Physical Sciences Colloquia

NMR Spectroscopy (useful for more than simple proton spectra)

Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) spectroscopy is a powerful tool for studying many interesting and dynamic biological and physical processes but is often regarded exclusively as a method for structural elucidation. In this talk, case studies will illustrate the utility of NMR to probe more interesting phenomena as we venture beyond the humble proton spectrum.

Fractionalization or no fractionalization: a review of the pseudo gap phase of cuprates superconductors

In this talk Catherine will address the mysterious issue of origin of the pseudo gap phase in Cuprate superconductors in the light of the few questions which enable us to distinguish between the various scenarios. In particular, she introduces to concept of fractionalization and see whether it is relevant, and where in the phase diagram of the Cuprates.

New Opportunities at the National Crystallography Service

The National Crystallography Service (NCS) is an EPSRC-funded “National Research Facility” – as such its purpose is to provide access to instrumentation and expertise that goes beyond what is available, affordable or sensible to operate at any single institution. For most experiments the NCS is accessible, free at the point of use, to those who are eligible to apply to EPSRC for funding. Built on many years of staffing expertise and state-of-the-art equipment, the main business of the NCS is to look at small, weakly diffracting and difficult-to-handle crystals for the purpose of characterisation. The service caters for both the synthetic chemistry (full structure determination leading to publication) and crystallographic (dataset only) communities and is amongst the highest throughput and most powerful single crystal diffraction facilities in the world.

This talk will outline the facilities and their capability with respect to supporting synthetic chemistry. Furthermore, recent changes in funding have generated new opportunities in terms of providing access to more advanced techniques. The talk will outline the crystallographic research that has been performed in Southampton in recent years, which will illustrate the new range of pump-prime advanced experiments that will be possible via the NCS. These are namely: charge density studies, high pressure crystallography, gas adsorption/desorption in crystalline materials and the application of variable temperature to the study of solid state behaviour.

Function and beauty: transforming biopolymer-motifs into synthetic functional materials

Nature on planet earth has created diverse complex biopolymers: proteins, lignin, nucleic acids, etc: they structure, catalyze or determine life. Chemists have been using biopolymers for various applications ranging from packaging to enzymatic synthesis or drug delivery. We transform molecular and structural motifs from biopolymers into synthetic analogs. DNA is our major blueprint to develop new phosphorus-containing polymers, which are rarely found in today’s polymer science, despite their tremendous synthetic and potential in various applications. Recent work has illustrated the potential of PPEs for future applications beyond flame-retardancy, the main application of PPEs today, and provided a coherent vision to implement this classic biopolymer in modern applications that demand biocompatibility and degradability as well as the possibility to adjust the properties to individual needs.

We have developed a robust strategy to well-defined PPEs by olefin metathesis and the anionic ring-opening polymerization (AROP). The “living” AROP of 2-alkyl-2-oxo-1,3,2-dioxaphospholanes provides also functional polymers with excellent control over molar mass and dispersity. Copolymers of different monomers allow adjustment of the hydrophilicity or their crystallization gives rise to anisotropic materials.

Thermoresponsive and degradable polyphosphonates with both lower and upper critical solution temperature are available from the copolymerization of 2-alkyl-2-oxo-1,3,2-dioxaphospholanes. The polyphosphoester (PPE) platform is also interesting for tuning the blood interactions and the so-called “stealth” behavior of polymeric nanocarriers. We recently reported that degradable PPEs could substitute the famous PEG in drug carriers as they recruit essential proteins from the blood plasma to prevent unspecific cellular uptake. Nanocarriers, functionalized with PPE copolymers underline that the choice of the recruited protein is essential to the stealth behavior that will allow us to understand and use the interactions of polymeric nanocarriers and blood for a targeted delivery of actives.

The presentation summarizes synthetic protocols to PPEs, their applications in biomedicine, e.g., as biodegradable drug carrier or in tissue engineering, and their flame retardant properties.

