Vincent MacKay

Vincent MacKay

Postdoctoral Scholar, MIT Kavli Institute

I'm a postdoctoral scholar at the MIT Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research.

My main research interest is observational cosmology, with a focus on instrumentation and data analysis for radio telescopes. I work on experiments aimed at charting the history of the Universe by mapping the faint radio glow of hydrogen across cosmic time. Some of the instruments I work on are also capable of detecting fast radio bursts (FRBs), mysterious radio signals of misunderstood nature that mostly originate from outside of our galaxy.

I completed my PhD in Physics in 2023 at the University of Toronto's Dunlap Institute for Astronomy and Astrophysics. In 2018, I obtained my Bachelor's degree in Mathematics and Physics at McGill University. Before that, I completed a Bachelor of Music in piano performance at the Conservatoire de musique de Québec. Despite not pursuing a professional career in music, it remains my main hobby and I play every day!

Apart from research and music, I enjoy the outdoors (rock climbing, hiking, cycling), cooking, and watching horror movies with friends.

Research

I am an active member of the HERA and CHORD collaborations, and have previously contributed to CHIME and HIRAX. You can find my publications on Google Scholar.

Complete uv Coverage

Radio interferometers sample the Fourier transform of the sky in the uv plane. Incomplete sampling leads to imaging artifacts and overwhelms the 21 cm cosmological signal with foregrounds. I demonstrated that antenna layouts achieving complete uv coverage are feasible with a realistic number of antennas, and wrote the RULES algorithm to find such layouts from user-defined constraints. I showed that these arrays fully suppress the foreground wedge. Published in The Astrophysical Journal (2026).

Complete uv coverage

Mutual Coupling

When antennas are placed close together in a radio array, electromagnetic coupling between them distorts the measured signals and complicates calibration. I work on characterizing and mitigating mutual coupling effects in dense interferometric arrays, with applications to 21 cm cosmology experiments like HERA and CHORD. See the arXiv preprint (submitted to The Astrophysical Journal on October 18, 2026).

Mutual coupling

Feed Design

I designed a compact, ultra-wideband (0.3–1.5 GHz), low-cost, low-loss antenna feed for large-N interferometric radio telescopes. Its bandwidth, cost, and size, makes it perfectly suitable for large arrays of small dishes such as modern 21 cm observatories. The design was developed for, and is being used in the CHORD telescope. Published in Journal of Astronomical Instrumentation (2023).

Feed design

HERA

The Hydrogen Epoch of Reionization Array (HERA) is a radio interferometer located in South Africa's Karoo desert, designed to detect the 21 cm signal from neutral hydrogen during the Epoch of Reionization. My contribution for the collaboration has been broad, ranging from simulating proposed hardware modifications, modeling and suppressing mutual coupling, assembling software pipelines, monitoring data acquisition, and visiting the site for in-person maintenance.

HERA telescope

CHORD

The Canadian Hydrogen Observatory and Radio-transient Detector (CHORD) is a next-generation radio telescope designed for cosmological surveys of post-reionization neutral hydrogen and detection of fast radio bursts, currently being built in Penticton, BC. I designed the feed, chose the unconventional dish shape to minimize mutual coupling, and helped determine the optimal array layout via simulation.

CHORD telescope

Teaching

Directed Reading Program

University of Toronto · 2022–2023

I mentored undergraduate students through the Physics Directed Reading Program at the University of Toronto, guiding them through topics in observational cosmology including radio interferometry, 21 cm cosmology, and data analysis techniques.

Dunlap Instrumentation Summer School

University of Toronto · Summer 2021

I designed and led a workshop on radio signal detection and the properties of thermal radiation and noise as part of the Dunlap Instrumentation Summer School. The workshop provided hands-on experience with radio instrumentation concepts for graduate students.

Teaching Assistant

University of Toronto · 2018–2022

I served as a teaching assistant for a wide range of physics courses, from introductory courses like The Magic of Physics and The Physics of Music to advanced courses like Current Interpretations of Quantum Mechanics. See the CV section for the full list.

Demos

Antenna PSF Applet

An interactive tool for exploring antenna array configurations and their point spread functions. Design array layouts and visualize how different configurations affect the instrument's response.

