Dr Eleftheria Sarafidou
Postdoctoral Research Assistant
School of Physical and Chemical Sciences
Queen Mary University of London
Research
protoplanetary disks, non ideal MHD, magnetic winds, disk dynamics, planet - disk interaction, planet formation
Interests
My research interests lie in theoretical astrophysics, with a focus on the numerical modelling of protoplanetary disks. I use grid-based magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) codes such as NIRVANA and IDEFIX to study the dynamics and long-term evolution of disks. During my PhD, I concentrated on non-ideal MHD effects and their impact on disk structure, turbulence, and angular momentum transport, with particular emphasis on both magnetically driven and photoevaporative disk winds. My current work centres on planet–disk interactions, investigating how disk properties influence planetary migration, eccentricity evolution, and overall orbital dynamics.
Research Group
News
August 2026
20 August 2026
Ian Morris, Reader in Mathematics in the Centre for Complex Systems, and Çağrı Sert from the University of Warwick, have found a remarkable generalisation of a landmark result about self-affine fractals to their projections or "shadows". Their study, entitled Projections of self-affine fractals, was published in the highly prestigious ... [more]
13 August 2026
An artificial intelligence project developed at Queen Mary University of London to help academics provide faster, more detailed feedback to students has been selected for a national spinout programme.
EduGrade AI, an educator-controlled assessment and feedback platform, has been selected for the Innovate UK ICURe Exploit Business and Spinout Readiness ... [more]
12 August 2026
Researchers at Queen Mary University of London, Imperial College and University of Oxford have helped develop a new architecture that could overcome one of the biggest obstacles preventing photonic quantum computers from reaching their full potential.
Published in Nature Photonics, the international study introduces Clavina – a modular, programmable photonic quantum ... [more]
11 August 2026
Queen Mary University of London researchers develop intelligent communications system that dramatically improves data transmission when bandwidth is limited.
Anyone who has struggled through a poor phone call knows the frustration of missing half a conversation. Now, researchers at Queen Mary University of London, led by Paul Anthony Haigh, have ... [more]
7 August 2026
Queen Mary researchers develop a lightweight, electrically adjustable lens inspired by the flexibility of the human eye.
The ability to change focus instantly is something most people take for granted. Every day, our eyes effortlessly switch between reading a book, recognising a face across the room or watching a bird ... [more]
6 August 2026
Special Issue: Call for Papers
Please find the the deatils about this Speciall Issue on AI-native Smart Radio Environments for 6G within the IEEE Network Journal with Dr. Maged Elkashlan as Guest Editor. More details can be found at the following link:
https://www.comsoc.org/publications/magazines/ieee-network/cfp/... [more]
6 August 2026
Special Issue: Call for Papers
Please find the the deatils about this Speciall Issue on AI-native Smart Radio Environments for 6G published by IEEE Internet of Things Journal with Dr. Maged Elkashlan as Guest Editor.
Important Dates:
Submission Deadline: December 31, 2026
First Review Due: February 15, 2027
Revision Due: March 15, 2027
Second Reviews Due/... [more]
6 August 2026
Special Issue: Call for Papers
Please find the the deatils about this Speciall Issue on Signal Processing for Fluid Antenna Systems: Foundations, Algorithms, and Emerging Applications published by IEEE Signal Processing Magazine with Dr. Maged Elkashlan as Guest Editor.
Important Dates:
1 September 2026 --- White Paper Due
1 October 2026 --- Invitation Notification
15 ... [more]
6 August 2026
Professor Ginestra Bianconi, Professor of Applied Mathematics in the Centre for Complex Systems, has been awarded a three-year, £323,000 grant from the John Templeton Foundation to develop Gravity from Entropy. This new theoretical framework seeks to uncover the microscopic nature of gravity and bridge the long-standing divide between general relativity and ... [more]
July 2026
28 July 2026
Queen Mary University of London has reinforced its position as a leading international centre for musculoskeletal research by successfully hosting two major scientific conferences back-to-back on its Mile End campus this July.
The XVIIth Congress of the International Society of Bone Morphometry (ISBM 2026) from 4th - 7th July was followed ... [more]
27 July 2026
Researchers at Queen Mary University of London and IBEC have discovered that epithelial tissues adapt to prolonged stretching by slowly reorganising their keratin cytoskeleton into large multicellular networks.
Using advanced live imaging, engineered tissue models and computational simulations, the team found that this process eventually pushes the cell nucleus out ... [more]
23 July 2026
Researchers at Queen Mary University of London and University of Cambridge in collaboration with colleagues at HHMI Janelia and NIH, have created some of the most detailed three-dimensional maps ever generated of human airway cells, revealing how the specialised cells that protect our lungs are built and organised.
The study, ... [more]
17 July 2026
Researchers have unveiled a new location‑tracking system that could dramatically improve navigation in places where GPS signals routinely fail, such as tunnels, dense cities and underground transport routes.
In a new study presented at the IEEE International Conference on Communications in Glasgow, researchers from Queen Mary University of London ... [more]
16 July 2026
Researchers at the Centre for Molecular Cell Biology have discovered that tiny photosynthetic bacteria band together into protective "herds" when attacked by predators – a survival strategy that could also influence how carbon is stored in the world's waters.
Professor Conrad Mullineaux from the Centre for Molecular Cell Biology, said:
"It ... [more]
15 July 2026
CBS member Professor Conrad Mullineaux and his team have discovered that tiny photosynthetic bacteria band together into protective "herds" when attacked by predators – a survival strategy that could also influence how carbon is stored in the world's waters. Here's the full story.
15 July 2026
Congratulations to Dr Hasan Shaheed, Dr Mohamed Adhnan Thaha, and Dr Julius Bernth on being granted their European patent for CE-Move, an innovative locomotion system for capsule endoscopes.
Today's capsule endoscopes are little more than pills, swallowed like any other pill. Once swallowed, the only movement comes from gravity and ... [more]
15 July 2026
On Monday 13 July, we had the pleasure to host 36 school students from two schools, Barking Abby School (year 11) and Reach Academy Feltham (year 12) for a unique educational experience. The students were introduced to elements of statistical ecology and artificial intelligence via our novel interactive educational platform "From Pixels to Populations" ... [more]
15 July 2026
Congratulations to Cam Milliken, a PhD student supervised by Dr Eleni Matechou, who won a best poster award at the 2026 ISBA World Meeting. The conference was attended by over 800 people and included more than 300 posters.
Cam's poster, available here, presented work on spatio-temporal modelling for POMS (Pollinator Monitoring Scheme) data. ... [more]
14 July 2026
New research involving Queen Mary University of London reveals that amphibians can change what they eat to cope with rising temperatures, but that this natural survival strategy has limits.
Published in Scientific Reports, the international study found that tadpoles actively alter their diet as temperatures increase, consuming more plant material ... [more]
13 July 2026
Professor Rachael Bedford, from the Centre for Brain and Behaviour at Queen Mary University of London, helps shape new Department for Education (DfE) guidance on screen use for children in early years settings, ensuring the latest evidence informs practice across nurseries, preschools and childminding settings.
Published by the Department for ... [more]
