Nicolas is an assistant Professor at the University of Chicago whose
interests are closely tied to the question of origins. Which
processes governed the synthesis of the elements? How did matter
expelled from the successive generations of stars contribute to shape
the cosmic abundances of the elements? How and when did solar system
bodies such as planets, asteroids, and comets form? How did the Earth
get its wet atmosphere? For addressing these questions, I study the
natural distribution of elements and isotopes using various instruments
designed for separating nuclides according to their mass.