Rate My Professor Mohamed Zayed

Mohamed Zayed is an Associate Teaching Professor of Physics in the Arts and Sciences program at Carnegie Mellon University in Qatar, a position he has held since 2017. He earned his D.Sc. from ETH Zurich in 2010, with a doctoral thesis entitled "Novel States in Magnetic Materials under Extreme Conditions." Prior to joining Carnegie Mellon University in Qatar, Zayed served on the faculty at Qatar University beginning in August 2016. His research specializes in the thermodynamics of quantum materials, with a particular emphasis on frustrated magnets such as SrCu₂(BO₃)₂, a model compound in quantum magnetism. In 2021, Zayed contributed to an international collaboration that provided new insights into quantum thermodynamics by demonstrating critical-point physics in a pure spin system for the first time. This breakthrough, achieved through precise specific heat measurements and mathematical modeling, revealed phenomena analogous to phase transitions in classical systems like water under varying pressure and temperature. The findings were published in Nature.

Zayed's ongoing research includes the project "Qatar Quantum Materials," funded by a 2025 Qatar Research, Development and Innovation (QRDI) Council Academic Research Grant, in collaboration with Mahmoud Abdel-Hafiez from the University of Doha for Science and Technology and Bruce Normand from the Paul Scherrer Institute. As a dedicated educator and mentor, he supervises undergraduate capstone projects, such as a junior information systems student's initiative to develop lightweight, crash-safe composites for 3D-printed electric motorbike chassis aimed at improving sustainability. Zayed also co-presented a lecture series on the "Birth of Calculus" and supports student research in areas like automated hairstyle recommendation using generative models. He teaches physics courses within the General Education curriculum at Carnegie Mellon University in Qatar, contributing to the academic development of students across disciplines.