Álvaro is a mechanical and aerospace engineer whose research interests lie at the interface between physics and engineering. During his PhD, he was a member of the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory (LIGO) laboratory, responsible for the first direct detection of gravitational waves. Álvaro has primarily focused on the development of precision instrumentation for the generation and delivery of quantum enhanced states of light. His work contributed to an increase in the sensitivity of the LIGO detectors, leading to a 40% improvement in the instrument’s detection rate.
As a Schmidt Science Fellow, Álvaro aims to develop low-cost biosensors for general pathogen detection as a member of the Stevens Group at Imperial College London. He believes that sensors based on the combination of vibrational spectroscopy and machine learning techniques might hold the solution for the implementation of mass population screening, especially in resource-constrained environments.
Álvaro is generally interested in the development of precision opto-mechanical instruments for a wide range of applications. With these, he intends to bridge the gap between the state-of-the-art instrumentation of research laboratories, which is usually specific to a narrow application, and the broader needs of society.