[4] She earned a PhD in theoretical physics from the University of Helsinki[4] in 1996, under the supervision of Stig Stenholm.

[citation needed] In her doctoral research Päivi Törmä developed theory for optical multiports and their usage in measuring the quantum state of light.

[5] During her postdoc in Innsbruck, she was one of the first theorists to initiate work on ultracold Fermi gases, and proposed a spectroscopic probe of superfluidity.

This research has led to pioneering observations of strong-coupling,[8][9][10] lasing,[11][12] and condensation[13] phenomena in nanoplasmonic systems.

Her theory work has revealed a quantum geometric contribution of superfluidity[14] which can provide superconductivity in flat bands.