QUB - School of Mathematics and Physics

Congratulations to Dr Holly Huddleston, who successfully defended her PhD on Friday, 7th August 2026.
Title: Towards Extreme Light via High Harmonic Generation in the Relativistic Regime
Supervisor: Dr Mark Yeung
Picture:
Left: Prof Paul McKenna, External Examiner, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, UK
Middle: Dr Holly Huddleston
Right: Dr Satya Kar, Internal Examiner
Not pictured: Dr Ernst de Mooij, Independent Convenor

🌞 Witness a once-in-a-century celestial event!

On Wednesday 12 August, Northern Ireland will experience an incredible 93% partial solar eclipse – the best eclipse coverage we'll see for the next 100 years.

Join the Astrophysics Research Centre at Queen's University Belfast on the front lawn of the Lanyon Building from 6:00pm to 8:30pm for a free public viewing event. Free eclipse glasses will be provided, along with expert guidance on viewing the eclipse safely.

📅 Eclipse begins: ~6:10pm
🌑 Maximum eclipse: Shortly after 7:00pm
☀️ Ends: Shortly after 8:00pm

⚠️ Never look directly at the Sun without proper eclipse glasses.
Please complete the form in the link below for more information and to help us estimate likely attendance numbers:

http://go.qub.ac.uk/PartialEclipse2026

Partial Solar Eclipse Photo Credit: ESA/Royal Observatory of Belgium See less

Congratulations to Dr Asish Philip Monai, who successfully defended his PhD on Tuesday, 28th July 2026.
Title: Data-driven classification and population studies of evolved helium stars using large spectroscopic surveys
Supervisor: Prof Simon Jeffery
Picture:
Left to right:
Dr Ingrid Pelisoli, External Examiner, Warwick University, UK
Dr Asish Philip Monai
Prof Simon Jeffery, Supervisor
Dr Stefano Bagnulo, Internal Examiner
Not pictured: Prof Dermot Green, Independent Convenor

Here's some news that's out of this world - we've helped discover a rare new planet!

Our scientists from the QUB - School of Mathematics and Physics led an international team in the discovery of NGTS-38 b, an exoplanet larger than Jupiter that orbits a distant star beyond our solar system every 180 days.

Find out more about this incredible discovery here: ow.ly/mwOj50Zofks

Congratulations to Dr Temour Foster, who successfully defended his PhD on Friday, 10th July 2026.
Title: Laser-driven positron sources for industrial and fundamental science applications
Supervisor: Prof Gianluca Sarri
Picture:
Left: Prof Stewart Boogert, External Examiner, University of Manchester and Cockroft Institute, UK
Middle: Dr Temour Foster
Right: Prof Marco Borghesi, Internal Examiner
Not pictured: Dr Karen Cairns, Independent Convenor

Congratulations to Dr Brendan Loughran, who successfully defended his PhD on Wednesday, 8th July 2026.
Title: Automated Optimisation of a Laser-Driven Proton Accelerator
Supervisor: Dr Charlotte Palmer
Picture:
Left: Dr Kate Lancaster, External Examiner, University of York, UK
Centre: Dr Brendan Loughran
Right: Dr Mark Yeung, Internal Examiner
Not pictured: Dr Solveig Felton, Independent Convenor

Congratulations to Dr Teerawit Laosombut, who successfully defended his PhD on Wednesday, 1st July 2026.
Title: Non-Thermal Plasma Discharges for Cracking Liquid Hydrocarbons and Hydrogen Production
Supervisor: Dr Tom Field
Picture:
Top: Dr Teerawit Laosombut
Bottom left: Prof David Riley, Internal Examiner
Bottom right: Dr Jean-Paul Booth, External Examiner, Ecole Polytechnique, Paris, France
Not pictured: Dr Hannah Mitchel, Independent Convenor

Congratulations to Dr Peter Parsons, who successfully defended his PhD on Friday, 12th June 2026.
Title: Laser-driven Proton Beam Propagation and Focusing in Low-density Plasmas
Supervisor: Dr Charlotte Palmer
Picture:
Left: Dr Satya Kar, Internal Examiner
Centre: Dr Peter Parsons
Right: Prof Jörg Schreiber, External Examiner, Ludwig-Maximilians Universität München, Germany
On Screen: Dr Gareth Tribello, Independent Convenor

Deadline to register now extended to 5th June!

🔬 The Institute of Physics is offering a FREE “Bargain Basement Physics” workshop for primary and post-primary teachers—helping bring physics to life using simple, low-cost materials.
📅 15 June | 📍 Stranmillis University College
👉 Register before 22 May: https://www.smartsurvey.co.uk/s/V78ZLM/