was your motivation to write a fusion relevant Ph.D. thesis? What fascinates you about nuclear fusion?

I was mostly fascinated by the complexity and beauty of non-linear turbulent systems like fusion plasmas. So, my main motivation was actually the physics behind it all.