Department of Chemistry

The research in my research group focuses on the numerical exploration of routes to design novel, self-assembling structures and materials. In particular, I am interested in the possibilities that bio-molecular recognition and motor action offer to create complex, nano-structured materials.

The main aspects of the research are

• Develop novel Monte Carlo techniques to predict the thermodynamic stability of complex structures (e.g. DNA-coated colloids – fig 1).
• Explore novel dynamical simulation techniques to predict the rate at which novel structures form from a meta-stable parent phase (e.g. crystal nucleation – fig 2).
• Quantify the disorder in granular packings.
• Coarse-grained models for molecular motors.