Dr Martín Lagares

Postdoctoral Research Assistant

School of Mathematical Sciences
Queen Mary University of London

m.lagares@qmul.ac.uk

Member of Dr Tarek Anous's Research Group

Funder:	Medical Research Council
Project:	UKRI FLF: The materials approach to quantum spacetime Grant Summary

Centre for Geometry, Analysis and Gravitation

Research

Quantum field theory, Holography, Non-perturbative methods, Scattering amplitudes

Interests

My research interests focus on the study of methods to go beyond the paradigm of the Feynman diagram expansion of observables. More specifically, I am interested in the study and development of non-perturbative methods and alternative perturbative formulations in the framework of quantum field theory, both in flat and curved spacetimes.

News

July 2026

New hybrid positioning system promises reliable tracking where GPS fails

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]

New hybrid positioning system promises reliable tracking where GPS fails

Bacteria form 'herds' to survive predators, offering fresh insight into Earth's carbon cycle

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]

Innovative capsule endoscope designed by Queen Mary researchers granted patent

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]

Innovative capsule endoscope designed by Queen Mary researchers granted patent

Successful launch of the interactive educational platform "From Pixels to Populations"

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]

Successful launch of the interactive educational platform "From Pixels to Populations"

Best poster award at the 2026 ISBA World Meeting for PhD student of Eleni Matechou

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]

Best poster award at the 2026 ISBA World Meeting for PhD student of Eleni Matechou

Climate change is forcing amphibians to change their diet – but they can only adapt so far

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]

Climate change is forcing amphibians to change their diet – but they can only adapt so far

Queen Mary expert helps shape new Department for Education guidance on screen use in early years settings

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]

Queen Mary expert helps shape new Department for Education guidance on screen use in early years settings

New AI benchmark helps music generation systems better understand human preference

9 July 2026

Researchers at Queen Mary University of London have developed a new benchmark and evaluation system designed to help AI-generated music better align with human preferences, marking an important step towards more creative, controllable, and human-centred music-generation technologies. The study, CMI-RewardBench: Evaluating Music Reward Models with Compositional Multimodal Instruction, introduces a ... [more]

New AI benchmark helps music generation systems better understand human preference

FLY-NEUROCAN Workshop

8 July 2026

Dr Isabel M Palacios from CMCB contributed with her charity DrosAfrica to the FLY-NEUROCAN Workshop, held from 15–26 June 2026 at the Drosophila Research and Training Centre (DRTC), Ibadan, Nigeria. Isa, together with other DrosAfrica members and other Drosophilist in the world, taught participants from various countries in Africa how to use ... [more]

New podcast on the science of musical taste

7 July 2026

Dr. Marcus Pearce, cognitive scientist at Queen Mary University of London is interviewed in this podcast on why music affects us so deeply—and why those responses differ across cultures. Drawing on insights from his book Learning to Listen, Listening to Learn, Pearce explains how the brain predicts musical patterns, ... [more]

New podcast on the science of musical taste

From seabed to space: the integration challenge for heterogeneous optical networks

6 July 2026

Dr. Paul Anthony Haigh, Associate Professor at Queen Mary University of London, is exploring how to seamlessly connect fibre, underwater, free-space and satellite optical communication systems into a single end-to-end network. The vision is to create a continuous optical path that carries data from the seabed all the way to ... [more]

From seabed to space: the integration challenge for heterogeneous optical networks

Experts should focus on a "Neurodevelopmental spectrum" to support children rather than considering conditions like ADHD and autism in isolation

3 July 2026

Largest study to date to look at how traits of different neurodevelopmental conditions strongly overlap with each other and relate to wider emotional and behavioural challenges and real-world outcomes from childhood through adolescence. A paper published in the leading journal Molecular Psychiatry led by researchers from Queen Mary University of ... [more]

Robots can now "see" touch thanks to a new colour-changing tactile sensor

3 July 2026

Engineers at Queen Mary University of London built a new colour-changing tactile sensor, which allows robots to "see" and touch in real-time. The novel idea was invented by Giacomo Sasso, a postdoctoral researcher at the School of Engineering and Materials Science at Queen Mary University of London, and it works ... [more]

Robots can now "see" touch thanks to a new colour-changing tactile sensor

Environmental bacteria can be engineered to break down plastics

2 July 2026

A new study published in Trends in Biotechnology, led by José I. Jiménez from Imperial College London and involving collaborators from the University of Surrey, Northwest University, Leipzig University, Kyungpook National University, Bacmine, and RWTH Aachen University, together with Zheren Zhang from the Centre for Molecular Cell Biology, shows ... [more]

Queen Mary welcomes first cohort of students through new transnational education partnership in China

1 July 2026

Queen Mary University of London will welcome the first cohort of 240 students through a new transnational education (TNE) partnership with the University of International Business and Economics (UIBE) in Beijing, following approval by China's Ministry of Education. The partnership will deliver two new undergraduate joint programmes, BSc Actuarial Science with ... [more]

Queen Mary welcomes first cohort of students through new transnational education partnership in China

June 2026

Mathematician's Prestigious Fellowship Drives New Discoveries in Marine Microbiology

29 June 2026

Professor Natasha Blitvic's successful Simons Foundation Pivot Fellowship highlights the power of interdisciplinary research and the value of one of the world's most distinctive research awards. A Queen Mary University of London mathematician has been recognised by the Simons Foundation for the success of her ground-breaking transition into marine microbiology, ... [more]

Mathematician's Prestigious Fellowship Drives New Discoveries in Marine Microbiology

Congratulations to Emanuele Palladino for passing his PhD viva!

26 June 2026

Congratulations to Emanuele Palladino from Prof Joe Briscoe's group who passed his PhD viva! Emanuele's thesis was titled "Development of Ferroelectric Vertically Aligned Nanocomposites for Solar Energy Harvesting" and aimed to develop novel ferroelectric-semiconductor nanocomposite photovoltaic devices and demonstrate new mechanisms for solar energy conversion. Emanuele's PhD was part of ... [more]

Congratulations to Emanuele Palladino for passing his PhD viva!

Climate-anxious youth from poorer countries "unheard" due to digital disconnection

26 June 2026

As rising temperatures around the world trigger climate-related anxiety, new research shows that those most in need of mental health support may be cut off from it. Young people from the lower-income countries most vulnerable to the effects of the climate crisis, including the toll it takes on their mental ... [more]

Climate-anxious youth from poorer countries "unheard" due to digital disconnection

DrosAfrica Celebrates the Launch of BloSTEMEI -Expanding their Partnership in STEM Education

25 June 2026

DrosAfrica are delighted to announce the launch of the Blossom STEM Education Initiative (BloSTEMEI) , a new non-profit organisation that has grown from their long-standing partnership with Droso4Nigeria. DrosAfrica was co-created by Dr Palacios from the Centre for Molecular Cell Biology as a charity dedicated to advancing scientific education and ... [more]

DrosAfrica Celebrates the Launch of BloSTEMEI -Expanding their Partnership in STEM Education

New research reimagines undergraduate degrees for the AI era

25 June 2026

A new academic paper from researchers at Queen Mary University of London is proposing a radical redesign of undergraduate education, blending the best elements of degree apprenticeships with traditional university teaching to create a model fit for the age of artificial intelligence (AI). Since the UK introduced Degree and Higher-Level ... [more]