SNSF Starting Grant

Challenges and Breakthroughs in the Mathematics of Plasmas

SNSF Starting Grant, 2026-2030.
Principal investigator: Mikaela Iacobelli.
Host institution: Department of Mathematics, ETH Zürich.
Funding agency: Swiss National Science Foundation.
Grant number: 226018.
Project code: TMSGI2_226018.
Duration: 01.01.2026 - 31.12.2030.
Approved amount: CHF 1’685’564.
Official SNSF page: grant 226018.

Overview

This project concerns the mathematical analysis of plasmas, with a focus on kinetic models and singular limits. The main objects are Vlasov-type equations, in particular magnetized Vlasov-Poisson systems and the relativistic Vlasov-Maxwell system.

Plasmas are systems made of a very large number of charged particles. Their mathematical description involves several levels: microscopic particle dynamics, kinetic equations, and macroscopic fluid or magnetohydrodynamic models. A central question is to understand how these descriptions are related, especially in regimes where the limiting processes are singular or unstable.

The project aims to develop new analytical tools for the study of magnetized and electromagnetic plasma models, building on recent progress in the theory of Vlasov-type equations and quasineutral limits.

Main directions

Quasineutral limits for magnetized Vlasov-Poisson systems.
Quasineutral limits for the relativistic Vlasov-Maxwell system.
Landau damping and long-time behaviour for magnetized plasma models.
Well-posedness and propagation of moments for Vlasov-type equations with magnetic fields.
Derivation of macroscopic plasma and fluid equations from kinetic models.

People

Principal investigator: Mikaela Iacobelli.
Postdocs: Stefano Rossi; Lukas Niebel, starting August 2026.
PhD students: Antoine Gagnebin.
Visitors: Renato Velozo; Raphael Winter; Frédéric Rousset; Yan Guo.

Publications acknowledging this grant

Propagation of velocity moments for the magnetized Vlasov-Poisson system with space-time dependent magnetic fields, with Immanuel Ben-Porat, Antoine Gagnebin, and Jonathan Junné.
Exponential convergence for ultrafast diffusion equations with log-concave weights, with Max Fathi.

Other related publications and preprints

From relativistic Vlasov-Maxwell to electron-MHD in the quasineutral regime ), with Antoine Gagnebin, Alexandre Rege and Stefano Rossi.
On the stability of vacuum in the screened Vlasov-Poisson equation, with Stefano Rossi and Klaus Widmayer.
Landau damping on the torus for the Vlasov-Poisson system with massless electrons, with Antoine Gagnebin.
Stability in Quasineutral Plasmas with Thermalized Electrons, with Megan Griffin-Pickering.

Positions

Open PhD and postdoc positions related to the project will be announced here.

Events and visitors

Research visits, workshops, schools, and activities related to the project will be announced here.

Acknowledgement

Research related to this project is supported by the Swiss National Science Foundation through the SNSF Starting Grant Challenges and Breakthroughs in the Mathematics of Plasmas, grant number 226018, project code TMSGI2_226018.