Raphael Flauger

Raphael Flauger is a German theoretical physicist and cosmologist currently serving as a full professor in the Department of Physics at the University of California, San Diego. He has previously held faculty positions at Carnegie Mellon University (assistant professor, 2014-2015) and the University of Texas at Austin (assistant professor, 2015-2019).

Flauger received his education at several prestigious institutions, including the University of Würzburg, the University of Texas at Austin (where he earned his PhD under Nobel laureate Steven Weinberg), and Imperial College London (where he earned an M.S. in Quantum Fields and Fundamental Forces).

His research focuses on cosmology, particularly on extracting predictions about the early universe from cosmic microwave background (CMB) data, including findings from the Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (WMAP) and Planck space-based observatory. He also works on quantum field theories, quantum gravity, and string theory, with particular emphasis on phenomenological models that can be tested against observational data.

Flauger is best known for his significant role in challenging and ultimately refuting the BICEP2 collaboration's claims of detecting gravitational waves and evidence of inflation in the CMB through his work at the Institute for Advanced Study. He demonstrated that polarized emission from interstellar dust could explain the BICEP2 findings.

His notable awards include:

• Sloan Research Fellowship (2015)
• New Horizons in Physics Prize (2016)