SAFIR Research Newsletter - Eighth Issue

Released eight times per year, the newsletter highlights recent research outputs, events, partnerships, and opportunities across SUAD.

New Joiner Announcement

We are pleased to announce that Ms. Afshana Hoque has joined Sorbonne University Abu Dhabi as Coordinator for both International Relations and for the Research Office. We warmly welcome Afshana to the SAFIR team and look forward to her contributions to the continued growth of our research community. 

Recent Publications

Journal Articles

• Slimani, A. et al - Co–Mn Ferrite Thin Films Deposited by Spray Pyrolysis: Role of Annealing Temperature in Modulating Structural, Optical, and Electrical Properties. Physica Status Solidi A (applications and materials science), 2026, 223 (6), pp.e202500884. https://doi.org/10.1002/pssa.202500884

• Mola, G. et al - Identification problems for anisotropic time-fractional subdiffusion equations. Inverse Problems, 2026, 42, 045013. https://doi.org/10.1088/1361-6420/ae5085

• Christopoulos, S. et al - IN-DEPTH NUMERICAL EVALUATION AND PERFORMANCE OPTIMIZATION OF CMTS PHOTODETECTOR, Ukrainian Journal of Physics, 2026, 27, (2). https://doi.org/10.3116/16091833/Ukr.J.Phys.Opt.2026.02058

• Epstein, A. et al - La transition écologique et l’enseignement du droit économique. Acte II – retours, critiques, projets. Revue internationale de droit économique, 2026, t. XXXIV (2025/2, pp. 11 à 26), pp.16. https://doi.org/10.3917/ride.392.0011

• Nolan-Bock, M. et al - Metaphors as Critical Pedagogy: Guiding Creative Thinking in Novice Design and Non-Design Foundation Year University Students in the United Arab Emirates, International Journal of Art and Design Education, 2026. https://doi.org/10.1111/jade.70019

• Masuku, M. - Missing Gukurahundi archives: fragmented, denied and delayed remembrances. Dynamics of asymmetric conflict, 2026, pp.1-21. https://doi.org/10.1080/17467586.2026.2636738

• Goswami, R. et al - Moving average randomized tree. Machine Learning, 2026, 115 (5), pp.99. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10994-025-06978-9

• Li, L. et al - Organic Crystal‐MXene Composites as Temperature‐Tolerant Strain Sensors. Advanced Science, 2026. https://doi.org/10.1002/advs.202522007

• Meziane, T. et al - Potential of the bivalve Perna perna as bioindicator of eutrophication in tropical coastal ecosystems: carbon and nitrogen stable isotopes, fatty acids and shell morphometry. Marine Environmental Research, 2026, 218, pp.108059. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marenvres.2026.108059

Preprint Articles

• Hadid, A. et al - Conflict-Aware Multimodal Fusion for Ambivalence and Hesitancy Recognition, 2026. https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2603.15818

• Hadid, A. et al - Decoding Matters: Efficient Mamba-Based Decoder with Distribution-Aware Deep Supervision for Medical Image Segmentation, 2026. https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2603.12547

• Pathak, R., Chakraborty, T. - Deep Generative Spatiotemporal Engression for Probabilistic Forecasting of Epidemic, 2026. https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2603.07108

• Pathak, R., Goswami, R., Panja, M., Chakraborty, T. et al - EnTransformer: A Deep Generative Transformer for Multivariate Probabilistic Forecasting, 2026. https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2603.11909

• Besher, D., Chakraborty, T. et al - Probabilistic Forecasting of Climate Policy Uncertainty: The Role of Macro-financial Variables and Google Search Data, 2026. https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2507.12276

• Hadid, A. et al - SPARK-IL: Spectral Retrieval-Augmented RAG for Knowledge-driven Deepfake Detection via Incremental Learning. https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2604.03833

• Panja, M., Younes, G., Chakraborty, T. - Turning Time Series into Algebraic Equations: Symbolic Machine Learning for Interpretable Modeling of Chaotic Time Series, 2026. https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2603.07261

Conference Papers

 • Clément-Fontaine, M. - Un droit égalitaire appliqué dans un monde inégal : le droit d’auteur et la participation différée des femmes à la production du droit. LA NORMATIVITÉ AU FÉMININ : ENTRE RIGUEUR ET LATITUDE DU DROIT, 2026.

Practitioner-Oriented Articles

• Martial-Braz, N. - Repère: Intelligence artificielle - Entre le pire et le meilleur, c'est à l'humain de choisir !. Communication Commerce électronique, n° 4, 2026.

• Clément-Fontaine, M. - L’articulation des stratégies réglementaires de l’IA et des données personnelles : conséquences sur le terrain des libertés fondamentales. Répertoire IP/IT et Communication [Encyclopédie juridique Dalloz], 2026, pp.15

• Clément-Fontaine, M. et al - Panorama rapide de l'actualité « Numérique » semaine du 23 mars 2026. Dalloz Actualité, 2026.

