DrThomas McCormack

My research interests are in the atomic physics of laser produced plasmas (LPP), particularly in the time- and space-resolved development of the plasma. This work has been extended to include colliding LPPs, LPPs as a possible source in next generations EUV lithography, LiF based detectors and x-ray microscopy. I have been awarded over €750k in grants during my time in UCD based on these activities.

I am currently supervising an IRC-funded PhD student on modelling an x-ray microscope in collaboration with our industry partner SiriusXT. I am also co-supervising a PhD student investigating LPPs as sources for absorption spectra as a named investigator on the UCD component of the ERC Synergy project 101071865-HEAVYMETAL. This project investigates the origin of the heavy elements in the Universe when binary neutron stars merge, an event known as a kilonova. The UCD component is tasked with generating new fundamental atomic data for lowly-charged ions across much of the periodic table.

I have also been actively involved in physics education research (PER). I have initiated research into two projects with colleagues in the School of Physics and the School of Mathematics and Statistics: one investigating gender issues in STEM and the other on problem-based learning in the stage one teaching laboratory. Both have been submitted to teaching journals and are currently under review.

I have also worked in the development of novel LEDs where I specialised in the optical properties of micro-cavity emitters. I have one patent in this area and this device was later adopted by Hyundai as part of an in-car optical network.