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Howdy folks!

My name is Chris Layden, and I’m a PhD student in the astrophysics division at MIT, in the MIT Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research (MKI; https://space.mit.edu).

My research interests involve developing instrumentation for ground- and space-based astronomy. I am currently interested in applying new technologies in CMOS image sensors (low-noise, high-speed, radiation tolerant, low power consumption cameras) to astronomical applications. I work with Gabor Furesz, Kevin Burdge, and many others at MKI to test new sensor technologies and integrate them into instruments at ground-based telescopes. I am also working with George Ricker to apply this technology to space-based instruments. I am particularly excited in the science these high-speed, low-noise detectors will enable in time-domain astrophysics, from observing compact binaries to performing precise exoplanet transit timing measurements to detecting trans-Neptunian objects occulting background stars.

I attended The University of Texas at Austin for my undergraduate studies, where I earned Bachelors of Science in physics and in chemical engineering. While there, I participated in a variety of research projects, most notably in medical physics. As a member of the Time-of-Flight PET Scanner for Proton Therapy collaboration (TPPT; https://utaustinportugal.org/projects/tppt/), I assisted in the development of a positron emission tomography (PET) scanner that will be used to help make proton therapy a more effective tool for treating brain cancers.

Outside of school and research, I spend most of my time playing ultimate frisbee, having played with the MIT club ultimate team (also coached), the Austin Sol of the Ultimate Frisbee Association (UFA), and the Boston Wild Card mixed club team. I am active in MIT’s Physics Graduates Advising Graduate Admissions (PhysGAGA), where we work to make the physics graduate program and its admissions process more equitable and stress-free. Our biggest ongoing program is the Physics Graduate Application Assistance Program (PhysGAAP; https://sites.mit.edu/physgaap/).