Dr. Valentina Dutta

Assistant Professor

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Biography

Valentina Dutta is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Physics at Carnegie Mellon University. She completed her Ph.D. in Physics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 2014 and earned her B.A. in Physics Mathematics at Boston University in 2007. Her research interests encompass Nuclear Particle Physics and High Energy Physics Experiment, focusing on the search for new physics phenomena beyond the Standard Model. Dutta's work specifically delves into the challenges of understanding dark matter and the intricacies of the Higgs boson, discovered at the Large Hadron Collider in 2012. She utilizes advanced machine learning techniques to enhance the sensitivity of experimental searches for new physics. Recently, she co-led efforts within the Compact Muon Solenoid (CMS) experiment at the LHC to search for supersymmetric partners of known particles. Additionally, she is involved in the Light Dark Matter eXperiment (LDMX), which aims to explore dark matter candidates in the sub-GeV mass range. Dutta has contributed to numerous significant publications in high-energy physics and actively collaborates with a diverse group of physicists to advance the understanding of fundamental particle interactions.

Research Interests

Experience

Assistant Professor

— Present

Carnegie Mellon University • Pittsburgh, PA

Responsible for conducting research and teaching in the Department of Physics.

Assistant Project Scientist

— Present

University of California Santa Barbara • Santa Barbara, CA

Worked on high-energy physics experiments related to particle physics.

Postdoctoral Scholar

— Present

University of California Santa Barbara • Santa Barbara, CA

Conducted research in experimental particle physics.

Requirements for Carnegie Mellon University

Doctorate Program
Requirements
GPA Requirement
Required:3.5
GRE General
Verbal
Required:158
Quantitative
Required:149
Analytical Writing
Required:4
Overall
Required:4
Prerequisites
Bachelor's degree in Psychology or related field Research experience/publications
Application Checklist
  • Online application
  • Statement of Purpose
  • Three letters of recommendation
  • Transcripts
  • GRE scores (optional but reported in profile)
  • English Proficiency (TOEFL/IELTS/Duolingo)
Specialization Notes

Admission is extremely competitive with no strict GPA cut-offs; holistic review is used.