Farzan Vafa

Farzan Vafa

Assistant Professor
Niels Bohr Institute
University of Copenhagen

About

I am a theoretical physicist studying how geometry and topology generate and control dynamics in nonequilibrium living systems. My work focuses on active matter, liquid crystals on curved surfaces, topological defects, and morphogenesis, with applications ranging from developing tissues to cortical dynamics.

I am an Assistant Professor at the Niels Bohr Institute and the Niels Bohr International Academy at the University of Copenhagen, Denmark. I lead the TANGLS group (Topology And Non-equilibrium Geometry of Living Systems), which focuses on these problems.

Open position: I am recruiting a postdoctoral researcher at NBI with a strong computational focus. The project centers on the numerical simulation of nonlinear PDEs in nonequilibrium systems, including dynamics on curved and evolving surfaces and defect-mediated flows. Experience in scientific computing and numerical methods is highly desirable. If you are interested, please apply here or feel free to contact me at farzan.vafa AT nbi.ku.dk.

Previously, I was a postdoctoral fellow in the Physics of Living Systems group at MIT, working with Nikta Fakhri. and a postdoc at the Harvard Center of Mathematical Sciences and Applications, working with David Nelson and L. Mahadevan. I received my PhD in physics from the University of California, Santa Barbara, advised by Boris Shraiman. As a graduate student, I also collaborated with Cenke Xu on topological aspects of hard condensed matter physics and with Cristina Marchetti and Mark Bowick in soft matter physics. Earlier, I completed my AB in physics and mathematics at Harvard College, and participated in the Caltech LIGO SURF REU with Yanbei Chen.

I previously co-organized the Harvard CMSA Active Matter Seminar with David Nelson.

You can find my CV here.

Recent News

Publications

Non-equilibrium geometric forces steer spiral waves on folded surfaces
V. Venkatesh*, FV*, M. Pedersen, A. Doostmohammadi, arXiv (2026)

Phase diagram, confining strings, and a new universality class in nematopolar matter
FV, Amin Doostmohammadi, EPL 152 57002 (2025)
arXiv

An efficient solution to Hidden Markov Models on trees with coupled branches
FV, S. Hormoz, IEEE Trans on Signal Proc 73, 4183-4192 (2025)
arXiv

Defect ground states for liquid crystals on cones and hyperbolic cones
FV, G. H. Zhang, D. R. Nelson, J. Phys. A: Math. Theor. 58 225003 (2025)
arXiv

Periodic orbits, pair nucleation, and unbinding of active nematic defects on cones
FV, D. R. Nelson, A. Doostmohammadi, Phys. Rev. E 109, 064606 (2024)
arXiv

Statics and diffusive dynamics of surfaces driven by p-atic topological defects
FV, L. Mahadevan, Soft Matter 19, 6652-6663 (2023)
arXiv

Active topological defect absorption by a curvature singularity
FV, D. R. Nelson, A. Doostmohammadi, J. Phys.: Condens. Matter 35, 425101 (2023)
arXiv

Defect dynamics in active polar fluids vs. active nematics
FV, Soft Matter 42, 8087-8097 (2022)
arXiv

Active nematic defects and epithelial morphogenesis
FV, L. Mahadevan, Phys. Rev. Lett. 129, 048101 (2022)
arXiv

Defect absorption and emission for p-atic liquid crystals on cones
FV, G. H. Zhang, D. R. Nelson, Phys. Rev. E 106, 024704 (2022)
arXiv

Geometry and Dynamics of Active Topological Defects FV, Ph.D. Thesis (2021)

Fluctuations can induce local nematic order and extensile stress in monolayers of motile cells
FV, M. J. Bowick, B. I. Shraiman, M. C. Marchetti, Soft Matter 17, 3068-3073 (2021)
arXiv

Multi-defect dynamics in active nematics
FV, M. J. Bowick, M. C. Marchetti, B. I. Shraiman, arXiv (2020)

Symmetry-protected topological Hopf insulator and its generalizations
C. Liu*, FV*, C. Xu, Phys. Rev. B 95, 161116 (2017) (Editors’ Suggestion, Rapid Communication)
arXiv

Chern-Simons theory and Wilson loops in the Brillouin zone
B. Lian, C. Vafa, FV, S.C Zhang, Phys. Rev. B 95, 094512 (2017) (Editors’ Suggestion)
arXiv

* equal contribution