My research interests are Neutrino Physics & Dark Matter as intersection of Nuclear, Astro & Particle Physics. I focus on radiological backgrounds, calibration systems, development of detectors, nuclear forensics, simulation, computing/HPC, statistical analyses, machine learning, automation design and cosmic rays.

As undergrad in Germany my interest got sparked by giving a presentation on solar neutrinos that were discovered here in a gold mine in the Black Hills. I then joined the neutrino group at the Institute of Experimental Nuclear Physics at KIT, where I did my Diploma- and Ph.D. theses on the KARMEN short-baseline neutrino experiment which was located at the Rutherford-Appleton-Laboratory in Oxford/UK. As postdoc I worked on the MINOS long-baseline neutrino experiment (Fermilab/Chicago & MN) and on the Double Chooz reactor neutrino experiment in France, before focusing as South Dakota Mines faculty on the DUNE neutrino experiment & on the LZ dark matter experiment, both located at nearby Sanford Lab, the former gold mine.

Education and Professional Preparation:

- Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT):    Diploma-Physicist (>M.Sc.)  1998
- Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT):                                          Ph.D. 2004
- Argonne National Laboratory, Argonne/IL (University of Chicago):
    Postdoctoral Appointee at High Energy Physics Division                          (2005-2008)
- The University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa:
    Postdoctoral Appointee at Dept. of Physics & Astronomy                        (2009-2011)

Appointments:

- South Dakota School of Mines & Technology:   Associate-Professor   (tenured 2020 - present)
- South Dakota School of Mines & Technology:   Assistant-Professor    (tenure-track 2014-2020)
- The University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa:             Research Scientist       (2011-2014) 

Physics Courses taught/developed:

PHYS-211 University Physics I Mechanics (3 credits)
PHYS-211 Honors Course University Physics I Mechanics (4 credits, newly developed)
PHYS-213 University Physics II Electricity & Magnetism (3 credits)
PHYS-312/314 Experimental Physics Design I/II (2 credits)
PHYS-350 Advanced Physics Lab Course (3 credits, newly developed)
PHYS-412/414 Advanced Design Projects I/II (3 credits)
PHYS-433/533 Nuclear and Elementary Particle Physics (3 credits)
PHYS-491/791 IND: Germanium Detectors (2 credits)
PHYS-733 Experimental Methods in Nuclear and Particle Physics (3 credits)
PHYS-790 Physics Seminar (1 credit)
PHYS-898 Dissertation (flexible credits)