Investigators

Mikhail Benilov

Mikhail S. Benilov received the Diploma degree (Hons.) and the C.Sc. (Ph.D.) degree in physics from the Moscow Institute for Physics and Technology, Moscow, Russia, in 1974 and 1978, respectively, and the Doctor of Physical and Mathematical Sciences degree from the Institute for High Temperatures, USSR Academy of Sciences, Moscow, in 1990. His thesis focuses on theory of electrostatic probes and electrodes in high-pressure flowing plasmas.
He had been with the Institute for High Temperatures, USSR Academy of Sciences, Moscow, where he led a group working in plasma and nonlinear physics, numerical modelling, and fluid dynamics, after completing postgraduate courses with the Moscow Institute for Physics and Technology and Institute for Mechanics of Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, in 1977. Dr. Benilov received the Alexander von Humboldt Research Fellowship in 1990 and stayed for two years with the Ruhr-Universität Bochum, Germany, working on the theory and simulation of near-electrode phenomena. Since 1993, he has been a Professor with the Department of Physics, University of Madeira. He has published 150 papers in international journals, supervised 8 Ph. D. theses, and has led a number of research projects with pubic and industrial funding. He is a member of Sociedade Portuguesa de Física and Fellow of Institute of Physics UK and served in 2003-2016 on the Editorial Board of the journal Plasma Sources Science and Technology.
His current research interests include plasma physics, in particular, plasma-electrode interaction, nonlinear physics, kinetic theory, and numerical modelling.

Personal webpage


Mário Cunha

Mário D. Cunha received the Ph.D. degree in physics from the University of Madeira, Madeira, Portugal, in 2004. His thesis focuses on the modelling of the plasma-cathode interaction in high-pressure arc discharges.
He is an Assistant Professor with the Department of Physics, University of Madeira.
His current research interests include numerical simulation of different modes of current transfer to cathodes of high-pressure arc discharges, and also spots on vacuum arc cathodes.

Personal webpage



Pedro Almeida

Pedro G. C. Almeida received the Ph.D. degree in physics from the University of Madeira, Madeira, Portugal, in 2011. His thesis focuses on investigation of different modes of current transfer to cathodes of glow and arc discharges.
He is an Assistant Professor with the Department of Physics, University of Madeira.
His current research interests include numerical simulation of self-organized patterns of spots on electrodes of glow discharges, and of corona and streamer discharges.

Personal webpage



Nelson Almeida

Nelson A. Almeida was born in Coimbra, Portugal, in 1978. He received the B.Sc. degree in physics in 2000 and the Ph.D. degree in 2009 from the University of Madeira, Portugal. His thesis focuses on the numerical modelling of the non-equilibrium layers near electrodes of high-pressure arc discharges.
He is an Assistant Professor with the Department of Physics, University of Madeira.
His current research interests include near-electrode phenomena in high-pressure arc discharges.

Personal webpage



Diego Santos

Diego Felipe Santos was born in Venezuela in 1987. He received the degree in Electronics and Telecommunications Engineering in 2010, the Master Degree Telecommunications and Energy Networks Engineering in 2012 and a Ph.D. in Automation and Instrumentation in July 2017, from the University of Madeira and with collaboration with the INESC TEC Porto, Portugal.
Currently, he is Assistant Researcher at the Research Node of IPFN at the University of Madeira and part-time Assistant Professor at the Faculty of the Exact Sciences and Engineering of the University of Madeira, Portugal.
His current research interests include modelling of gas discharges.
Personal webpage



Nuno Ferreira

Nuno Fábio Gomes Camacho Ferreira was born in Madeira in 1982. He received the B.Sc. degree in Telecommunications and Networks Engineering in 2005 from the University of Madeira, and the Ph.D. degree in Electrical Engineering in 2019 from the University of Aveiro, Portugal.
Currently, he is Junior Researcher at the Research Node of IPFN at the University of Madeira and part-time Assistant Professor at the Faculty of the Exact Sciences and Engineering of the University of Madeira, Portugal.
His current research interests include numerical simulation of corona and streamer discharges.

Personal webpage



PhD Students

Rui Almeida

Rui M.S. Almeida was born in Mortágua, Portugal, in 1970. He received his B.Sc. degree in physics in 1994 from the University of Aveiro and his M.Sc. degree in 1999 from the University of Madeira, Portugal.
He was with the the Department of Physics, University of Madeira, from 1994 till 2008 as a Teaching Assistant. Currently, he is Research Fellow at the Research Node of IPFN at the University of Madeira.
His current research interests include modelling of low-current discharges in high pressure air.

Personal webpage



Ivan Stepanov

Ivan Stepanov received the Specialist degree in Nuclear Reactors and Materials with qualification of Engineer-Physicist in 2022 from Peter the Great St. Petersburg Polytechnic University, Russia.
In 2021, Ivan was one of the organizers of the International Scientific and Practical Conference “Modern Technologies and Economics in Energy 2021” as editor-in-chief.
Currently, he is doing his PhD at the Physics Department of University of Madeira and he is a research fellow at the Research Node of IPFN at the University of Madeira. His research interests include high-pressure arc discharges.

Personal webpage



Camila Cró

Camila Cró was born in Madeira, Portugal. She received her MPhys in Physics with Particle Physics and Cosmology from Lancaster University.
Currently, she is a first-year PhD student at Universidade da Madeira and her research interests include the modelling of vacuum breakdown.

Personal webpage