About

Christian earned his PhD in 2012 from the Institut National de la Recherche Scientifique (INRS)-University of Quebec, in Varennes, Canada, under the supervision of Mohamed Chaker and François Vidal. Before pursuing his PhD in Canada, he completed both his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Physics at the Grenoble Institute of Technology, France. His doctoral research, conducted at the National Research Council (NRC) in Boucherville, Canada, focused on improving the analytical performance of Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) for trace element analysis in metallic alloys.

Following his PhD, Christian undertook a NETL-RAU postdoctoral role at Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and an ORISE postdoctoral fellowship at the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL). He conducted research on underwater LIBS for real-time environmental monitoring in carbon capture and storage (CCS). His efforts centered on developing innovative approaches to address analytical challenges associated with monitoring trace elements under extreme subsurface conditions.

Christian has also applied his expertise in agricultural innovation as a research scientist in an agronomic services company. He developed LIBS-based systems for rapid, cost-effective soil and plant tissue analysis, optimizing measurement procedures, designing multivariate calibration models, and integrating machine learning algorithms to predict soil textural properties and nutrient content with high accuracy. Christian also worked as a senior optical engineer for a California-based tech company headquartered in Fremont, while contributing to operations at their Scottsdale office in Arizona. Additionally, he has worked as a chemometrics consultant, where he specialized in developing machine learning models for milk quality assessment using near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) data.

Christian values quality time with his friends and family, finding joy in outdoor activities. A passionate amateur photographer, he also enjoys capturing the beauty of landscapes and cities through his lens, blending his love for optics with his artistic passion. Driven by his belief in learning through teaching, Christian launched his blog to share insights and ideas. Having written a few posts already, he looks forward to publishing many more in the future.