I was born on 12 December 1968, in Torres Vedras, about 50 km North of Lisboa. I graduated in Engineering Physics at IST in 1991. I received the MSc and PhD degrees in Physics from Universidade Técnica de Lisboa (IST) in 1994 and in 1998, respectively. My research focuses on the modeling of non-equilibrium kinetics of low-temperature molecular plasmas. I have co-authored more than 115 papers in international journals and about 250 communications in international conferences. In 2016 I was awarded the William Crookes Plasma Prize, co-sponsored by the European Physical Society and the Institute of Physics Publishing, "for the outstanding contribution to the modeling of molecular low-temperature plasmas." I am currently member of the Governing Board of IPFN, and Director of the PhD training programme APPLAuSE (Advanced Program in Plasma Science and Engineering). I also belong to the Steering Committee and Advisory Board of the PIONEER (Plasma Catalysis for CO2 Recycling) Phd training Programme funded by EU under H2020. I have served as Coordinator of the Integrated Master in Engineering Physics of IST and as Vice-President of the Department of Physics of IST.