I have been working on sPHENIX since January 2022 in affiliation with Los Alamos National Laboratory.

What is the focus of your work on the sPHENIX experiment?

I have been involved in basically every single step of the TPOT detector from DOE greenlight to construction to commissioning to now. It is a huge opportunity to be a part of almost every detail of a subsystem and learn the ins and outs as a graduate student. Most recently, I have been working on characterizing the latest version of the firmware for TPOT in collaboration with the TPC electronics team. We have also recently received an LDRD starting FY2025 to study the J/psi production inside jets with novel observables, which will be the foundation of my thesis work.

Where were you born and what is your educational background before your current position?

I was born in Istanbul, and moved to the US to pursue an undergraduate degree in Physics at UCLA with a minor in Mathematics. I started my research journey as a freshman, working on the NIRSPEC instrument that is a part of the Keck Telescopes in Hawaii. Afterwards, I did a small project on SETI and later transitioned into working on theoretical nuclear physics to study parallel phenomena in QED and QCD. I later started a Postbac position at LANL focusing on the MAJORANA experiment, studying neutrinoless double beta decay phenomenon. Later, I started working on the design and prototype of the Magnet Station detector at LHCb. As of Fall 2021, I have been a PhD student at University of Colorado Boulder.

What is the title of your Ph.D. or tentative title? Awards or biggest talk highlight?

No title just yet, but it will have something to do about measuring the J/psi production inside jets.

How did you decide to go into heavy ion or spin research?

It really all started with some popular science books that I don’t even remember the names of when I was 15. But substantially, I have been fortunate enough to learn from many wonderful mentors and role models including but not limited to Dr Hugo Pereira Da Costa who is my advisor at LANL, Dr James Nagle who is my titular advisor at CU Boulder, Dr Cesar Luis Da Silva who was my mentor while working on the Magnet Station at LHCb, and Dr Zhongbo Kang who was my mentor while studying parallel phenomena in QED and QCD at UCLA. Learning from these scientists has been the privilege of a lifetime and inspired me to pursue this path.

What do you like to do in your spare time?

I’ve been living somewhere along the southern third of the Rocky Mountains over the past five years, which makes it an obligation for me to enjoy hiking, camping, and backpacking. I was also a part of the powerlifting team at UCLA as an undergrad, and have been lifting weights ever since. Lastly, I am a huge fan of tropical aroids (jungle plants) and if you walk into wherever I happen to be living at the time, you will be greeted with a small jungle of philodendrons, several types of epipremnum, anthuriums, alocacias and more.

Fun fact?

I will always find a way to bring up Smokey, our 10-month-old and 70lb floppy puppy from the Santa Fe shelter in any conversation. I might even attempt to show you photos.