What do you do here at Wright Lab?
I work with the Relativistic Heavy Ion Group of professors Helen Caines and John Harris on data analysis from the STAR experiment housed at the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC) at Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL). I mainly focus on the utility of jets, collimated spray of particles originating from the hadronization of a high energy quark/gluon produced during these relativistic collisions. I also work on the side with theorists to define new observables that enable precision understanding of quantum chromodynamics (QCD) at extreme regimes.
What is the most unique and/or exciting experience you’ve had here at Wright Lab?
I have thoroughly enjoyed my time at Wright Lab, even though I arrived in the middle of the pandemic (Dec 2020). The freedom provided by the group and the lab to explore my interests; the level of expertise whom I can rely on for quick chats and new projects is something that is very unique about Wright Lab. My most favorite experiences (day-to-day) have to be our group lunches where we take time away from work and just relax and chat about all things around us. On days that I’m working from home; that is what I miss the most.
What are you looking forward to in the coming year at Wright Lab?
This is a bitter sweet moment for me in that I will be joining Vanderbilt University this Fall on the tenure track and I will be leaving Wright Lab less than two years since I joined. I have no doubt that my new position was possible only because of the guidance and support I received at Wright Lab.
What is something that people might not know about you that you’d like to share with the community?
My last name is often the subject of discussion as it’s very long (26 characters in length) and is quite confusing to people who first hear it. They assume that one of the words is my middle name, but that’s not correct. I come from the southern part of India, from a state called Tamil Nadu and my name is essentially an address. I am Raghav, from the village ‘Kunnawalkam’, of the people ‘Elayavalli’. All members of my family originating from that village have the same naming structure.