School of Physics and Astronomy

MSc Astrobiology and Planetary Sciences students visit Boulby Mine, the world's first subsurface astrobiology lab.

Students enrolled on the MSc degree in Astrobiology and Planetary Sciences have literally deepened their knowledge by descending a kilometre underground to explore life in extreme environments.

In December 2024, the students travelled to Boulby Mine, the location of the world's first subsurface astrobiology lab, established by the University of Edinburgh’s UK Centre for Astrobiology (UKCA) in 2013. 

The mission to the subsurface began with lectures on using mine facilities as analogues for extraterrestrial environments. The students then completed health and safety training and donned protective gear for the expedition underground.

Inside the mine, students practised sterile sampling methods and investigated salt mineral deposits similar to those found on Mars. They learned about geothermal heat, ionizing radiation, geology, and subsurface microbiology. A highlight was touring a Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) laboratory including dark matter and neutrino detectors. 

Salma Malaika, MSc Astrobiology and Planetary Sciences student said:

From just a few hours underground, I was able to gain an intuitive feel for what it means to be a researcher in an isolated world, and to truly see the beauty and intricacy behind conducting research in a challenging environment. My passion for the field—and admiration for researchers and staff—has only grown.

Andrew Wright, MSc Astrobiology and Planetary Sciences student commented:

Surrounded by halite crystals, 1000 meters below the surface, few things can compare. Being able to witness the frontier of dark matter and astrobiology research in person was astounding! It was like experiencing another world on Earth and was an experience I’ll never forget.

The immersive activity was part of MINAR (Mine Analog Research) which brings scientists and technologists together to use the Boulby underground laboratory to conduct science and test equipment in support of space exploration. This visit was made possible by the kind support of the STFC and ICL Boulby.

New research reveals that bacteria have evolved to help neighbouring cells after death.

A research team has made the surprising discovery that a type of gut bacteria has evolved to use one of their enzymes to perform an important function after death.

Darwin’s theory of natural selection provides an explanation for why organisms develop traits that help them survive and reproduce.

Because of this, death is often seen as a failure rather than a process shaped by evolution. 

When organisms die, their molecules need to be broken down for reuse by other living things. Such recycling of nutrients is necessary for new life to grow. 

Now a study led by Durham University and involving researchers from the Universities of Edinburgh and Oxford have shown that a type of E-coli bacteria produces an enzyme that breaks the contents of their cells down into nutrients after death. 

The dead bacteria thus offers a banquet of nutrients to the cells that were their neighbours when they were living.

Lead author, Professor Cann from Durham University said:

We typically think of death being the end, that after something dies it just falls apart, rots and becomes a passive target as it is scavenged for nutrients. But what this paper has demonstrated is that death is not the end of the programmed biological processes that occur in an organism. Those processes continue after death, and they have evolved to do so. That is a fundamental rethink about how we view the death of an organism.

Co-author Professor Wilson Poon, from the School of Physics and Astronomy of the University of Edinburgh, inspired the research after posing what he believed were some unanswered questions about why organisms die the way they do.

The researchers assembled and realised they had stumbled across a potentially new area of biology: processes that have evolved to function after death. 

Professor Cann said:

One problem remained; we couldn’t work out how an enzyme that functions after death could have evolved. Typically, we think of evolution acting on living organisms not dead ones. The solution is that neighbouring cells which gain nutrients from the dead cells are likely to be clonally related to the dead cell. Consequently, the dead cell is giving nutrients to its relatives, analogous to how animals will often help feed younger members of their family group.” 

Co-author Professor Stuart West of the University of Oxford added:

This is like nothing we have observed before – it is equivalent to a dead meerkat suddenly turning into a pile of boiled eggs that the other members of its group could eat.

The finding demonstrates that processes after death, like processes during life, can be biologically programmed and subject to evolution. 

Biomolecules that regulate processes after death might be exploited in the future as novel targets to bacterial disease or as candidates to enhance bacterial growth in biotechnology.

Professor Poon suggests that modelling such processes using the tools of statistical physics may also provide design principles for humans as we move towards a more circular economy in which recycling needs to be built in from the beginning.

The study has been published in the journal Nature Communications.

Training events hosted by physicists and astronomers empower Girl Guide leaders to inspire young girls in STEM through hands-on challenges and activities.

In an inspiring collaboration, Girl Guiding leaders are being equipped to bring the wonders of physics to young girls. Through two interactive training events, local Girl Guide Leaders learned how to deliver the exciting challenges and activities that form the ‘I am a Physicist’ badge.

‘I am a physicist’ Girlguiding badge

The ‘I am a physicist’ Girlguiding badge introduces girls to the world of physics in a fun and educational way. The badge is open to all Girlguiding sections and includes activities for the youngest 5 year old Rainbow to the oldest Ranger at age 18.

The challenges

In order to complete the ‘I am a physicist’ Girlguiding badge, girls have to undertake four challenges:

• Experience: engage in simple and fun activities that introduce basic ideas and build confidence in conducting experiments.
• Create: apply these ideas by making or building something practical and imaginative.
• Investigate: undertake experiments to explore the question ‘What happens if…?’
• Meet, visit, community: meet a physicist or visit a museum or science centre where they can see physics in action.