Watch this space: vacancy association and ordering in oxide ion conducting solid electrolytes

Oxide ion conducting solid electrolytes are the key components of solid oxide fuel cells. Bismuth oxide has the highest known oxide ion conductivity of any solid but exhibits this only in its delta-phase which is only stable above 730 C and exhibits a defect fluorite structure. Substitution of Bi3+ by a range of other cations can lead to preservation of the delta phase to room temperature and despite concern over their stability under reducing atmospheres it has been demonstrated that they can be successfully incorporated into intermediate temperature fuel cells. These systems show high concentrations of vacancies on the oxide ion sublattice with respect to the ideal fluorite structure. Ordering of vacancies at intermediate temperature and related changes in the oxide ion distribution can lead to conductivity decay and in some cases a change in gross structure. In this work we show how this vacancy ordering can be probed directly using reverse Monte Carlo modelling of total neutron scattering data. Thermally induced changes in the oxide ion-vacancy distribution are shown to be correlated with changes in the conductivity behaviour.

Title: TBC

MRI of electrochemical systems: batteries, corrosion and electroplating

The design and development of improved electrochemical technologies, such as batteries, anti-corrosion, and electroplating, requires detailed understanding of the electrochemical reactions, ion transport and concentration gradients within these systems. However, there are few methods that are able to visualise and quantify these non-invasively, spatially, in situ and in real time. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has proved to be an excellent tool for non-invasively studying complex, spatially heterogeneous chemical systems in materials, engineering and chemical research [1]. While, MRI has enormous potential for in situ investigation of the spatial distribution, speciation, and mobility of molecules and ions in electrochemical devices, there are currently very few examples of MRI being used to probe such systems. This is largely due to the experimental challenges associated with setting up an electrochemical cell inside a strong magnetic field and the imaging artefacts caused by the presence of metals that lead to undesirable variations in the radiofrequency (RF) and magnetic fields across the sample[2]. However, it has been found, recently, that such technical issues can be overcome and that it is possible to collect viable data[3] in electrochemical systems. This talk will present the challenges for studying electrochemical systems by MRI and demonstrate how they can be overcome to enable the collection of unique and quantitative data during the electrodissolution and deposition of metal ions in a range of electrochemical cells. Results will be presented, visualising the discharge process in a model Zn-air battery[4], corrosion of metallic copper in an aqueous electrolyte [5] and the electroplating of zinc in a room temperature ionic liquid (RTIL).

[1] M.M. Britton, Prog. Nucl. Magn. Reson. Spec., 101 (2017) 51-70.
[2] L.H. Bennett, P.S. Wang, M.J. Donahue, J. App. Phys., 79 (1996) 4712-4714.
[3] A.J. Davenport, M. Forsyth, M.M. Britton, Electrochem. Comm., 12 (2010) 44-47.
[4] M.M. Britton, P.M. Bayley, P.C. Howlett, A.J. Davenport, M. Forsyth, J. Phys. Chem. Lett., 4 (2013) 3019-3023.
[5] J.M. Bray, A.J. Davenport, K.S. Ryder, M.M. Britton, Angew. Chem. Int. Ed., 55 (2016) 9394-9397.

Title: IRIS (Institute for Research in Schools) – opportunities to develop and deliver research projects in local and regional schools

IRIS makes cutting edge research projects open to school students and their teachers. We do this by making data accessible to schools and also by lending out kits. We support schools across the country and many teachers find our research programmes reinvigorating CPD for them. We have national programmes on space science, particle physics, chemistry, environmental science, antibiotic resistance, engineering, wellbeing and genomics. The talk will outline opportunities for you to get involved or develop similar approaches with local and regional schools based on your research. The University of Kent has already run some amazing research projects with schools.