Launch applet

Antenna PSF Applet

Curriculum Vitae

Download PDF version

Canadian citizen · U.S. green-card holder · French, English
vimackay@mit.edu · ORCID: 0000-0002-3317-5347

Research Interests

I am a cosmologist and radio astronomer specializing in 21 cm experiments and transient detection. I design arrays and antenna hardware, and develop analysis methods addressing challenges such as mutual coupling mitigation and foreground suppression. My research sits at the intersection of physics, engineering, and data science.

I am part of the HERA and CHORD collaborations; previously, CHIME and HIRAX.

Positions

Postdoctoral Scholar
MIT Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research, Cambridge, MA, USA
2023–present

Education and Training

PhD, Physics
University of Toronto; Supervisor: Keith Vanderlinde — Toronto, ON, Canada
2018–2023
BSc, First-Class Honours, Mathematics and Physics
McGill University — Montréal, QC, Canada
2015–2018
BMus, Piano Performance
Conservatoire de musique de Québec — Québec City, QC, Canada
2012–2015
MIT LEAPS — Leadership and Professional Strategies & Skills
Massachusetts Institute of Technology — Cambridge, MA, USA
Spring 2026

Awards and Funding

Trottier Space Institute Fellowship (declined)
CAD $65,000/year
2022–2025
Ontario Graduate Scholarship
CAD $15,000
2020–2021
University of Alberta Undergraduate Summer Research Award
CAD $8,000
Summer 2017
NSERC Undergraduate Summer Research Award
CAD $4,500
Summer 2016
FRQNT Supplement to NSERC
CAD $2,000
Summer 2016

Publications and Preprints

† Collaboration paper   †† Student-advised paper

  1. MacKay, Vincent et al. Oct. 15, 2026. “Properties and limitations of linear models for mutual coupling in 21 cm arrays.” Submitted to ApJ on 18 October 2026. arXiv: 2610.22197.
  2. † Bandura, Kevin, […], MacKay, Vincent, et al. Aug. 17, 2026. “Overview of the Canadian hydrogen observatory and radio transient detector (CHORD) project.” In: Radio Telescopes, Technologies, and Methods, Proceedings of SPIE 14153, 141531A.
  3. MacKay, Vincent et al. Feb. 2026. “Complete Sampling of the uv Plane with Realistic Radio Arrays: Introducing the RULES Algorithm, with Application to 21 cm Foreground Wedge Removal.” In: The Astrophysical Journal 999.1, 96.
  4. †† Berger, Sabrina, Lasinski, Arianna, MacKay, Vincent, et al. Jan. 2026. “First use of GPS satellites for beam calibration of radio dish telescopes.” In: Publications of the Astronomical Society of Australia 43, e016.
  5. † Kim, Honggeun, […], MacKay, Vincent, et al. Nov. 2025. “Exploring One-point Statistics in HERA Phase I Data: Effects of Foregrounds and Systematics on Measuring One-point Statistics.” In: The Astrophysical Journal 993.2, 189.
  6. MacKay, Vincent et al. Nov. 2023. “Low-Cost, Low-Loss, Ultra-Wideband Compact Feed for Interferometric Radio Telescopes.” In: Journal of Astronomical Instrumentation 12.4, 2350008.
  7. Lai, Mark, MacKay, Vincent et al. Aug. 2023. “0.3–1.5-GHz LNA With Wideband Noise and Power Matching for Radio Astronomy.” In: IEEE Microwave and Wireless Technology Letters 33.8, pp. 1163–1166.
  8. † Crichton, Devin, […], MacKay, Vincent, et al. Jan. 2022. “Hydrogen Intensity and Real-Time Analysis Experiment: 256-Element Array Status and Overview.” In: Journal of Astronomical Telescopes, Instruments, and Systems 8.1, 011019.
  9. † Saliwanchik, Benjamin R. B., […], MacKay, Vincent, et al. Jan. 2021. “Mechanical and Optical Design of the HIRAX Radio Telescope.” In: Ground-Based and Airborne Telescopes VIII, SPIE 11445, 114455O.
  10. Cytrynbaum, Eric N., MacKay, Vincent et al. July 2019. “Double-wave reentry in excitable media.” In: Chaos: An Interdisciplinary Journal of Nonlinear Science 29.7, 073103.

