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Director's Message
Dear Colleagues,
I'm delighted to share that James Munro, who completed Honours with us last year and was awarded the AIP's Thomas H Laby Medal for the best Honours thesis in physics in Australia, has been selected as a 2027 Rhodes Scholar. James will take up his scholarship at the University of Oxford, where he will study mathematical physics. The Rhodes is one of the most competitive scholarships in the world, and this is a wonderful recognition of James's talent and hard work. Congratulations to James, and to his supervisors, lecturers and everyone in the School who has supported him along the way. We look forward to seeing where this takes him.
This week's research highlight comes from the Department of Fundamental and Theoretical Physics. PhD student Oleg Kameshkov, working with Dr Vladlen Shvedov, Dr Yana Izdebskaya and Prof Ilya Shadrivov, has published a paper in Optics & Laser Technology. The team used a nanosecond laser with precise pulse control to directly cut freestanding aluminium-foil polarisers for terahertz light. The benefit is speed: a 20 mm polariser can be made in about 15 seconds! And because the polarisers need no supporting substrate, they avoid the unwanted reflections that distort terahertz measurements. The team expects further refinements to bring performance in line with commercial devices, offering a fast and low-cost route to terahertz optics. You can read the paper here. Congratulations Oleg, Ilya and the team. If you would like your work featured as a future research highlight, submissions can be made here, or feel free to email me directly.
Just to let you know that nominations for the CoSM awards close at 11:55pm on Sunday 15 November, less than two weeks away (more information can be found below).
This reminded me of an action item from the last Physics Executive meeting, which was to call for expressions of interest to form a School nominations committee. Essentially, I would like us to nominate more of our people for awards, and a dedicated committee was suggested as one way to make sure their achievements are recognised. I'm keen to have people at a range of career stages, and it would be good to include a professional and a technical staff member so that this important part of the School is represented too. If you are interested, to be part of this new school committee for Award Nominations please email me by the end of this week (Friday 6 November).
Jodie |
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College of Science and Medicine Awards for Service
The College of Science and Medicine Awards for Service recognise the achievements, successes and contributions of our colleagues and celebrate the positive impact individuals and teams have on the School, College and University community.
Nominations can be made online and close at 11:55pm on Sunday 15 November. |
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Dark Matter in the Pub 2026 – A Great Success in Canberra!
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Last Friday, the science outreach event Dark Matter in the Pub brought science to the pub at Badger & Co on ANU’s Kambri campus. The event attracted around 60 visitors, with an impressive 45 participants engaging in the pub quiz and an interactive dark matter demonstration tool.
ANU researchers Zuzana Slavkovska, Lindsey Bignell, Cedric Simenel, and Roland Crocker entertained the audience with A Halloween Special: Three Cosmic Horror Stories inspired by the SABRE dark matter experiment, shared tales of Things I’ve Broken in the Lab, explored How to Fail the Pub Test, and even performed the Dark Matter Blues.
Theresa Fruth from the University of Sydney discussed a puzzling event observed by the LZ dark matter experiment in her talk One Event to Puzzle Them All: Dark Matter or Fluke?, while Kyle Leaver from Adelaide University took the audience on a journey through A Brief History of Dark Matter and the Universe.
The evening also featured an interactive demonstration of galaxy rotation and dark matter, developed and presented by Ben TW, giving visitors a hands-on opportunity to explore the fascinating effects of dark matter on galaxies, that can be accessed using the attached QR code, or directly here.
With enthusiastic audience participation, lively discussions, and plenty of science-inspired entertainment, Dark Matter in the Pub 2026 was a great success, bringing cutting-edge dark matter research to the public in a relaxed and engaging atmosphere. |
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2026 Science Policy Forum
Are you interested in how scientific research can help build a better Australia? The Science Policy Forum brings researchers, public servants and policy stakeholders together. Researchers will learn how policy is made and how scientific expertise supports it. It is also an opportunity network with public servants and break down barriers between research and policy.
The Science Policy Forum is jointly organised by STA, the Australian National University, and the Science Policy Fellows Alumni Network.
Date: Thurs 26 November 2026
Time: 2pm - 5pm
Venue: Conference Room 1.02, Sir Roland Wilson Building, 120 McCoy Circuit
Ticket Price: Complimentary
Dress Code: Business Casual
RSVP by Wednesday 11 November » read more
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2027 CSIRO Alumni Scholarship in Physics – Open For Applications
Applications are now open for the 2027 CSIRO Alumni Scholarship in Physics.
The $6,000 travel scholarship aims to connect the brightest young physicists or mathematicians to a leading research centre overseas or in Australia.
Research in physics and mathematics is fundamental for Australia's future. The founders of this scholarship know that early experience in leading overseas laboratories greatly benefits the graduate embarking on a research career and Australian science.
Apply Now
Applications close: Friday 27 November 2026 » read more
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iLAuNCH ANU Space Health Team Seeking Volunteers
Would you like to support space health research?
Researchers from the iLAuNCH ANU Space Health team are seeking volunteers aged 18-55 to participate in a study supporting the development of next-generation wearable health monitoring technologies for space medicine.
Participants will complete a short cycling exercise while wearing non-invasive sensors that measure bio-signals such as heart rate, temperature, blood flow and movement. The session takes less than one hour and will be conducted in the Leonard Huxley building. Participants will receive a $20 Coffee LAB voucher as thanks for their time.
To learn more or register your interest, contact SpaceHealth.physics@anu.edu.au or complete the study sign-up form: Space Health Bio-signal Study Sign Up Form. Eligibility criteria apply. |
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College Hot Desking In Physics
HR, RM & Finance Teams
Thursday Mornings
Lv2 Tearoom, Bldg 160 |
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University Travel
- When booking travel for any type of University business, it is mandatory to use ATPI - » read more
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Director's Colloquium - 4 November
Why foundational AI matters to Australia - Professor Simon Lucey » read more
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Distinguished Lecture - 11 November
Exotic astrophysics with the Global Network of Optical Magnetometers for Exotic physics searches (GNOME) - Professor Derek F. Jackson Kimball » read more
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Know your administrators...
Nikki Azzopardi, Belinda Barbour, Petra Rickman & Holly Zervos » read more
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Know your HDR Convenors...
Dr Michaela Froehlich
Dr Lilli Sun
Dr Andrew Kingston
Dr Ksenia Maximova
HDR Convenors
A/Prof Vanessa Robins
Associate Director HDR |
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Know your Student Reps...
Lingxiao Li, Lakshmi Raja, Sheil Sequeira, Luke Johnstone, Taskil Dastoor & Noah Baldwin
hdrsreps.physics@anu.edu.au |
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Research Opportunities Funding Portal
Explore current and upcoming grants, funding opportunities, and a curated collection of forms, templates, and resources to support your research journey.
Addtional information on the Horizon Europe program, including how to become an expert evaluator as recommended by Nishant Shandilya from Euraxess, has been included on this page. » read more
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HR Support For CoSM SharePoint
The People and Culture division have re-aligned work within functional teams to improve consistency and quality of advice across the University. » read more
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