Javier Carrasco

Dr. Javier Carrasco obtained his PhD in 2006 from the Universitat de Barcelona. His Ph.D thesis was devoted to the theoretical description of point defects in metal oxides using ab initio quantum chemistry methods. In 2007 he joined the Theory Department of the Fritz Haber Institute of the Max Planck Society, Berlin, as an Alexander von Humboldt fellow, working in the area of water-metal interfaces using density functional theory. In 2009 he moved to University College London, London, as a Newton International fellow. During this time he focused his research on the molecular-level understanding of ice formation on metal surfaces. Following this, in 2011 he moved to Instituto de Catálisis y Petroleoquímica del Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, Madrid, as a Ramón y Cajal fellow. Much of his work during this time was centered upon theoretical catalysis for hydrogen production and hydrogenation of hydrocarbons, as well as the application of van de Waals density functionals to molecular adsorption on metal and oxide surfaces.

Since September 2013 he leads the Modelling and Computational Simulations group at CIC energiGUNE. His research aims at understanding important phenomena in surface-, materials-, and nano-science in the power storage field. Using concepts from quantum mechanics, solid state physics, and statistical mechanics, he applies and develops methods and computer simulations to study processes of relevance to energy materials - such as the properties of ion insertion and extraction in electrodes and chemical reactions at surfaces. Rechargeable batteries and fuel cells are major focuses of his work.

Dr. Carrasco's scientific career stands out for the originality and quality of his scientific production, reflected in part by the total number of citations of his publications (top 2% of the most cited World Scientists in the 2019 within the field of Physical Chemistry according to Mendeley Data, https://data.mendeley.com/datasets/btchxktzyw/2). In addition, some of his scientific achievements have been recognized by important scientific dissemination media such as Nature, Nature Chemistry, Chemical & Engineering News, Chemistry World, Ingeniøren, Spiegel Online, among others.