Fiorella Palmieri
Sulsba Yépez
The content of this news item has been machine translated and may contain some inaccuracies with respect to the original content published in Spanish.
Out of 270 applicants, only 38 doctoral candidates from 31 US universities were admitted to Princeton University's Plasma Physics Laboratory Princeton University's PhD programme. In this rigorous selection process, Zully Calderón Ipanaqué, a second year student at PUCP, also participated. D. in Physics at the PUCP. Our representative managed to obtain one of the only two additional international vacancies for speakers at this event, which took place from 10 to 14 August in the virtual modality.
"This is the first time I have attended an international graduate programme. This experience has allowed me to gain and share knowledge, both from the specialists and the other doctoral students. I have learned a lot and, at the same time, I felt at the same level as the other participants," says Zully, who connected to the sessions from her native Piura, where she currently lives, as she was unable to return to Lima due to the COVID-19 situation.
During one week, the thesis student participated in conferences and webinars with experts and young researchers in plasma physics. During the sessions, she met Dr. Luis Delgado AparicioDr. Luis Delgado Aparicio, a renowned Peruvian scientist and physicist graduated from PUCP, with whom she talked about her projects. On Thursday 13, she gave a presentation on the results of a research on the properties of plasma through a computational simulation using the finite element method.
Photo: Personal archive
This work is carried out jointly with Dr. Rolf Grieseler, professor of the Physics Section PUCP; and Erik Pérez, undergraduate student in Physics, both members of the Materials Science and Renewable Energies Group - MATER PUCP. In addition, they were advised by Dr. Humberto Torreblanca, PUCP graduate and researcher at the Swiss Plasma Center.
"The Princeton U. programme in which Zully participated is a high-impact scientific workshop with plasma experts. As a PUCP representative, she gave a presentation and presented a poster with the results of the work of the MATER PUCP research group. In these months we have conducted experiments for our project virtually, with promising results, which are a good basis for further publications in indexed journals," said Dr. Grieseler, who is also Zully's doctoral thesis advisor.
"Plasma physics is a very broad area that can involve research into the material used to produce computer microprocessors, right through to the technology to create a nuclear fusion reactor, a near-ideal energy source. Princeton University's Plasma Physics Laboratory is a leader in this field. Participating in their summer programme is an enriching experience for our students," said Dr. Torreblanca, who is a collaborator in research projects at MATER PUCP and who, on this occasion, provided advice for simulations using the finite element method.
At 28, Zully has achieved great things. She grew up in the valley of San Lorenzo, a rural village in the Tambo Grande district of Piura. She attended a small public school where she was always at the top of her class. Her ability and love for science allowed her to obtain direct admission to the Physics Major at the National University of Piura.
For her merits, Concytec awarded her a scholarship to study a Master's degree in Physics at the National University of Engineering. Then she was again awarded a scholarship for the PhD programme in Physics at our University.
"It is believed that if you come out of a public school in the countryside you have fewer opportunities, but by studying and making an effort you can achieve your goals and get ahead. I always liked physics, and I was very curious about how what happens around us works," says the researcher, who is currently working on a doctoral thesis focused on the study of the parameters and properties of plasma.
"D. at PUCP allows me to work in the Materials Laboratory, which is very well equipped with a cold plasma sputtering magnetron system. For quarantine, we have been working virtually to carry out simulations. I presented the results of this work at the Summer School," says Zully, who after this experience is considering - in the future - the possibility of visiting the laboratories at Princeton University, and doing an internship abroad.
The Princeton University Plasma Physics Laboratory Graduate Summer School also counted with the participation of Erik Pérez, undergraduate student in Physics, and also a member of the MATER PUCP group. Erik participated in the same research project presented by Zully Calderón and had the opportunity to attend as a listener in the lectures and seminars of this seminar.
"I collaborated in the preparation of the poster presented by Zully. My job was to provide numerical and graphical results of the simulations carried out in the COMSOL Multiphysics software, as well as to arrange them for a better presentation," says Erik, for whom participating in this international event opens doors for his academic future.
"Having a member of our research group present results gives researchers in other parts of the world the opportunity to see our work and become interested in collaborating with us. Also, if you are planning to do a postgraduate degree, expanding your network, working on collaborative projects and presenting projects like this increases your chances of being accepted into an international programme," Pérez said.
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