Zheng Zhang
I do physics and cosmology (and ask a lot of questions about the Universe)
Postdoctoral researcher in cosmology at the University of Manchester.
Latest Highlight
Conference talk · June 2026
A path-integral, statistical-field-theory formulation of weak gravitational lensing — computing the convergence two- and three-point statistics from first principles, beyond the linear projection approximation.
View the slides
Latest Post
February 26, 2026
I am a postdoctoral researcher in cosmology working in Manchester. A shortened version of this letter was published in The Guardian. Here is the letter in its entirety.
Read more
What I’m doing now
I work at the intersection of observational and theoretical cosmology, with a focus on cosmic structure formation and growth, and on observing dark energy through various probes, including the neutral hydrogen and weak lensing signals. I develop theories and methods that are exact in first principles and explicit in observational consequences.
Life and Education Journey
I am currently (Nov 2023 -) a Postdoctoral Researcher at the University of Manchester. Previously, I completed my PhD in Physics of the Universe at the Astroparticle and Cosmology (APC) Laboratory, Université Paris Cité, jointly with the École Normale Supérieure (ENS, Paris), from November 2020 to October 2023 in Paris, France.
Before my PhD, I earned an MSc in Physics from Brown University (2018–2020, Rhode Island, US) and a BSc in Applied Physics from Shanghai University (2014–2018, Shanghai, China). My earlier education includes high school in Hai’an and primary school in Sunzhuang village (2002–2014). I was born in 1996.
Publications
Here is a list of my published and submitted papers to date. Also see my profiles on
Google Scholar,
arXiv, and
ORCID.
15 | 2026
Statistical Field Theory for Weak Gravitational Lensing
Z. Zhang, P. Bull, C. Clarkson, A. Nicola
14 | 2026
sft-wick: A formalism and package for Feynman-diagram expansion and evaluation in stochastic field theories
Z. Zhang
Submitted to Computer Physics Communications.;
arXiv
13 | 2026
Bayesian component separation and power spectrum estimation for 21 cm intensity mapping data cubes
G. G. Murphy, P. Bull, M. G. Santos, Z. Zhang, S. Cunnington
12 | 2026
Bayesian power spectrum estimation with modelling of systematic effects in delay-fringe rate space
S. Dutta, P. Bull, J. Burba, M. J. Wilensky, Z. Zhang, A. Nasirudin
11 | 2026
Joint Bayesian calibration and map-making for intensity mapping experiments
Z. Zhang, P. Bull, M. Santos, A. Nasirrudin
10 | 2026
Spectral Signatures of Spinning Dust from Grain Ensembles in Diverse Environments: A Combined Theoretical and Observational Study
Z. Zhang, J. Chluba, R. Cepeda-Arroita, J. A. Rubino-Martin
9 | 2025
Spectral Properties of Anomalous Microwave Emission in 144 Galactic Clouds
Cepeda-Arroita, R. et al. (incl. Z. Zhang)
8 | 2025
A general polynomial emulator for cosmology via moment projection
Z. Zhang
7 | 2025
SpyDust: an improved and extended implementation for modeling spinning dust radiation
Z. Zhang, J. Chluba
6 | 2025
RHINO: A large horn antenna for detecting the 21cm global signal
Bull, P. et al. (incl. Z. Zhang)
5 | 2024
Disentangling the anisotropic radio sky: Fisher forecasts for 21 cm arrays
Z. Zhang, P. Bull, K. A. Glasscock
4 | 2022
Hydrogen Intensity and Real-Time Analysis Experiment: 256-element array status and overview
HIRAX Collaboration (incl. Z. Zhang)
3 | 2021
A new MWA limit on the 21 cm power spectrum at redshifts~ 13–17
MWA Collaboration (incl. Z. Zhang)
2 | 2020
Deep multiredshift limits on Epoch of Reionization 21 cm power spectra from four seasons of Murchison Widefield Array observations
MWA Collaboration (incl. Z. Zhang)
1 | 2020
The impact of tandem redundant/sky-based calibration in MWA Phase II data analysis
Z. Zhang, J. C. Pober, W. Li, B. J. Hazelton, M. F. Morales
Research Codes
Selected codes I have developed or contributed to, many used in the papers below.
Iterative two-phase sigma-clipping for flagging Radio Frequency Interference (RFI) in radio cosmology waterfall data, using 2D polynomial surface fitting powered by [MomentEmu](https://github.com/zzhang0123/MomentEmu).
Jupyter Notebook
More about me
Bio
- Pronouns: He/Him
- Title: PhD in Physics of the Universe (DOCTORAT PHYSIQUE DE L’UNIVERS)
- Marital Status: Married
- Nationality: Chinese
- Location: Manchester, United Kingdom
- Profile: Astrophysicist and cosmologist; self-proclaimed “citizen of the Universe.”
Scientific Ancestry
Below is my academic tree, illustrating the lineage from doctoral supervisors to students.
flowchart LR
PD["Paul Dirac"] --> DS["Dennis W. Sciama"]
EF["Enrico Fermi"] --> ST["Sam Treiman"]
JS["John Simpson"] --> ST
DS --> MR["Martin Rees"]
ST --> SW["Steven Weinberg"]
MR --> NK["Nick Kaiser"]
SW --> JP["John Preskill"]
JP --> MB["Martin Bucher"]
NK & MB --> ZZ(["Zheng Zhang"])
classDef anc fill:#F0F2F5,stroke:#3B82C4,stroke-width:1.5px,color:#1A1F2B
classDef me fill:#3B82C4,stroke:#2563A0,stroke-width:2.5px,color:#ffffff,font-weight:bold
class PD,EF,JS,DS,MR,ST,SW,NK,JP,MB anc
class ZZ me
Students
- Tong Lu (BSc, Manchester, 2025-)
- Pranav Odugoudar (MScR, Manchester, 2024-)
Biological Ancestry
I can’t go back too far. My grandfather was adopted. The man who adopted him, my great-grandfather, was a tofu maker/seller in the village, but unfortunately the craft was not passed on.
Family
Our little family includes my wife and myself, our Bengal cat, Youzi, along with two cherished baobab trees, Jumbo and Zhuangzhuang, which we brought with us from Paris to Manchester. While living in the US, I raised a loving German Shepherd named Summer, who now enjoys life with my parents in my faraway hometown.
