A bit of advice: Bitcoin and PoW crypto-currencies like it are unique because to understand them you can't just understand crypto, you also need to understand a bit of economics, game theory, and even politics. Equally, it's very common that ideas that seem technically sound fall flat when analyzed from an economic/social/political point of view; it's easy to make ideas that only work if all the participants are "honest" in some way, which just isn't good enough here.
Thanks for the advice. I'm also talking to a CS research group with PhD candidates and people doing dual-degree in Econ/CS & Econ/Math so I think there can be a good fit with lots of real-world experimental opportunity.