My research intertwines philosophy of physics, general philosophy of science, and metaphysics of science. I’m mainly focused on four research areas.
[1] Inter-level relations in science: My main academic interest lies in how scientific theories that describe reality at different levels are related, with particular emphasis on the conditions under which one theory can be reduced to another, especially in physics. My work has addressed reduction across a range of contexts, most prominently thermodynamics, classical mechanics, astrophysics, and biochemistry. A central focus of this work has been functional reduction and the development of this approach within the philosophy of science [SEP]. More broadly, I am interested in how the ontologies of theories valid at different regimes or scales are connected, in effective realism, and in functionalism in science.
[2] Thermodynamics and statistical physics: I'm interested in the foundations of thermodynamics and statistical mechanics, especially the applicability of statistical mechanics and thermodynamics to unconventional domains, such as gravitating systems like globular clusters. Although these theories are successful in describing such systems, standard applications of concepts such as equilibrium are problematic, prompting a reconsideration of the foundations of thermodynamics and statistical mechanics.
[3] Spacetime theories: As part of SNF’s “Temporal Existence” project, my work addresses the structure of spacetime theories and particularly the metaphysics of space and time, examining both classical settings (e.g. Newton-Cartan theory) and relativistic and cosmological contexts. I focus especially on the relationship between space, time, and spacetime, with particular attention to what physics reveals about simultaneity and the unification of space and time into spacetime.
[4] Quantum mechanics: I work on various topics within the ontology of quantum mechanics, especially the physical meaning of the quantum wavefunction. I explored the latter topic in the context of collapse theories and Bohmian mechanics, worked on the application of Ontic Structural Realism to quantum mechanics, and developed a functionalist account to recover three-dimensional objects from the quantum wavefunction.