Research

Crystal Growth

I have spent the last few years learning about crystal growth and how crystal growth rate can affect the trace elements that get incorporated into the crystal. Here is a talk I gave for the virtual Goldschimdt conference in 2020 on this topic, specifically for the Stewart pegmatite in southern California.

Magma Chamber Dynamics

I have been investigating the effect crystals could have on how magmatic fluids move around within magma chambers after eruptions and how that movement translates to deformation of the ground surface. I assume the crystals make up porous networks, known as mushes. I model the fluid flow within the mush as well as the elastic rebound of the mush. I then compare this to geodetic observations of how the ground deforms, like GPS or InSAR. Here is a small cartoon from my 2019 AGU poster that explains the concept: