Physics PhD student wins thesis prize
An Edinburgh PhD student has been awarded first place in a national thesis competition.
Ioan-Bogdan Magdau, who is from Baia Mare in Transylvania, Romania, won the prestigious Computational Physics Group Thesis Prize.
The award is presented annually by the Institute of Physics to the author of the PhD thesis that contributes most strongly to the advancement of computational physics.
It was open to all PhD students graduating from the UK and Ireland between January 2016 and April 2017.
Hydrogen study
Working with Professor Graeme Ackland in the School of Physics and Astronomy, Ioan developed codes and methods to relate quantum mechanical calculations of solid hydrogen to experimental measurements.
Although the hydrogen atom is easy to understand theoretically, when pressurised into a liquid or solid state it becomes complicated.
In nature, this type of matter forms the core of large planets like Jupiter and Saturn, and is responsible for the planets’ large magnetic fields.
Scientific society
The Institute of Physics is a leading scientific membership society working to advance physics for the benefit of all.
It has a worldwide membership, from enthusiastic amateurs to those at the top of their fields in academia, business, education and government.
I am honoured to receive the recognition of the Computational Physics Group within the Institute of Physics. This award speaks not only to my hard work but also to the dedication of my advisor, Professor Graeme Ackland, and to the excellence of research conducted at the University of Edinburgh.