About me

I am currently a Ph.D. candidate in Heliophysics Research and Applications (HeRA) group within the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering in University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, advised by Prof. Raluca Ilie. My primary research focus is understanding the acceleration mechanisms responsible for ionospheric outflow, and its impacts on the magnetospheric dynamics.

I joined the group with an Electrical Engineering background and almost zero knowledge about the Space Science. However, through the rigorous training at UIUC I quickly developed the skills to become an expert in modeling the ionospheric outflow. My work has been recognized by the American Geophysical Union, where I was awarded the Outstanding Student Presentation Award both in 2019 and 2020. In 2020, I was elected as the Student Representative of the NSF Geospace Environment Modeling Program, where I will serve for the next two years (2020 - 2022). I was recently awarded the Future Investigators in NASA Earth and Space Science and Technology fellowship (FINESST) to explore the overall contribution and the energization mechanisms of heavy ions in the polar wind. This prestigious research grant is provided to graduate students who are designing and performing outstanding research projects relevant to the interests of from the NASA Heliophysics division of the NASA Science Mission Directorate (SMD).

Outside the scholarly activities, I enjoy watching movies and sports games, baking, hiking, planting and doing yoga.