Training events for Girl Guide Leaders

In November 2024 and February 2025, 30 Girl Guide leaders attended workshops hosted by the School of Physics and Astronomy. Led by Dr David Fairhurst, with support from PhD students and staff from the Royal Observatory Edinburgh, these sessions provided leaders with hands-on experience of the badge activities, as well as resources and guidance on delivering them to their local groups.

Each leader left the workshop with a specially curated ‘goodie bag’ from the Royal Observatory Edinburgh, containing fun tools to inspire their girls. The training not only boosted the leaders’ confidence but also equipped them with practical resources to make physics engaging and accessible.

The training sessions received glowing reviews from attendees. One leader shared her enthusiasm:

That was such a fab afternoon, loads of fun and learning.  Great pizza and I can't believe the goodie bag. Would recommend to anyone if they do another. Thank you to all who organised.

Broader Impact

The ‘I am a Physicist’ badge was created by the East Midlands branch of the Institute of Physics (IOP) and has already reached over 50,000 participants across the UK and internationally. By fostering curiosity and confidence in physics, the initiative encourages young girls to envision themselves as scientists, engineers, and innovators of the future.

Thanks to the following who made the sessions possible:

• Sue Midgely, Girl Guiding Edinburgh, who provided some funding
• Deborah Phelps, Rolls Royce, Derby, Girl Guiding Nottinghamshire, and former Institute of Physics East Midlands
• Fiona Travers and Abi Ashton, Royal Observatory Edinburgh who provided goodie bag material
• Sammi Bowers, Institute of Physics Scotland, who provided some funding
• Eugénia Delacou, Larissa Palethorpe, Mariam Arif, PhDs student at the School of Physics and Astronomy.

Find out about the School of Physics and Astronomy MSc programmes.

MSc Astrobiology and Planetary Sciences

In this online session, Prof. Charles Cockell will talk about the MSc in Astrobiology and Planetary Sciences. Come along to find out more about programme structure, course options, projects, student experience and career opportunities.

The event will take place on Blackboard Collaborate and a link to join will be sent to those who sign up to attend.

Session details

Date: 19th February

Time: 3-4pm (UK time)

Book your place

MSc Particle and Nuclear Physics

In this online session, Prof. Christos Leonidopoulos will talk about the MSc in Particle and Nuclear Physics. Come along to find out more about programme structure, course options, projects, student experience and career opportunities.

The event will take place on Blackboard Collaborate and a link to join will be sent to those who sign up to attend.

Session details

Date: 23rd April

Time: 3-4pm (UK time)

Book your place

Professor Steve Tobias appointed Tait Chair of Mathematical Physics.

Professor Steve Tobias has been appointed the next Tait Chair of Mathematical Physics and will commence his post in June 2025.

Fluid dynamics

Professor Tobias’ research examines the dynamics of turbulent fluids and plasmas and their interaction with magnetic fields. Such interactions are important for our understanding of the behaviour of fluids in planets, stars and galaxies – but also in magnetically confined fusion devices. The interactions take place on a vast range of spatial and temporal scales and so novel mathematical and theoretical insights and computational methods are required for progress to be made. Recent progress has also utilised Machine Learning techniques to complement the theoretical progress.

Professor Tobias completed his PhD in Applied Mathematics in 1995 at DAMTP, Cambridge under the supervision of Professor Nigel Weiss FRS. He was then elected a Fellow of Trinity College, Cambridge in Mathematics in 1996, before 2 years as a postdoctoral research associate at the University of Colorado, Boulder, USA. In 2000 he moved to the Department of Applied Mathematics in Leeds, where he was Founding Director of the Leeds Institute for Fluid Dynamics in 2018.

Tait Chair of Mathematical Physics

The identification of Mathematical Physics as a discipline distinct from physics and mathematics in Edinburgh began in 1922 when the Tait Chair of Natural Philosophy was established using the Tait Memorial Fund endowment. The Chair was named after Peter Guthrie Tait, a close colleague of William Thomson and James Clerk Maxwell, and the intention was thus that it should be devoted to the teaching of mathematical physics. In 1966, it was renamed and is now called the Tait Chair of Mathematical Physics. Professor Tobias is the sixth holder of the Tait Chair, following Charles Galton Darwin (grandson of the eminent naturalist), Max Born, Nick Kemmer, David Wallace, and most recently Richard Kenway.

Professor Tobias said:

I am absolutely delighted and honoured to take up the Tait Chair in Mathematical Physics at the University of Edinburgh. The School of Physics and Astronomy in Edinburgh is one of the leading schools nationally and internationally, and it is a privilege to be asked to lead research and teaching in nonlinear dynamics, fluids and plasmas here. I am looking forward immensely to working with the exceptional colleagues and students at Edinburgh.

Congratulations to Gill Maddy, who works as a Staffing & EDI Officer in the School of Physics and Astronomy, and received a Staff Experience award at the inaugural College of Science and Engineering Staff Awards event last week.