Talks

† Invited   †† Outreach

  1. † TASTY, Department of Astronomy & Astrophysics, University of Toronto Toronto, ON, Canada, 2026
    “How Antenna Layout Can Help Reveal the 21 cm Universe”
  2. † KIPAC Seminar, Stanford University Stanford, CA, USA, 2026
    “Instrument Design Theory for 21 cm Cosmology”
  3. National Radio Science Meeting Boulder, CO, USA, 2026
    “Complete Sampling of the uv Plane with Realistic Radio Arrays: Introducing the RULES Algorithm, with Application to 21 cm Foreground Wedge Removal”
  4. †† Astronomy on Tap Rhode Island Providence, RI, USA, 2026
    “The Blurriest Pictures Ever Taken”
  5. Cosmology on Safari Hluhluwe, South Africa, 2025
    “An algorithm to produce uv-complete arrays”
  6. National Radio Science Meeting Boulder, CO, USA, 2023
    “An Ultra-Wideband, Low-Loss, Low-Cost Feed Design for Large-N, Small-D Observatories, and Implementation on CHORD”
  7. URSI Atlantic Radio Science Meeting Gran Canaria, Spain, 2022
    “Hardware Design and Array Layout for CHORD: the Canadian Hydrogen Observatory and Radio-transient Detector”
  8. National Radio Science Meeting Boulder, CO, USA, 2022
    “Design Considerations for CHORD: the Canadian Hydrogen Observatory and Radio-transient Detector”
  9. †† Astronomy on Tap NYC: Cosmic Happy Hour New York, NY, USA, 2022
    “The Hubble Tension: A Crisis of Cosmic Proportions”
  10. † Astronomy and Space Physics Seminar, Kansas University Lawrence, KS, USA, 2021
    “Cosmology and Detection of Radio Transients with CHORD: Science Goals and Design Considerations”
  11. Summer Colloquium, Department of Physics, University of Toronto Toronto, ON, Canada, 2020
    “Development of CHORD: the Canadian Hydrogen Observatory and Radio-transient Detector”
  12. Science at Low Frequencies Conference Fully online conference, 2020
    “The Canadian Hydrogen Observatory and Radio-transient Detector (CHORD): Feed and Dish Design and Trade-offs”
  13. IEEE AP-S/URSI Conference Montréal, QC, Canada, 2020
    “A Miniaturized Ultra-Wideband, Low-Loss, Low-Cost Feed for Astrophysics”
  14. †† Cosmos From Your Couch Toronto, ON, Canada, 2020
    “Peeking into the Invisible Universe with Radio Astronomy”
  15. Society for Mathematical Biology Annual Meeting Montréal, QC, Canada, 2019
    “Double-wave reentry in excitable media”

Teaching

Physics Directed Reading Program, University of Toronto
Directed reading program in observational cosmology
2022–2023
Dunlap Instrumentation Summer School
Workshop: Radio signal detection and the properties of thermal radiation and noise
Summer 2021
Teaching Assistant, University of Toronto
PHY293: Waves and Modern PhysicsFall 2020, Fall 2022
PHY250: Electricity and MagnetismSummer 2022
PHY294: Quantum and Thermal PhysicsWinter 2022
PHY151: Foundations of Physics IFall 2018, Fall 2021
PHY205: The Physics of Everyday LifeSummer 2021
PHY491/1491: Current Interpretations of Quantum MechanicsWinter 2021
PHY207: The Physics of MusicWinter 2020, Winter 2021
PHY100: The Magic of PhysicsFall 2019
PHY132: Introduction to Physics IIWinter 2019

Community Involvement and Service Work

  • Member of the organizing committee for the 2021 Dunlap Instrumentation Lectures
    Helping organize a week-long virtual lecture series with invited speakers and visiting student researchers
  • Judge at young scientist competitions
    2021 Canada-Wide Science Fair (CWSF); 2021 Canadian Undergraduate Physics Conference (CUPC)
  • President of the Physics Graduate Student Association, 2019–2020
    Organizing social activities for physics graduate students, representing them at the graduate student union
  • Other volunteering
    Leading lab tours for University of Toronto's AstroTours; representing the Dunlap Institute at the 2022 Black Excellence in STEM and Medicine (BE-STEMM) conference career fair; discussing with grade school students on video calls as part of the Skype a Scientist program