Dr. Ramanathan’s research is primarily focused on understanding the nature of dark matter through terrestrial direct detection experiments.
He is interested in coming up with novel techniques to hunt for both low mass particle-like dark matter and wave-like axions. For instance, his group is working on repurposing superconducting qubits, traditionally used for quantum computing, as ultra-sensitive particle detectors called Quantum Parity Detectors. Ramanathan is also involved with the QUALIPHIDE broadband axion dish experiment, developing and using superconducting microwave technologies.
Ramanathan received a BASc in engineering science from the University of Toronto. After a brief stint as a quantitative financial analyst, he eventually obtained an MSc and PhD in physics from the University of Chicago in 2020, working in Paolo Privitera's research group. His thesis helped demonstrate the use of single-electron counting ‘Skipper’ CCDs for dark matter and neutrino applications. He then spent four years as a postdoctoral research associate in the Division of Physics, Mathematics, and Astronomy at the California Institute of Technology, before joining the faculty at Washington University in 2024.