Profile picture of Dr. Zachary Eriksen

Dr. Zachary Eriksen

Current affiliations

Academic profiles

Curriculum Vitae (CV)

Research Focus

  • Data-driven perspectives on mantle geochemistry
    At the broadest scale, I am fascinated by Earth’s crust-mantle system and how variations in the processes and rates of mass cycling between Earth’s surface and interior have shaped its evolution over time. As a mantle geochemist, I study how magmatism and crustal recycling—the major drivers of element cycling between the mantle and crust—manifest as chemical and physical heterogeneity in the mantle. I use the elemental and isotopic compositions of mantle-derived basalts to indirectly sample this heterogeneity. My research integrates large geochemical databases with multivariate statistics and machine learning to quantitatively test process-based hypotheses for the origin of mantle heterogeneity—locally and globally—and to link geochemical signals with geophysical observables. I complement this approach with laboratory-based methods development, applying novel geochemical tools such as stable isotopes to probe these same processes.

Academic Education

2017 - 2023PhD in Earth and Planetary Sciences | Harvard University
2013 - 2017BSc in Geological Sciences | Michigan State University

Work Experience

since 09/2024Akademischer Rat auf Zeit (Equivalent to fixed-term Assistant Professor) | Universität Münster
02/2024 - 08/2024Postdoctoral Fellow | Universität Münster
06/2023 - 01/2024Research Associate | Harvard University

Publications

Eriksen, Zachary T.; Stracke, Andreas (2025)
In: Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems26(9)e2025GC012390. doi:10.1029/2025GC012390
Research article (journal) | Peer reviewed | Published
Neumann, E. R.; Callegaro, S.; Jacobsen, S. B.; Hyung, E.; Svensen, H. H.; Larsen, B. T.; Eriksen, Z. T.  (2025)
In: Lithos512-513108133.
Research article (journal) | Peer reviewed | Published
Eriksen, Zachary T.; Jacobsen, Stein B.; Day, James M. D.; White, William M. (2024)
In: Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta373326-341. doi:10.1016/j.gca.2024.02.011
Research article (journal) | Peer reviewed | Published
Hyung Eugenia , Sedaghatpour Fatemeh , Larsen T. Bjørn , Neumann Else-Ragnhild , Eriksen T. Zachary , Petaev I. Michail , Jacobsen B. Stein (2023)
In: Chemical Geology622. doi:10.1016/j.chemgeo.2023.121377
Research article (journal) | Peer reviewed | Published
Fu Hairuo , Jacobsen B. Stein , Larsen T. Bjørn , Eriksen T. Zachary (2022)
In: Earth and Planetary Science Letters594. doi:10.1016/j.epsl.2022.117743
Research article (journal) | Peer reviewed | Published
Show all publications (7)