Dr Steffen Gielen
School of Mathematical and Physical Sciences
Senior Lecturer
Full contact details
School of Mathematical and Physical Sciences
Hicks Building
Hounsfield Road
Sheffield
S3 7RH
- Profile
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After undergraduate studies in Hannover and Berlin and Part III Mathematics at Cambridge, I received my PhD from the University of Cambridge (2011). I worked as a postdoc at the Albert Einstein Institute in Potsdam, the Perimeter Institute in Waterloo, Imperial College London and CITA in Toronto. From 2018-2026 I was supported by a Royal Society University Research Fellowship. I joined Sheffield originally as a Senior Research Fellow in 2019.
Summary of Research Project(s)
Royal Society University Research Fellowship renewal: "Time, clocks and singularities in quantum gravity"
- Research interests
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I mostly work on quantum models of cosmology and black holes, focusing on questions of singularity resolution and the role of time and clocks in quantum gravity.
- Research group
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Gravitation and Cosmology
- Grants
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Royal Society University Research Fellowship & Renewal (2017, 2022)
Research Grants for Research Fellows (Royal Society) (2018)
Marie Curie Intra-European Fellowship (2013)Prizes and Awards
Gravity Research Foundation Awards for Essays on Gravitation: Fifth Award (2022)
Buchalter Cosmology Prize: Second Prize (2017)
Václav Votruba Prize (2011)
Mayhew Prize (2007)Outstanding Reviewer Award, Classical and Quantum Gravity (2018, 2023)
Outstanding Referee of Physical Review journals (2025)
- Teaching interests
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Mathematical and theoretical physics, particularly modules related to quantum theory, relativity and quantum field theory.
- Teaching activities
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Currently (2026/27) teaching Quantum Theory (MPS316) and Quantum Field Theory (MPS452).
Tutorials (mostly Mathematics Core).
Frequent supervisor of MMath/MPhys/MSc final year and dissertation projects.
- Professional activities and memberships
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Member of Royal Society Newton International Fellowship Panel Ai (2024-26)
Member of Royal Society Hooke Committee (2025-27)
Member of EPSRC Mathematical Sciences Expert Panel for Fellowships (2025)
Links