Title: Electrochemistry, Organometallics & Medicinal Chemistry – An “out of the box” Approach to Drug Design

Can we still innovate in Drug Design? Do we have to follow Lipinski’s rules of five? Are metals really toxic? This talk will try to shake up conventional thinking and disclose a new class of metallic drugs. Surprisingly, for centuries, most anticancer drugs have been based on purely organic scaffolds. Bioorganometallic chemistry was first defined in the 1980s. During its infancy, the field was clearly overshadowed by the supremacy of research on organometallic catalysts, since it was assumed that organometallic complexes were incompatible with oxygen and water and, thus, unsuitable for use in biological systems. Despite the enormous potential of organometallic drugs, this new field remains underestimated and understudied.
Our group has recently discovered, synthesised and patented Cymanquine, a novel organomanganese-containing compound which exhibits promising anticancer and parasitic activities. Through this talk, we will disclose a new approach to drug design that relies on combining electrochemistry with organometallic and medicinal chemistry.

Title: Context and Problem Based Learning: An Integrated Approach

The Department of Chemistry at the University of Leicester has been using context and problem based learning (C/PBL) in chemistry teaching since 2007. The integration of C/PBL into teaching at Leicester has improved the retention rate of first year students. The varied modes of assessment for C/PBL activities have also led to an improvement in the transferable skills of Leicester chemistry students.
This talk will discuss the practicalities of developing and integrating context and problem based learning (C/PBL) activities into a physical science programme, highlighting potential challenges as well as aspects of good practice. The session will include examples of C/PBL activities developed at Leicester. The session will conclude with a brief discussion of the impact that C/PBL has had on the student experience at Leicester.

Title: TBC

All-optical laser-scanning imaging cytometry for ultralarge-scale deep single-cell image-based analysis

Studying cell populations, their transition states and functions at the single cell level is critical for understanding in normal tissue development and pathogenesis of disease. However, current platforms for single-cell analysis (SCA) lack the practical combination of throughput and precision that is limited by the prohibitive costs and time in performing SCA, very often involving thousands to millions individual cells – largely explaining the limited applications of SCA to date. For creating new scientific insights and enriching the diagnostic toolsets, it is valuable to explore alternative biomarkers, notably biophysical markers, which maximizes the cost-effectiveness of SCA because of its label-free nature. Also, as it is closely tied with many cellular behaviours, biophysical markers can complement and correlate with the information retrieved by existing biochemical markers with high statistical precision – providing a comprehensive catalogue of single-cell properties and thus a new landscape of “Cell Altas”.

Optical microscopy is an effective tool to visualize cells with high spatiotemporal resolution. However, its full adoption for high-throughput SCA has been hampered by the intrinsic speed limit imposed by the prevalent image capture strategies, which involve the laser scanning technologies (e.g. galvanometric mirrors), and/or the image sensors (e.g. CCD and CMOS). The laser scanning speed is fundamentally limited by the mechanical inertia of the mirrors whereas the image capture rate of CCD/CMOS sensor is fundamentally limited by the required image sensitivity. Notably, this speed-versus-sensitivity trade-off of the image sensor explains why the throughput of flow cytometry has to be scaled down from 100,000 cells/sec to 1,000 cells/sec when the imaging capability is incorporated.

To address these challenges, we adopt two related techniques to enable single-cell imaging with the unprecedented combination of imaging resolution and speed. Sharing a common concept of all-optical laser-scanning by ultrafast spatiotemporal encoding of laser pulses, these techniques, time-stretch imaging and free-space angular-chirp-enhanced delay (FACED) imaging enable ultrahigh-throughput single-cell imaging with multiple image contrasts (e.g. quantitative phase and fluorescence imaging) at a line-scan rate beyond 10’s MHz (i.e. an imaging throughput up to ~100,000 cells/sec). Moreover, they also enable quantification of intrinsic biophysical markers of individual cells – a largely unexploited class of single-cell signatures that is known to be correlated with the overwhelmingly investigated biochemical markers. All in all, these ultrafast single-cell imaging platforms could find new potentials in deep machine learning complex biological processes from such an enormous size of image data (from molecular signatures to biophysical phenotypes), especially to unveil the unknown heterogeneity between different single cells and to detect (and even quantify) rare aberrant cells.

