Thesis Summaries

Here follows a list of recent PhD theses from the MCMP group.

2023 - John Fullerton

Supervisors: Dr D. MacLaren & Dr. Amalio Fernández-Pacheco

Three-dimensional magnetic textures in strongly coupled cylindrical nanowires

2023 - Hugh Littlehailes

Supervisors: Dr F. Huang (QUB) & Dr D. MacLaren

Alternative plasmonic materials and techniques for high temperature application and beyond

2023 - Rebecca Cummings

Supervisors: Dr I. MacLaren

Using Electron Energy Loss Spectroscopy to investigate the structure of the mirror coatings of gravitational wave detectors

2022 - Frederic Rendell-Bhatti

Supervisors: Dr D. MacGrouther

Manipulation and exploitation of the dynamic processes of Skyrmions

2022 - Alistair Doye

Supervisors: Dr I. MacLaren

Studies of the local atomic ordering in nanostructured amorphous materials using advanced scanning transmission electron microscopy techniques

2021 - Jack Brennan

Supervisors: Dr D. MacLaren

Fabrication, characterisation, and analysis of plasmonic noble metal nanostructures

2021 - Shane McCartan

Supervisors: Dr I. MacLaren & Prof. Marty Gregg (QUB)

Investigating structure and chemistry in functional ferroelectric ceramics via transmission electron microscopy

2021 - Liam Wright

Supervisors: Dr D. MacLaren & Prof. R. Bowman (Queen's University Belfast)

Mapping plasmon excitations in gold nanostructures using electron energy loss spectroscopy

2020 - Robert Webster

Supervisors: Dr D. MacLaren & Dr I. MacLaren

Precise nanoscale characterisation of novel Heusler thermoelectrics via analytical electron microscopy

2020 - Alison Cowan

Supervisors: Prof. S. McVitie & Prof. R. Bowman (Queen's University Belfast)

Observation and characterisation of magnetisation ripple using Lorentz transmission electron microscopy

2020 - Gavin Macauley

Supervisors: Prof. R. Stamps & Prof. S. McVitie

Skating on spin ice: On the application of Lorentz microscopy and numerical techniques to characterise phase transitions and non-equilibrium phenomena in artificial spin ices

2019 - Kayla Fallon

Supervisors: Prof. S. McVitie Dr D. MacLaren & Dr T. Almeida

A Lorentz microscopy study of chiral magnetic textures stabilised in thin films by an interfacial Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction

2019 - Louise Desplat

Supervisors: Prof. R. Stamps & Prof. S. McVitie

Thermal stability of metastable magnetic skyrmions

2019 - Hafizah Noor Isa

Supervisors: Dr. I. MacLaren & Prof. S. Rowan

Towards reliable quantification of mixed oxide coating for LIGO using DualEELS

2018 - Yue Li

Supervisors: Prof. S McVitie & Prof. R Stamps

Dynamic magnetism and magnetisation topology in artificial spin ice

2018 - Bianca Sala

Supervisors: Dr. I. MacLaren & Dr. D. McGrouther

Scanning transmission electron microscopy characterisation of carbide precipitates in steel

2018 - Monifa Phillips

Supervisors: Dr D MacLaren & Dr I MacLaren

Spectroscopic investigation of resistive switching mechanisms in pulsed laser deposited metal-oxide thin films

2019 - Ray Lamb

Supervisors: Dr. D. McGrouther & Prof. S McVitie

Exploring methods for imaging dynamics in transmission electron microscopy

2018 - Kirsty Annand

Supervisors: Dr. I. MacLaren & Dr. D. MacLaren

The nanoscale mechanisms of Zircaloy-4 corrosion in simulated nuclear reactor conditions

2017 - Scott Smith

Supervisors: Dr D MacLaren & Prof. R Stamps

Electrons as Probes of Chiral Materials‌

2017 - Matúš Krajňák

Supervisors: Dr S. McVitie & Dr. D McGrouther

Advanced detection in Lorentz microscopy : pixelated detection in differential phase contrast scanning transmission electron microscopy‌

2017 - Jalal Salih

Supervisors: Dr I MacLaren & Prof. R Stamps

Quantitative atomic resolution characterisation of internal interfaces in doped bismuth ferrite‌

2016 - Rair Macêdo

Supervisors: Prof. Robert Stamps & Prof. Tom Dumelow (Universidade do Estado do Rio Grande do Norte)

Tunable optical effects in natural hyperbolic magnetic media

2015 - Shabir Ravji

Supervisors: Dr. Damien McGrouther & Dr Ian MacLaren

Mechanisms of water vapour transport in polyimide thin films for applications in humidity sensing