Gill was nominated for the variety of work she carries out which has a positive impact on staff experience in the School. She leads a Parent and Carer network and has also established a Menopause Support network, raising awareness of menopause in the workplace. She often organises informal coffee and cake social gatherings to celebrate important events, to welcome new staff or simply to reinforce team spirit.

The College-wide event took place to celebrate some of the people who add incredible value to their School or department.

The Staff Experience award celebrates those who have positively impacted staff experience through initiatives or working practices to help improve staff wellbeing.  

Congratulations to Dr Franz Herzog who has received a European Research Council Consolidator Grant.

The European Research Council (ERC) has announced recipients of its 2024 Consolidator Grants. These grants aim to support outstanding scientists and scholars as they establish their independent research teams and develop their most promising scientific ideas. The funding is provided through the EU’s Horizon Europe programme.

Collider physics

Dr Herzog’s research interests focus on high-order perturbative calculations in Quantum Chromo Dynamics and its applications in collider physics.

The grant will be used to improve theoretical predictions for producing Higgs bosons, electroweak bosons, top quarks and jets as created in collisions at CERN's Large Hadron Collider. To accomplish these highly challenging calculations a novel methodology is proposed to develop asymptotic series expansions based on new insights in Feynman graph theory.

Recognising the outstanding work of PhD students.

The School awards annual prizes to postgraduate research students who have produced the best PhD thesis in each of the research areas. The prizes come with a cash award of £1000 (split if multiple winners). The prizes were awarded in 2024 for research work successfully defended in 2023.

Higgs Prize for the best PhD thesis in Theoretical Physics:

• Ivan Lobaskin (Condensed Matter and Complex Systems)

Institute of Astronomy PhD thesis prize joint winners:

• Ryan Begley
• Massi Hamadouche

Institute of Particle and Nuclear Physics PhD thesis prize joint winners:

• Jordan Marsh (Nuclear Physics)
• Matteo Sergola (Particle Physics Theory)

No prize was awarded for the best PhD thesis in the Institute of Condensed Matter and Complex Systems this year.

Many congratulations to all recipients.

Ion decay sheds light on solar neutrino flux.

Detecting neutrinos

The Sun, the life-sustaining engine of Earth, generates energy through nuclear fusion while releasing a continuous stream of neutrinos—particles that serve as messengers of its internal dynamics. Although modern neutrino detectors unveil the Sun’s present behaviour, significant questions linger about changes in the sun’s release of neutrinos over the course of its existence.

To address these uncertainties, the LORandite EXperiment (LOREX) stands as the final bastion of neutrino geochemical projects. This low-energy solar neutrino detector aims to measure solar neutrino flux averaged since the formation of the sun.

Ion decay

Neutrinos produced in our Sun interact with thallium (Tl) atoms, present in the lorandite mineral (TlAsS2), and convert them into lead (Pb) atoms. The isotope 205Pb is particularly interesting due to its long half-life time of 17 million years, making it essentially stable over the 4 million years timescale of the lorandite ore. As it is currently not feasible to directly measure the neutrino cross-section on 205Tl, researchers came up with a clever method to measure the relevant nuclear physics ingredients: they exploited the fact that fully ionized 205Tl81+ spontaneously decays by bound-state beta decay to 205Pb81+, delivering the information needed for the determination of the neutrino cross section.

The international team discovered that the half-life of 205Tl81+ beta decay was measured as 291 (+33/-27) days. The experiment was only possible thanks to the unique capabilities of the Experimental Storage Ring at GSI in Germany.

This achievement lays the nuclear physics foundation for the LOREX project, which aims to unlock insights into the Sun’s evolutionary history and its connection to Earth’s climate over millennia.

Dr Ragandeep Singh Sidhu, a key contributor to the study and the first author of the publication, highlighted its significance:

This experiment highlights how a single, albeit challenging, measurement can play a pivotal role in addressing significant scientific questions related to solar neutrinos.

The publication is dedicated to the memory of late colleagues Fritz Bosch, Roberto Gallino, Hans Geissel, Paul Kienle, Fritz Nolden, and Gerald J. Wasserburg, whose contributions were integral to the success of this project.

Congratulations to students who received medals, certificates, prizes and scholarships at the School’s Undergraduate and MSc Student Awards Ceremony.

Head of School Professor Philip Best and former Head of School Professor Jim Dunlop announced the awards in recognition of excellent performance and achievement from undergraduate and MSc students during the past two academic years.

Certificates & Medals

207 pre-honours students (years 1 & 2) received Certificates of Merit for outstanding marks in their pre-honours courses. Class Medals are awarded to individuals who received the highest overall mark for their degree programme, with 42 undergraduate and 8 MSc students in receipt of Class Medals.

Prizes and Scholarships

The School has a number of Prizes and Scholarships to award, including a prize for the best final year honours Astrophysics student and a prize for the fourth year student who attains the top mark across all programmes.  29 Prizes and Scholarships were awarded in total to the undergraduate students who achieved outstanding results in their subject area or year. 

Many congratulations to all recipients.