Logan Ramanathan

// 01 — Who

About

I'm Logan — a physicist interested in space science, energy science, and engineering. I study Engineering & Physics (Sc.B.) at Brown University, graduating in 2028.

This summer I'm at the Stanford Plasma Physics Lab, co-leading the experimental side of a DARPA-funded project on radio-frequency plasmas — building Langmuir probes and optical diagnostics for space propulsion research. I also do research with Professor Jim Head at Brown University on Moon and Mars mission design. I was previously an integration & test engineer at Rocket Lab, in the space systems division.

I'm also a guitar player, golfer, scuba diver (PADI Advanced Open Water), training to get a private pilot's license at West Valley Flying Club, and learning Russian.

↳ Providence, RI · Stanford, CA

Core Skills

SIMULATE + ANALYZE

PythonOpenCVscikit-learnLangChainMATLABRArduinoOpenFOAM CFD

MEASURE + TEST

OscilloscopesVNASignal generatorsLabVIEW DAQPlasma diagnosticsRF / impedance matchingVacuum systems

DESIGN + FABRICATE

Fusion 360Siemens NX/TeamcenterQGIS / JMARSCNC / millsSolderingTIG / MIG welding3D printingLaser cuttingGD&T

LANGUAGES

English nativeRussian intermediateJapanese intermediateTamil elementary

// 02 — Where I've been

Experience

JUN 2026 — AUG 2026● CURRENT

Research Intern

Stanford Plasma Physics Lab · Stanford, CA

Co-led the experimental component of a DARPA-funded project characterizing inductively coupled, radio-frequency driven plasmas. Built self-compensating Langmuir probes for two experiments — an inductively coupled plasma and an RF-magnetron thruster — and took measurements on both, with tunable RF chokes for distortion suppression from 5–40 MHz and translating tips for spatially resolved measurements. Cross-validated against optical emission spectroscopy with collisional-radiative models.

AUG 2025 — PRESENT

Research Fellow

Head Group, Brown University · Providence, RI

Mission engineering for the NASA NIAC-funded Hadley Max 500-day Design Reference Mission. Built a Python electro-thermal power-transmission model for candidate lunar base configurations. Sized power grid layouts with LROC QuickMap terrain data, designing nuclear reactor siting, redundancy, and energy storage across a 500-day mission. Presented findings at the 57th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference.

OCT 2024 — AUG 2025

Research Fellow

Daubar Group, Brown University · Providence, RI

Built a database of 500+ Martian impact sites with QGIS, JMARS, and Python; developed and statistically analyzed a directional-impact model linking ejecta-streak orientation to oblique-impact dynamics.

JUN 2023 — AUG 2023

Integration & Test Engineering Intern

Rocket Lab · Long Beach, CA

Designed the thermal, mechanical, and electrical systems for the Pioneer series spacecraft camera module in Siemens NX. Took the sub-system from inception to design review in under six weeks, integrated in under eight.

// 03 — What I build

Projects

01 / PLASMAAPS DPP

Self-compensating Langmuir probe

Stanford Plasma Physics Lab · Plasma Diagnostics

Built RF self-compensating Langmuir probes to measure electron density, temperature, and EEDFs — one for an inductively coupled plasma, a second for an RF-magnetron thruster — and took measurements on both, cross-validated against optical emission spectroscopy.

Project details →

Inductively coupled plasma running on the optical bench

02 / SPACECRAFTIn orbit

Pioneer spacecraft camera module

Rocket Lab · Integration & Test Engineering

Designed the thermal, mechanical, and electrical systems for the camera module of Rocket Lab's Pioneer series spacecraft, then carried it from design to orbit.

Project details →

03 / COMPUTATIONPHYS 1600

Hydrogen collisional-radiative model

Computational Physics · Final Project

A collisional-radiative model of atomic hydrogen that maps where Balmer-line spectroscopy gives reliable plasma diagnostics — extended to a time-dependent mode to find where the steady-state assumption breaks down.

Project details →

Sensitivity maps from the collisional-radiative model

04 / SOFTWAREOpen source

Providence Café Search

Side Project · Semantic Search

A semantic search engine over 110 Providence cafés — natural-language queries like "quiet café for studying," ranked with OpenAI embeddings, FAISS retrieval, sentiment-aware weighting, and top-K attention pooling.

Project details →

Brown University campus green in autumn, Providence

05 / LUTHIERYHand-built

Hand-built electric guitar

Things I Build · Woodworking · Electronics

A single-cut electric built from a Warmoth flame-maple-capped mahogany body and rosewood-board neck — fretwork, hand-soldered 50s-style wiring, and a full setup.

Project details →

06 / WRITINGNYT Published

3-D Bioprinting: A Modern-Day Prometheus

The New York Times · Science Communication

International Winner of the New York Times STEM Writing Competition. An essay on the potential of an emerging technology to transform the world.

Read on NYT ↗

3-D bioprinter depositing living tissue into a petri dish

// 04 — On the record

Research

Google Scholar ↗

Plume–surface interaction in Artemis lunar operations ↗

Ramanathan, L. & Head, J. W. (2026) · Hadley Max 500-Day DRM

57th LPSC #1063 · talk

Lunar surface power technology and architecture ↗

Ramanathan, L. & Head, J. W. (2026) · Hadley Max 500-Day DRM

57th LPSC #1129 · poster

Human-robotic scientific exploration of the Moon and Mars ↗

Head, J. W., Scott, D. R., … Ramanathan, L., et al. (2026) · Hadley Max 500-Day DRM

57th LPSC #1057

Origin of Martian "blast zone streaks" from small impacts ↗

Sokolowska, A., Daubar, I., Ramanathan, L., et al. (2026)

EPSC #2026-1114

Development of an RF-compensated Langmuir probe

Ramanathan, L., et al. (2026) · Stanford Plasma Physics Lab

68th APS DPP · submitted

Excitation, electron density, and RF loading in a 40 MHz argon ICP

Biswas, S., … Ramanathan, L., et al. (2026)

68th APS DPP · submitted

Dark blast zone streaks reveal impact trajectories in new Martian craters

Sokolowska, A., Daubar, I., Ramanathan, L., et al.

in prep.

Human-robotic exploration of the Moon and Mars (expanded)

Head, J. W., Scott, D. R., … Ramanathan, L., et al.

in prep.

About

Core Skills

Experience

Projects

Self-compensating Langmuir probe

Pioneer spacecraft camera module

Hydrogen collisional-radiative model

Providence Café Search

Hand-built electric guitar

3-D Bioprinting: A Modern-Day Prometheus

Research

Let's build something.