Maiolino investigates the formation, evolution and transformation of galaxies and black holes, with a current focus on the discovery and characterisation of massive black holes and Pop III star signatures in the early Universe using JWST/NIRSpec; he is also Project Scientist for the MOONS multi-object spectrograph (VLT) and the ANDES high-resolution spectrograph (ELT).

Tacchella studies the physics of galaxy and black hole formation and evolution across cosmic time, combining analytical and cosmological models with cutting-edge multi-wavelength data, and plays a leading role in JWST/NIRCam observations characterising the earliest galaxies.

Trenti combines high-redshift galaxy and gamma-ray-burst science with hands-on space instrumentation: he leads SkyHopper, a 6U CubeSat carrying a cooled near-infrared telescope intended for rapid follow-up of transients and exoplanet transits, which is an unusually complete exercise in building a photon-starved instrument under severe SWaP constraints. The group also works on infrared detector characterisation and on-board autonomy. Positioned against the established body of NV-ensemble quantum sensing work — DEER, nanoscale NMR and T1 relaxometry protocols operating at pT/sqrt(Hz) field sensitivity — the relevance to a quantum-sensing candidate is the engineering discipline of getting a low-noise detector to work in a hostile, uncontrolled environment — the same problem that separates a laboratory pT/sqrt(Hz) NV magnetometer from a fieldable one. Borderline inclusion on the astronomy criterion; kept because instrumentation is a genuine focus rather than a by-product.