Hello! And thank you for visiting the Fluids Plasmas and Optical Diagnostics (FPOD) group homepage! Here you’ll find more on who we are, what we do and where we are heading. Our work spans a diversity of disciplines, and we’re constantly on the lookout for new team members – so write to us if you think you might be a good fit. Collaborations are of course, always welcome!
Our interests lie at the intersection of optical diagnostics, plasma physics and fluid mechanics, with a view to developing novel technologies for supporting the sustainable energy and aerospace industry. Overlapping themes include non-equilibrium plasma devices, ultrafast spectroscopy, light-matter interaction, machine-learning, high speed flow control and novel aerodynamic concepts. More recently, we have also begun pivoting to nuclear-related and fusion technologies.
Non-equilibrium plasmas lie at the heart of many of our existing projects, and thus much of the work we do. The idea is to exploit these plasmas for various objectives including flame stabilization, skin friction drag reduction, and chemical conversion. Often generated using short duration (electrical) high voltage pulses, these plasmas provide a high-bandwidth and rapid means of coupling energy into a target application. By virtue of the high electric fields entailed, a highly complex, but versatile source of reactive plasma chemistry is often produced. This adds to the intrigue and richness of the problem, creating a perfect thesis for research.
The use of laser light for making measurements, particularly in the gas phase, is one of our go-to tools of choice. Laser metrology is often favoured for its ability to localize a measurement both in time, as well as in space, down to the sub-nanosecond and sub-millimeter scale. Laser-based diagnostics are typically non-intrusive, and can act as in-situ, standoff probes. Common quantities we study include fluid mechanics and thermodynamic parameters such as flow velocities, temperatures, and pressures, as well as those of plasma physics origin such as electric field strengths, electron densities and temperatures, as well chemical species concentrations (spectroscopy).