Student Research

• Alaidaros, H. et al - A Low‐Power Radioisotope XRF Spectrometer for Detection of Light Elements on Planetary Missions, X-Ray Spectrometry, 2026. https://doi.org/10.1002/xrs.70097

• Alghafri, A. et al - Beyond stereotypes: an autoethnographic journey of an Emirati woman through educational stigma, Culture and Organization, 2025, pp.1-18. https://doi.org/10.1080/14759551.2025.2591943

• Castelyn, J. et al - Parents' Decisions Regarding Digital Media Use by Their Children Under Three Years Old in the United Arab Emirates, Infancy, 2026, 31 (1). https://doi.org/10.1111/infa.70073

• Besher, D., Chakraborty, T. et al - Probabilistic Forecasting of Climate Policy Uncertainty: The Role of Macro-financial Variables and Google Search Data, 2026. https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2507.12276

Spotlight on Research Excellence – Dr. Mehluli Masuku

Missing Gukurahundi archives: fragmented, denied and delayed remembrances

Dynamics of Asymmetric Conflict, 2026, pp.1–21

https://doi.org/10.1080/17467586.2026.2636738

What happens when archives of mass violence are missing, fragmented or deliberately silenced?

In this recent article, Dr. Mehluli Masuku examines the complex absence of archival records related to the Gukurahundi massacres in Zimbabwe. His research explores how gaps in documentation are not merely accidental, but often shaped by political, institutional, and historical dynamics that influence what is preserved, what is lost, and what is denied.

Drawing on archival theory and memory studies, the article shows how the fragmentation and delayed recognition of these archives affect collective memory, justice processes, and historical accountability. By interrogating both the presence and absence of records, Dr. Masuku highlights how archives themselves become sites of power, where remembrance can be constrained, contested, or postponed.

This work contributes to broader debates on archives, human rights, and post-conflict societies, offering critical insights into how recordkeeping practices shape historical narratives and the possibilities for reconciliation.

About the researcher

Dr. Mehluli Masuku is Assistant Professor of Records Management and Archival Science in the History Department at Sorbonne University Abu Dhabi. He holds a PhD in Information Science and previously served as a senior lecturer at the National University of Science and Technology in Zimbabwe before joining SUAD as a postdoctoral researcher. 

His research spans records and archives management, health information management, open data, and the role of archives in governance and memory. His work engages with key contemporary issues such as accountability, digital records, and the preservation of knowledge in contexts marked by institutional and historical challenges.

Through his research, Dr. Masuku contributes to a deeper understanding of how information, archives, and memory intersect with questions of justice, governance, and societal transformation.

International Conference Participations 

• Twenty-Second International Conference on Technology, Knowledge, and Society, Online participation, Rhodes, Greece – Dr. Samson Mutsagondo, 16-17 April 2026

SAFIR Events

• Online Research Conference - Innovating in the Teaching and Learning of Oral Skills in French as a Foreign Language (FLE): Objects, Resources, and Pedagogical Practices in a Heteroglossic Context – Tifany Bourdeau & Imane Harbi, 16–17 April 2026

• Online Colloquium - Shaping the legal framework for future space activities – Dr. Derek El Zein, 28 Apr 2026

PhD and Postdoctoral Grants

We are pleased to highlight the following funded research projects:

Artificial Intelligence as a Tool of Strategic Corporate Governance (PhD)

Category: Grant funded 2026

Principal Investigator: Pr. Melanie Clement Fontaine (SUAD)

Field: Law

Telework, Hybrid Work & Workplace Mobility in the UAE (PhD)

Category: Grant funded 2026

Principal Investigator: Dr. Benjamin Motté-Baumvol (SUAD)

Field: Geography, Transport

Extremal Designs for Large Robust Networks (Postdoctoral)

Category: Grant funded 2026

Principal Investigator: Pr. Miklos Ruszinko (SUAD)

Field: Mathematics

eDNA-based Monitoring of Marine Vertebrates in the Emirates (Postdoctoral)

Category: Grant funded 2026

Principal Investigator: Pr. Jean-Luc Jung (SU)

Field: Marine Science

Hybrid Feature Selection with Vision-Language Models for Next-Gen Robotics (PhD)

Category: Grant funded 2026

Principal Investigator: Giulia De Masi (SUAD)

Field: Robotics

Safe & Trustworthy Robotics Control via Neuro-Symbolic AI Models (PhD)

Category: Grant funded 2024–25

Principal Investigator: Dr. Grace Younes & Dr. Tanujit Chakraborty (SUAD)

Field: Math, AI, Robotics

Study of Cetaceans in Abu Dhabi Waters (PhD)

Category: Grant funded 2024–25

Principal Investigator: Pr. Olivier Adam (SUAD)

Field: Marine Science, Bioacoustics

Search for High-Energy Neutrinos from the Milky Way (PhD)

Category: Grant funded 2024–25

Principal Investigator: Pr. Antoine Kouchner (UPC)

Field: Space

Biomimetic Robotic Turtle Swarm for Marine Ecosystem Surveillance (PhD)

Category: Grant funded 2024–25

Principal Investigator: Giulia De Masi (SUAD)

Field: Robotics