2015 - Ciaran Ferguson

Supervisors: Dr. Stephen McVitie & Dr Donald MacLaren

Imaging spin textures in advanced magnetic nanostructures using Lorentz microscopy

2015 - Colin Greenshields

Supervisors: Prof. Robert Stamps & Dr Franke-Arnold

The diamagnetic angular momentum of an electron

2015 - Pablo Borys

Supervisor: Professor Robert Stamps

Effects of the Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction on spin waves in domain walls

2015 - Francisco José Trindade Gonçalves

Supervisor: Professor Robert Stamps

Engineering of demagnetisation fields in exchange biased antidots studied using ferromagnetic resonance and Lorentz microscopy

2015 - Aaron Naden

Supervisor: Dr Donald MacLaren and Professor Robert Stamps

Resolving Structure-Function Relations in Advanced Materials by Scanning Probe and Electron Microscopies

2015 - Pedro Miguel Raimundo Parreira

Supervisor: Dr Donald MacLaren and Dr Stephen McVitie

Nanocharacterisation of Zirconia base RRAM Devices Deposited via PLD

2015 - Marco Bigatti

Supervisor: Dr Ian MacLaren and Professor Robert Stamps

Quantitative studies of the structure and chemistry of materials at the nano- and atomic-scale

2013 - Robert Beacham

Supervisor: Dr Stephen McVitie and Dr Damien McGrouther

Application and development of advanced Lorentz microscopy techniques for the study of magnetic nanostructures

2013 - Keith Evans

Supervisor: Dr Ian MacLaren and Professor Sheila Rowan

Computational modelling of amorphous mirror coatings for use in advanced gravitational wave detectors

2013 - Martin King

Supervisor: Dr Donald A. MacLaren and Dr Malcolm Kadodwala

Spectroscopy and microscopy of transition metal chalcogenide nanomaterials

2013 - LiQiu Wang

Supervisor: Dr Ian MacLaren and Professor Alan Craven

Quantitative three dimensional atomic resolution characterisation of non-stoichiometric nanostructures in doped bismuth ferrite

2013 - Duc Quang Hoang

Supervisor: Dr Stephen McVitie and Dr Donald MacLaren

A study of tailored domain wall geometries in ferromagnetic nanowires using Lorentz microscopy (MSc thesis)

2012 - Fraser J Douglas

Supervisor: Dr Mark Murrie (School of Chemistry) and Dr Donald MacLaren

Synthesis and nanocharacterisation of magnetic nanoparticles: from cubes and spheres to octapods and wires

2011 - Eleonora Bellini

Supervisor: Dr Stephen McVitie

Characterisation of magnetic nanostructures for spintronic applications by electron microscopy

2011 - Riccardo Bassiri

Supervisor: Dr Ian MacLaren and Professor Sheila Rowan

The Atomic Structure and Properties of Mirror Coatings for use in Gravitational Wave Detectors

2011 - Mohammed Abdul Basith

Supervisor: Dr Stephen McVitie, Prof. John N. Chapman, Dr Damien McGrouther

A TEM investigation of patterned ferromagnetic nanostructures by lithographic techniques

2010 - Rafael Villaurrutia

Supervisor: Dr Ian MacLaren and Professor Alan Craven

Microstructure, nanostructure, and local crystallography in perovskite ferroelectrics and antiferroelectrics

2010 - Kerry O'Shea 

Supervisor: Professor John Chapman

Putting a leash on the domain wall: a TEM investigation into the controlled behaviour of domain walls in ferromagnetic nanostructures

2010 - Duc The Ngo 

Supervisor: Dr Stephen McVitie

Lorentz TEM characterisation of magnetic and physical structure of nanostructure magnetic thin films

2010 - Michael Finnie

Supervisor: Professor Alan J Craven, Dr Ian MacLaren and Dr Maureen MacKenzie

An interfacial study of III-V materials

2009 - Susan Turnbull 

Supervisor: Dr Stephen McVitie

Characterisation of focused ion beam nanostructures by transmission electron microscopy

2008 - Catriona McGilvery

Registered at Imperial College London but co-supervised by and spent 1 year of PhD at University of Glasgow

Supervisors: Professor David W McComb (Imperial College London) and Professor Alan J Craven

Nucleation and crystallisation of hafnium compounds and thin films

2007 - Gary Paterson

Supervisor: Professor Andrew Long

Capacitance voltage studies on gallium arsenide MOS systems

2007 - Craig Brownlie 

Supervisor: Dr Stephen McVitie

A TEM investigation of controlled magnetic behaviour in thin ferromagnetic films

2007 - Paolo Longo

Supervisor: Professor Alan J Craven

TEM studies of III-V MOSFETs for ultimate CMOS

2007 - Robin O'Neill

Supervisor: Dr Stephen McVitie and Professor John Chapman

Characterisation of micron sized ferromagnetic structures fabricated by focussed ion beam and electron beam lithography