In between a science center and University historical collections: the practice of science outreach

The University of Porto was founded in 1911, having roots in two late 18th century Nautical and Drawing Classes, an early 19th century Marine and Commerce Academy, and a Polytechnic Academy created in 1837 to provide various engineering courses, in the wake of a reform of public education. Scientific instruments and models, nautical charts and didactic prints gathered along the way have come to make up some significant historical collections of the Faculty of Science.
The interest for science centers that swept across modern industrialized countries in the last decades of the past century, combined with the emergence of European funding programs to promote scientific literacy in the country, concomitantly with the transfer of the Physics and Chemistry Laboratories to new buildings, leaving behind instruments and apparatus no longer being used, led to the foundation of a Museum of Science in the University of Porto in 1996.
A two-fold mission was then assumed by the Museum of Science: on one side, to set up a permanent interactive exhibition that could both grab the attention of visitors who have not learned much about Science (namely Physics), and give school groups the opportunity to observe and become involved with experiments that might help to understand otherwise hard to grasp physics concepts; on the other side, to restore, preserve and study the historical instruments, models, drawings and other related objects, showcasing them, whenever possible, in exhibitions and outreach activities.
A broad description of our work at the Museum, in the past two decades, will be given here, with special highlight to some of our challenges and achievements.

Functional Derivatives and Analogues of Nucleosides and Nucleic Acids

The talk will cover our work on functionalised nucleic acid based systems. The oligomers can be tagged with fluorescent (e.g. anthracene) or redox-active (e.g. ferrocene) groups for medical sensing applications and in particular for reading out single base changes in target strands for the detection of diseases with a genetic component, e.g. cancer. The origins and reasons behind the observed sensing responses will be discussed. The talk will also cover the use of derivatives of some ferrocene tag as nucleoside mimics for use as potential organometallic anticancer agents.

Recent studies on structural, magnetic and chiroptical properties of trinuclear paddlewheel complexes

Polynuclear paddlewheel complexes – also known in the literature as “extended metal atom chains” [1] or “metal strings” [2] – are examples of linear clusters characterized by their short intermetallic distances. These metal-metal interactions, often considered as formal metal-metal bonds, typically give rise to delocalized systems, where unpaired electrons are shared over all the metal sites. This feature poses a challenge in the understanding of their electronic structure, but also opens new avenues in molecular magnetism, chirality and single-molecule conductivity.
An overview of our work of the last five years in the synthesis and characterization of trinuclear paddlewheel complexes will be presented. Topic include a discussion of the unusual plasticity found in the trimetal core, and its influence on the electronic and magnetic properties of trichromium and tricobalt complexes, as well as recent work in the enantiomeric resolution of such complexes and their remarkably intense chiroptical signals [3,4].

[1] J. F. Berry in Multiple Bonds between Metal Atoms, 3rd ed., F.A. Cotton, C.A. Murillo, R. A. Walton, Eds., Springer: New York, NY, USA, 2005; p. 699.
[2] S. A. Hua, M. C. Cheng, C.-h. Chen, S.-M. Peng, Eur. J. Inorg. Chem. 2015, 2510.
[3] A. Srinivasan, M. Cortijo, V. Bulicanu, et al. Chem. Sci. 2018, 9, 1136.
[4] V. Pérez, A. Naim, E. A. Hillard, P. Rosa, M. Cortijo, Polymers 2018, 10, 311.

Putting the “Quantum” in Technology

Small, commercial quantum computers are available for purchase today. Large-scale quantum computers, as well as other quantum technologies are actively being developed commercially. These technologies include quantum batteries, sensors and engines. We are developing  the theoretical framework for these machines in the quantum regime and have proven that they have the ability to outperform  (i.e., show a “quantum advantage” over) their classical analogues. In this colloquium-style talk, I will discuss how various quantum technologies exploit quantum correlations to achieve this advantage.  I will focus on quantum batteries and quantum thermal machines as examples of technologies achieving quantum advantage, and I will explain their working principles with examples.

