Monthly Archives: March 2016

30Mar/16

SEPnet Outreach is looking for an Evaluator for Shattering Stereotypes

SEPnet is looking for an evaluator for Shattering Stereotypes, their pilot project tacking the gender stereotyping problem found in schools, specifically the choice of GCSE subjects. The pilot is running through the 2016 / 17 academic year, but we would like the evaluator to join the team as early as possible.

Details for the project, including the project plan, can be found here.

The evaluation brief can be found here.

SEPnet Outreach will accept proposals up to £7,000 which should include any travel expenses and VAT if applicable. Any proposed budgets above this amount should be justified within the proposal. Deadline for proposals is Wednesday 13 April 2016.

Contact
Please contact Dominic Galliano on 0207 882 5063 /  07702 363 731 or d.galliano@qmul.ac.uk if you would like any further information.

17Mar/16

Partnerships in multidisciplinary studies of disordered materials and biomaterials – April 15

logo-kent-uniThe University of Kent is holding a one day meeting in Canterbury on 15 April which is titled “Partnerships in multidisciplinary studies of disordered materials and biomaterials”.  It will include several keynote talks by physicists on materials.  The meeting is also in honour of the retirement of our Kent colleague Prof. R.J. Newport.

Please note the booking deadlines of 10 April for the dinner and 13 April for the day of talks).  Booking is via the following  website: http://store.kent.ac.uk/browse/extra_info.asp?compid=1&modid=1&deptid=29&catid=156&prodvarid=195&searchresults=1

The programme is as follows:

“Partnerships in multidisciplinary studies of disordered materials and biomaterials”

A one day meeting celebrating the scientific career of Prof. R.J. Newport
Organised by the School of Physical Sciences, University of Kent

Date: Friday 15 April 2016

Venue: Cathedral Lodge, The Precincts, Canterbury, Kent CT1 2EH

Website: will be via News on http://www.kent.ac.uk/physical-sciences/
Programme:
9:30-9:45 Welcome coffee
9:45-10:00 Prof. Mark Burchell, Dean of Sciences (University of Kent) Introductory remarks
10:00-10:30 Dr. Silvia Ramos, Head of Functional Materials Group (University of Kent) “X-ray studies of disordered materials”
10:30-11:00 Prof. Robert McGreevy, Director (ISIS Pulsed Neutron Source) “Neutron studies of disordered materials”
11:00-11:30 Morning coffee
11:30-12:10 Prof. Mark Smith, Vice Chancellor (Lancaster University) “Multi-technique studies of sol-gels”
12:10-12:50 Prof. Julian Jones, Prof. of Biomaterials (Imperial College London) “Sol-gel biomaterials”
12:50-1:30 Prof. Jonathan Knowles, Prof. of Biomaterials Science (University College London) “Phosphate glass biomaterials”
1:30-2:30 Lunch
2:30-3:00 Dr. Neil Pratt, Head of Light Sources & Neutrons Division
(Science and Technology Facilities Council) “Steering central facilities”
3:00-3:30 Prof. Alan Chadwick, Prof. of Physical Chemistry (University of Kent) “Heritage science”
3:30-4:00 Dr. Vicky Mason, Director of Outreach (University of Kent) “Reaching the next generation”
4:00-4:30 Afternoon coffee
4:30-5:00 Dr. Jacqui Cole, Head of Molecular Engineering
(University of Cambridge and ISIS Pulsed Neutron Source) “Multi-technique studies of phosphate glasses”
5:00-5:30 Dr. Gavin Mountjoy, Reader in Condensed Matter Physics (Kent) “Modelling of silicate and phosphate glasses”
5:30-5:45 Prof. Bob Newport, Professor of Materials Physics (Kent) Concluding remarks
To be followed by an evening dinner in the Cathedral Lodge.

08Mar/16

SEPnet and WISE celebrate International Women’s Day with inspiring careers case studies of women in physics

SEPnet and WISE are running a joint project to encourage more girls to consider careers with physics.

Research conducted by WISE in the Not for people like me report found that talking about scientists and engineers, and what they do, often doesn’t attract girls. Instead, allowing girls to look at the sort of person they are and how their attributes correspond to roles in these sectors does.

Click here to read about a range of women in physics who completed a survey of professional types to find out more about their careers and how they got to where they are now.

Visit https://www.wisecampaign.org.uk/about-us/wise-projects/people-like-me to find out more about this project and how you can get involved.

 

02Mar/16

GRADnet Strong Correlations Workshop 17-19 April 2016

Date:  17-19 April 2016 (arrival at 12:00 on Sunday afternoon)

Venue and Accommodation:  Old Thorns Manor Hotel, Longmoor Rd, Griggs Green, Liphook, Hampshire GU30 7PE. For directions see here. All accommodation and meals are prepaid and covered by SEPnet.  Reasonable travel expenses will be covered by SEPnet and can be claimed through your GRADnet Administrator at your institution.

To register: here , deadline Friday, 26 March 2016 (Logon to the VRE first)

No two researchers would ever completely agree on the definition of a strongly correlated system; however they may very roughly be described as materials where the correlations between electrons induced by interactions make the behaviour of the material `interesting’.

This interactive two-and-a-half day residential workshop is designed for PhD students who would benefit from learning more about this subject. The course will consist of three short lecture courses of three lectures each, covering both the theoretical concepts necessary to understand strongly correlated systems, as well as how one would probe them experimentally. The course will be self-contained, assuming only a knowledge of quantum mechanics and undergraduate level solid state physics. It should therefore be beneficial to students working on both theoretical and/or experimental projects.

In addition to the lectures, the workshop will have tutorials with question sheets relating to the lectures, which is also an opportunity to ask many questions and continue further discussions with all of the lecturers. There will also be a poster session, some evening seminars, and a skills session focussing on scientific communication.

For any more information, please contact Sam Carr (s.t.carr@kent.ac.uk).

Lecture Courses:

1. The unstable Fermi Gas — Jorge Quintanilla (Kent)
This course will introduce the concepts and formalism central to many body physics, covering topics such as second quantisation, the Fermi liquid, mean field theories, and correlations.

2. Non-Fermi liquids — Anna Posazhennikova (RHUL)
This course will continue on from the first, and demonstrate some of the fascinating states that may occur when Fermi-liquid theory breaks down but without forming an ordered state; examples include the Kondo-effect, quantum criticality, and heavy Fermion materials.

3. Probes of Condensed Matter — Silvia Ramos (Kent)
This course will cover a few of the common techniques used to experimentally probe condensed matter systems; and show how these techniques reveal the correlations and other theoretical aspects discussed in the other two courses.

This workshop contributes 10 hours towards physics skills training.

The full agenda is here: 2016 GRADnet Strongly Correlated Workshop Timetable