Mr Krishna Kumar

Mr Krishna Kumar

School of Mathematics
PhD Student

Contact details

Address
University of Birmingham
Edgbaston
Birmingham
B15 2TT
UK

Qualifications

  • PhD in Applied Mathematics, University of Birmingham (Sep 2024 – Present)
    Thesis: Mathematical Modelling of Xylella fastidiosa Epidemics in Olive Groves
  • Integrated B.S. and M.S. in Physics, Indian Institute of Science Education and Research(IISER) Thiruvananthapuram, India
    Physics major, Mathematics minor

Biography

Krishna Kumar is a PhD student in Applied Mathematics in the School of Mathematics at the University of Birmingham. His research sits at the interface of mathematical modelling, nonlinear dynamics, and ecological systems, with a focus on vector-borne plant diseases.

Krishna completed an integrated BSc and MSc in Physics at IISER Thiruvananthapuram (India), with a minor in Mathematics. He has presented his work at the International Conference on Dynamical Systems Applied to Biological and Natural Systems (DSABNS 2026) and will present at the International Conference on Models in Population Dynamics, Ecology and Evolution (MPDEE 2026, University of Leicester). Krishna's research and training have been supported by the University of Birmingham 125th Anniversary Travel Funding, a British Ecological Society Travel Grant, and a Postgraduate Work Experience Bursary (2026). He also received an EPSRC Doctoral Landscape Award from University (2026; £6,000) for a research stay at the University of the Balearic Islands (Spain), and a GREATLEAP Scholarship (€2,500) from Dr Catherine Drysdale for a research stay at the University of Lancaster (Sep–Oct 2026) on predicting psychosis across urban areas in the UK.

Doctoral research

PhD title

PhD in Applied Mathematics

Mathematical Modelling of Xylella fastidiosa Epidemics in Olive Groves

Krishna Kumar's research addresses the spread of Olive Quick Decline Syndrome (OQDS), caused by the vector-borne bacterium Xylella fastidiosa, which has devastated olive groves in southern Italy and poses a serious threat across Europe. Krishna develops mathematical models to understand and predict disease dynamics and to support effective management strategies. In particular, he introduced a novel integro-difference modelling framework tailored to insect vectors with non-overlapping generations, complementing existing ODE, lattice, and spatio-temporal approaches. Using theoretical analysis and numerical simulations, Krishna will investigate how key infection and transmission parameters influence epidemic outcomes and how interventions might mitigate disease spread.
Supervisor
Dr Natalia Petrovskaya

Publications

  • Krishna Kumar, D. Biswas, T. Banerjee, W. Zou, J. Kurths, and D. V. Senthilkumar, Phys. Rev. E 100, 052212 (2019)
  • Krishna Kumar and N. Petrovskaya, “An integro-difference model for Xylella fastidiosa epidemics in olive groves,” J. Math. Biol. (in preparation)