The myriad impacts of public engagement on tertiary education; including smoothing the transition from secondary to tertiary education

Public engagement, often referred to as Outreach, should not be an optional extra for research active staff and should not be the preserve of communication experts only. In this talk we chart the myriad impacts of public engagement following the establishment of the Bristol ChemLabS Centre for Excellence in Teaching and Learning. Crucial to the success of the Bristol ChemLabS public engagement programme was the appointment of a School Teacher Fellow (and we will discuss their impact on smoothing the transition from secondary to tertiary education) and a well-trained cadre of postgraduate (and undergraduate) students. However, the key ingredient was a proactive senior management team. Examples of impact include; direct impact on research, enhancement and improvement of teaching, the Dynamic Laboratory Manual, postgraduate employability, wider stakeholder involvement in the School of Chemistry, impact on grant success and widening the type of grants applied for and received, engaging administrative staff, national and international awards and many more.

Martian Death Rays

Cosmic radiation represents a pervasive field of energetic particles throughout the cosmos.  Solar energetic particles (SEP) are produced by events like coronal mass ejections, and galactic cosmic rays (GCR) are accelerated to even higher energies by supernova throughout the galaxy. On the Earth’s surface, we are protected from this bombardment of energetic particle radiation by the geomagnetic field, and the absorbing depth of our thick atmosphere.  But beyond this protective cocoon, cosmic radiation is a primary hazard to long-duration crewed space missions, as well as potential life on other planets and moons. This ionising radiation field can inactivate populations of microbial cells, and subsequently act to even erase many of the biosignatures – relic evidence of their past existence – which we may hope to detect with our exploration probes. The search for life, past or present, in the unshielded martian surface may well be frustrated by the long-term action of the cosmic radiation flux.

Lewis Dartnell is a researcher and Professor of Science Communication at the University of Westminster. His research is in the field of astrobiology and the search for microbial life on Mars, studying the survival limits of hardy ‘extremophile’ microorganisms and how best to detect them with instruments on our robotic probes. He graduated from Oxford University with a degree in Biological Sciences and completed his PhD at University College London in 2007. Alongside his research he is active in science communication, and has published four books.

Dynamic behaviour in metal-organic frameworks

Abstract:

The primary applications of metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) are often proposed to be in gas storage and separation, and they are indeed highly promising crystalline microporous materials with potential to act as rapid uptake/release sorbents for important gases such as CO₂, H₂ and CH₄. However, increasingly the more niche, specialised properties and functions of well-designed MOFs are gaining traction. A crucial aspect of any advanced study on MOFs is the use of a wide variety of analytical techniques to study the behaviour of both the frameworks and their guests. This talk will briefly describe examples of some of these techniques, including synchrotron-based experiments, and specifically highlight the area of photoresponsive MOFs, describing examples of the different strategies to incorporate and perhaps exploit light-induced structural changes in framework materials.

Details TBC

Crystal Flow: understanding and controlling crystalline materials; 2pm, Ingram Lecture Theatre, Ingram Building, Canterbury Campus

Abstract:
Crystals are used in a vast range of applications, including pharmaceuticals, smartphones and insulation, where efficiency is often related to the crystal structure. For example, when a more stable crystalline form of the HIV/AIDs drug, Ritonavir, began to appear in factories, the original and more soluble (directly related to how well it is taken up into the body) crystalline form could not be produced. This meant that it had to be removed from the market whilst a new formulation was devised.
Crystallising in flow environments can allow for control over the resultant material not achievable in standard methods.1 Flow crystallisation has seen a surge of innovation in the past five years with a range of research lab-accessible milli-scale crystallisers developed.2,3 Employing varied flow crystallisers we have accessed a range of crystal attributes such as crystalline form (polymorph), particle size and shape control.4,5
The next evolutionary step in crystallisation control has been realised in the adaptation of a bespoke liquid-segmented crystalliser (KRAIC) for in-situ X-Ray analysis on the high resolution powder beamline (I11) at Diamond Light Source. The on-line structural information gained from this platform can help us to understand the crystallisation process as it is happening and therefore design more efficient routes to more efficacious materials.

