As a UBC Teaching Assistant (TA), I'm a member of the CUPE Union Local 2278.
(
Email:
Now living in Toronto, Ontario.
BSc. from Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC 1998
MSc. from UBC, Vancouver, BC 2005
PhD from UBC, Vancouver, BC 2011
Research
- I recently completed a Phd in experimental particle physics under
the supervision of Dr. Thomas Mattison. My research is based on data
and simulations of the BaBar Experiment at SLAC
(http://www.slac.stanford.edu/BFROOT).
PhD Thesis Abstract:
In experimental particle physics, researchers must often construct a mathematical model of the experiment that can be used in fits to extract parameter values.
With very large data sets, the statistical precision of measurements improves, and the required level of detail of the model increases.
It can be extremely difficult or impossible to write a sufficiently precise analytical model for modern particle physics experiments.
To avoid this problem, we have developed a new method for estimating parameter values from experimental data,
using a Maximum Likelihood fit which compares the data distribution with a ``Monte Carlo Template", rather than an analytical model.
In this technique, we keep a large number of simulated events in computer memory, and for each iteration of the fit, we use the stored true event and the
current guess at the parameters to re-weight the event based on the probability functions of the underlying physical models.
The re-weighted Monte-Carlo (MC) events are then used to recalculate the template histogram, and the process is repeated until convergence is achieved.
We use simple probability functions for the underlying physical processes, and the complicated experimental resolution is modelled by a highly detailed
MC simulation, instead of trying to capture all the details in an analytical form.
We derive and explain in detail the ``Monte-Carlo Re-Weighting" (MCRW) fit technique, and then apply it to the problem of
measuring the neutral $B$ meson mixing frequency. In this thesis, the method is applied to simulated data, to demonstrate the technique,
and to indicate the results that could be expected when this analysis is performed on real data in the future.
Download my PhD thesis in pdf format.
Master's Thesis Abstract: This thesis contains
a study of track-impact parameter resolution in the BABAR detector
using lepton pair events from e+e- -> l+l-(gamma) and from
gamma*gamma* -> l+l- where l is either mu or e. The high number of
these events in the data set and Monte Carlo simulations allows the
tails of the resolution to be studied in detail. The Gaussian core of
the resolution is consistent within 20% with the track-by-track
errors returned by the track fitting software for both data and
Monte-Carlo simulations. Beyond about three standard deviations
(sigma) the non-Gaussian tail approximately obeys power laws. A
simple parameterization is presented which fits the data well to
beyond 10 sigma. The tail shape is consistent with that expected from
a large-angle Coulomb scattering Toy Monte-Carlo. The GEANT 4 -based
BABAR Monte Carlo software reproduces the core out to approximately 2
sigma but the behaviour of the tails further out disagrees with the
data and the predictions of Moliere Theory.
Download my MSc. thesis in pdf format.
UBC Thesis LaTeX Class:
Are you a UBC Grad student yourself? Need a LaTeX template to create your thesis? Michael Forbes created a nice one,
and I used it as a basis for both my Master's and PhD theses above. You can download it here.
UBC Thesis Class.
Note that you will probably need to make minor modifications to meet current UBC formatting rules!
As an undergraduate, I spent one year working on the data-acquisition system of the TRINAT experiment at TRIUMF.
(http://www.triumf.ca/welcome/trinat_exp.html)
Teaching - I worked as a Teaching Assistant (TA) in the following lab courses:
Quantum Mechanics - Finally, I have put a lot of time and energy into my grad courses,
especially Quantum Mechanics & Quantum Field Theory. Here are some useful links I came across during
late-night homework sessions. You might find them useful in your grad-level QM course.
BABAR MC Production Docs:
Personal: