Daniel is PhD student conducting research on the mathematical modeling of smart materials, under the supervision of Dr. Hillel Aharoni in the Department of Physics of Complex Systems at the Weizmann Institute. He has an BSc in physics from the National University of Colombia in Bogotá, Colombia and MSc in Physics from the Weizmann Institute. 

In his current research, Daniel is working to develop theoretical models for the study of smart materials, i.e. materials with encoded degrees of freedom so they can perform tasks independently.  His research focuses in particular on thin elastic sheets like nematic liquid crystals, auxetics or pantographic surfaces, where the group seeks to recognize, classify and make use of the deformation soft-modes for potential meta-material applications. 

Daniel is dedicated to learning and teaching languages as a means to transcend cross-cultural divides. He is fluent in six languages and has a working proficiency in six more.