1. K. Robertson, Chemistry Central Journal, 2017, 11:4
2. A. J. Alvarez, A. S. Myerson, Crystal Growth and Design, 2010, 10, 2219-2228
3. R. J. P. Eder, S. Schrank, M. O. Besenhard, E. Roblegg, H. Gruber-Woelfler, J. G. Khinast, Crystal Growth and Design, 2012, 12, 4733-4738
4. K. Robertson, A. R. Klapwijk, P.-B. Flandrin, C. C. Wilson, Crystal Growth and Design, 2016, 14, 4759-4764
5. K. Robertson,* P.-B. Flandrin, H. J. Shepherd, C. C. Wilson, Chemistry Today, 2017, 35 (1), 19-22

Semiconductor Optical Fibres: A New Platform for Nonlinear Optics?; 2pm, Ingram Lecture Theatre, Ingram Building, Canterbury Campus

Combined OSA Student Chapter Talk/SPS Colloquium

Abstract:
Silicon photonics is currently one of the largest growing areas of research, attracting considerable interest amongst both academic and industrial communities. The ability to incorporate the semiconductor functionality into the optical fibre geometry provides an important step towards the seamless integration of these two technologies, as well as opening up new application areas for optical fibre systems. This seminar will review recent progress in the emerging field of semiconductor optical fibres, highlighting the different materials and novel geometries that are available through this platform. Particular focus will be placed on our effort to characterize the nonlinear optical properties of the silicon core fibres from telecoms wavelengths up to the short-wave infrared, with the results being discussed in relation to future device development.

Path integrals over entangled states; 2pm, Ingram Lecture Theatre, Ingram Building, Canterbury Campus

Abstract:
Entanglement is fundamental to quantum mechanics. It is central to the EPR paradox and Bell’s inequality, and gives robust criteria to compress the description of quantum states. In contrast, the Feynman path integral shows that quantum transition amplitudes can be calculated by summing sequences of states that are not entangled at all. This gives a clear picture of the emergence of classical physics through the constructive interference between such sequences. Accounting for entanglement is trickier and requires perturbative and non-perturbative expansions.
We combine these two powerful and complementary insights by constructing Feynman path integrals over sequences of states with a bounded degree of entanglement. I will discuss the physical insights that such a construction affords.

Correlated States Near Pressure-Induced Instabilities; 2pm, Ingram Lecture Theatre, Ingram Building, Canterbury Campus

Abstract:
Many complex materials display an interesting interplay between structural and electronic instabilities, which can be studied effectively under applied pressure. If a continuous structural phase transition is suppressed to low temperatures, as in the quasi-skutterudite system (Sr/Ca)3(Ir/Rh)4Sn13 [1], low-energy vibrational excitations can arise that boost superconductivity and cause a linearly temperature dependent electrical resistivity. We report that the aperiodic high-pressure host-guest structure of elemental bismuth displays a similar phenomenology, suggesting significantly enhanced phonon spectral weight at low energies.

It is increasingly desirable to probe the electronic structure near pressure-induced quantum phase transitions directly and in detail. We have observed the electronic Fermi surface on the metallic side of a Mott insulating transition by high pressure quantum oscillation measurements in NiS2 [2]. Our results show that the Fermi surface remains large on approaching the Mott insulating state, consistent with Luttinger’s theorem, whereas the quasiparticle effective mass is strongly renormalised.

References
1. Goh et al. Phys. Rev. Lett. 114, 097002 (2015) 2. Friedemann et al. Sci. Rep. 6, 416 (2016)

From Molecules to Self-Assembly and Beyond; 2pm in Ingram Lecture Theatre, Ingram Building, Canterbury Campus

Inspired by nature’s ability to use small building blocks to form complex functional materials, we strive to understand and utilize such concepts to develop materials made of small biomolecules, which can be utilized for medical and optical applications. For example, self-assembling ultrashort peptides, which are able to form hydrogels, possess a great potential for medical applications. We demonstrate the use of such peptides for local drug delivery, and as template for the in situ synthesis of silver nanoparticles. Furthermore, positron emission tomography studies of these self-assembling peptides revealed their potential to selectively deliver anti-inflammatory drugs.

