Dr. Mike Finnis

Biography

Mike Finnis has over 40 years of experience in the field of theoretical condensed matter and materials science. He has held prestigious positions at notable institutions including Harwell Laboratory, Fritz-Haber-Institute in Berlin, and the Max-Planck-Institut für Metallforschung in Stuttgart. He previously served as a Professor of Atomistic Theory at Queen's University Belfast and is currently the Head of the Atomistic Simulation Centre at Imperial College London since January 2006. Finnis is a founding member of the Thomas Young Centre, which focuses on theoretical and simulation methods for materials science, and has served as both Director and Deputy Director. His primary research interest revolves around the connections between electronic structure and the behavior of atoms, thermodynamic functions, and the evolution of microstructures in materials. He is also an accomplished reviewer for agencies including the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) and Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft. Finnis has received several prestigious awards including the Born Medal in 2005 for his contributions to understanding interatomic forces, the Alexander von Humboldt Research Award in 2014, and the Mott Medal from the Institute of Physics in 2017. In 2021, he was elected as a Fellow of the Royal Society, and in 2022, he received the Dirac Medal from the Institute of Physics.

Research Interests