Chloe Richards joined Kenyon's Department of Physics in 2026 as the Kenyon-Teacher Scholar Postdoctoral Fellow and Visiting Assistant Professor. Her research combines numerical relativity and high-performance computing to investigate open questions in gravity and cosmology where gravity is strongly nonlinear.
Richards develops numerical relativity frameworks that solve Einstein's equations to simulate black holes, gravitational waves, and the early universe. Her work explores how the nonlinear nature of gravity can reveal new insights into fundamental physics and cosmology.
Prior to joining Kenyon, Richards earned her Ph.D. at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, where she used numerical simulations to study how surrounding fields affect black hole evolution and may leave an observable imprint on gravitational waves produced during black hole mergers.
Areas of Expertise
Numerical relativity, black holes, cosmology
Education
2026 — Doctor of Philosophy from Univ Illnois Up Urbn
2021 — Bachelor of Arts from Bowdoin College