The talk will also discuss our efforts in utilizing the natural chiral pool to develop gold nanoparticles with chiroptical properties. Finally, examples of our work on small molecule activation and MOF chemistry will also be discussed.

Speakers Research Group

Extending Density Functional Theory (DFT) to finite temperatures to describe spintronics, refrigeration and permanent magnetic effects; 2pm in Ingram Lecture Theatre, Ingram Building, Canterbury Campus

The DFT-based Disordered Local Moment Theory of magnetic materials and its quantitative description of the temperature and field dependence of magnetic phase transitions will be discussed [1,2]. The intricate interplay between itinerant and more localised spin degrees of freedom leads to temperature dependent spin-polarised electronic structure and transport properties. How caloric effects for refrigeration can be estimated will be explained [3] and results for the magnetic properties of rare earth – transition metal magnets such as SmCo5 presented [4].

[1] B.L.Gyorffy et al., J.Phys. F 15, 1337, (1985).
[2] J.B. Staunton et al., Phys. Rev. B 89,054427, (2014).
[3] J. Zemen, E. Mendive-Tapia et al., Phys. Rev. B 95, 184438, (2017).
[4] C. Patrick et al., Phys. Rev. Materials 1, 024411, (2017).

Speakers Profile

Applications of Machine Learning to Asteroid Shape Modelling — conclusions from NASA Frontier Development Lab; 2pm in Ingram Lecture Theatre, Ingram Building, Canterbury Campus

This summer I was involved in the NASA Frontier Development Lab, an intense 8-week study concentrated on tackling topics important to NASA using machine learning tools. During the programme interdisciplinary teams of early career researchers were looking at issues related to planetary defence, space weather, and space resources. The team I was a part of investigated shape modelling of near-Earth asteroids from radar data. These asteroids are the Earth’s closest neighbours in space, most accessible by space flight and with a potential for causing a threat to the planet. Even though they are constantly monitored, detailed characteristics, like shapes and sizes, are available for only a selected few. Physical models are required to successfully plan spacecraft missions and set up impact mitigation strategies. Additional incentive is in learning know how our space environment works and evolves. Reconstructing asteroid shapes and spins from radar data is, like many inverse problems, a computationally intensive task. Shape modelling also requires extensive human oversight to ensure that computational methods find physically feasible results. In this talk I will discuss the results of our work at NASA Frontier Development Lab 2017, exploring the application of machine learning tools to the shape modelling task.

From Batteries to Solar Cells: Atomic-Scale Insights into Energy Materials
Royal Society of Chemistry Award Lecture; 2pm in Keynes Lecture Theatre 5, Keynes College, Canterbury Campus

For the next generation of clean energy technologies, the development of new materials is crucial. This talk highlights (with the aid of 3D specs) the use of advanced modelling and structural techniques to gain new insights into the chemistry of materials for lithium-ion batteries and perovskite solar cells.

Lecture Title: The growing number of (new) star clusters in the Magellanic System; 4pm in Room 110, Ingram Building, Canterbury Campus

The adventure of catching up with new stellar clusters in the Magellanic System has been recently fueled from the ongoing relatively deep and extensive photometric surveys. Particularly, the presence of stellar clusters in the periphery of the Magellanic Clouds and beyond is currently an exciting issue. We present here a review of recently discovered stellar clusters in the Magellanic System. Particularly, we focus on the use of a wealth of wide-field high-quality images released in advance to the astronomical community. Additionally, we will show the performance of searching techniques for new stellar cluster candidates using suitable kernel density estimators for appropriate ranges of cluster radii and stellar densities.

Speaker Profile

2015-2016 (Summer term)

2015-2016 (Spring vacation)