What sparked your interest in physics?

Both of my parents are engineers, so I grew up surrounded by science and math. Despite this, I never seriously considered pursuing science myself (perhaps because I was eager to establish an identity separate from my parents) until I took Grade 12 physics. In that class, I completed a project on the Large Hadron Collider (LHC), which sparked my interest in experimental physics.

After expressing my interest in the LHC, my dad encouraged me to read Physics of the Impossible by Michio Kaku. The book explores science-fiction ideas such as teleportation and invisibility cloaks, examining their feasibility through the lens of modern physics research. Although reading about concepts like the twin paradox and the Higgs boson in high school was challenging, it motivated me to truly understand them and to explain them to my friends.

Can you tell us more about your academic journey?

I attended Queen’s University, where I pursued a degree in Engineering Physics with a minor in Electrical Engineering. I completed two summer engineering internships in manufacturing. My first position was at Communications and Power Industries, a company that produces klystron devices, which are radio-frequency amplifiers used in satellite communications. While my role was not very technical, I found it fascinating to learn about electron devices and their real-world applications while working there.

The following summer, I worked at Martinrea, an automotive manufacturer, where I contributed to a project on acoustic sensing and monitoring for non-destructive testing in stamping presses. In this role, I applied concepts from wave propagation in materials and signal processing to help identify indicators of split metal during the stamping process. Through this experience, I discovered that I truly enjoyed designing experiments and interpreting data. By my final year of undergraduate studies, this realization led me to pursue research, and I decided to continue on to a Ph.D. in experimental physics in Prof. de la Barrera’s QCM group.

Can you give us a brief summary of your research?

I study two-dimensional (2D) materials which are materials that are atomically thin, or one atom thick. For example, graphite has no dangling bonds in the out-of-plane (z) direction, allowing individual graphene layers to be isolated by overcoming the weak van der Waals forces between graphite layers.

In stacked 2D materials, the crystallographic alignment between layers strongly influences both interlayer and intralayer electronic properties. This alignment can be tuned by rotating one layer relative to another about the out-of-plane axis, creating twisted structures. To investigate these systems, I designed and built a scanning van der Waals microscope (SVM).

The SVM is a modified atomic force microscope (AFM). A conventional AFM consists of two main components: a cantilever with an atomically sharp tip and a sample stage that raster-scans the surface. As the tip approaches the sample, interactions with the surface cause the cantilever to deflect, allowing the surface topography to be imaged. In the SVM, I replaced the sharp tip with a custom flat probe that I placed a 2D material on top of. I also added a rotating sample stage. With 2D materials on both the probe and the sample, this setup enables controlled and repeatable formation of twisted 2D heterostructures.

What extracurricular activities are you involved in?

Outside of research, I like to play volleyball. I played rep volleyball in high school, and I decided to dive back into it when I moved to Toronto, so I joined an adult league.

Other than volleyball, I have a lot of creative hobbies like painting, crocheting, and sewing. I also enjoy snowboarding in the winter and waterskiing in the summer.