2007 - Paul Robb

Supervisors: Professor Alan J Craven and Dr Stephen McVitie

The investigation of III-V semiconductors using SuperSTEM

2007 - Beverley R. Craig

Supervisors: Dr Stephen McVitie and Professor John N Chapman

Magnetic and physical characterisation of soft thin films for use in perpendicular recording heads

2007 - David Hamilton

Supervisors: Professor Alan J Craven and Dr David McComb

An investigation of the oxides and silicates of Hf and Zr

2006 - David A Eustace

Supervisors: Professor Alan J Craven and Dr David McComb

Spin polarisation effects in electron energy loss spectroscopy

2005 - Paula Harkins

Supervisors: Professor Alan J Craven and Dr David McComb

EELS and ELNES investigation of titanate and zirconate perovskites

2005 - Claire Collins

Supervisors: Professors Alan J Craven and Andrew R Long

Analytical electron microscopy of HSLA steels prepared using a Focused Ion Beam system

2004 - Damien McGrouther

Supervisors: Professor John N Chapman and Dr Stephen McVitie 

Effects of Focused Ion Bean irradiation on thin ferromagnetic films

2004 - Agne Kundrotaite

Supervisors: Professor John N Chapman and Dr Mahfuzur Rahman

Magnetisation processes in interacting element arrays and single layer films

2002 - Ewan Maclean

Supervisors: Professor Alan Craven and Dr David McComb

Valence losses at interfaces in aluminium alloys

2002 - Chee Lim

Supervisors: Dr Mahfuzur Rahman and Professor J N Chapman

Magnetisation reversal behaviour in advanced magnetic films

2001 - Susan Murdoch

Supervisor: Professor J N Chapman

Transmission electron microscopy study of advanced magnetic sensor films

2001 - Jamie Scott

Supervisor: Dr Stephen McVitie

Characterisation of MFM tip stray fields using Lorentz electron tomography

2001 - Frances Docherty

Supervisors: Professor Alan J Craven and Dr David W McComb

ELNES investigations of spinels

2001 - Tommy Munro

Supervisors: Professor Robert P Ferrier and Dr Stephen McVitie

The study of stray magnetic fields from digital recording heads for tape applications

2000 - Margit Herrman

Supervisors: Dr Stephen McVitie and Professor John N Chapman

Quantitative magnetic imaging of thin films with reduced dimensions

1999 - Andrew Gallagher

Supervisors: Professor Robert P Ferrier and Dr Stephen McVitie

Theoretical characterisation of magnetic force microscope tip stray fields

1999 - Jason King

Supervisor: Professor John N Chapman

An investigation of spin-valves and related films by TEM

1999 - Laura Christie

Supervisors: Professors Alan J Craven and John N Chapman

Domain processes of four magnetic thin film systems

1998 - Richard Lindsay 

Supervisors: Professors John N Chapman and Alan J Craven

TEM investigation of silicon devices

1998 - Zolton Borosfoldi 

Supervisor: Dr Andrew R Long

Surface gated quantum dots in shallow GaAs - AlGaAs heterostructures

1998 - Jackie Smith 

Supervisor: Dr Alan J Craven

Microcharacterisation of halogenated copper phthalocyanines using transmission electron microscopy

1998 - Pauline McHendry 

Supervisor: Dr Alan J Craven

TEM studies of the crystal growth of indanthrone pigments

1998 - John Rose 

Supervisor: Professor John N Chapman

Nanomagnetic and nanostructural studies of thin film magnetic systems

1997 - Maureen MacKenzie 

Supervisors: Dr Alan J Craven, Dr W A Patrick Nicholson, Dr P Hatto

Analytical electron microscopy of interfaces in cathodic arc coatings

1996 - Murray Gillies 

Supervisor: Professor John N Chapman

An investigation of the magnetic properties of spinvalves using transmission electron microscopy

1996 - Yan Liu 

Supervisor: Professor Robert P Ferrier

Electron beam tomography of recording head fields

1996 - Richard Neville 

Supervisor: Professor Robert P Ferrier

Micromagnetic and structural studies of CoPtCr longitudinal recording media

1996 - Lin Zhou 

Supervisor: Dr Stephen McVitie

Lorentz microscopy of MFM tips and related structures

1995 - Christopher Barton 

Supervisor: Dr Andrew R Long

Quantum wires in shallow heterostructures