The following is taken from Ian’s “A History of Condensed Matter Theory at RMIT”. He wrote this in the last months of his life,

What Have We Done Then??

(A subtle or none too subtle variation on Tolstoy?) 

The journey has been a long one so unfortunately unless I turn this section into a later day “Blue Hills by Gwen Meredith” I will have to summarize. This is a pity but a necessity I guess.

In the beginning it was theoretical and computational Colloid Science which has now become the fashionable area of Nanotechnology and has considerably expanded into other areas which I will attempt to remember.

Current Areas of Theory/Simulation

Over the years we have spanned a range of work in the area of condensed matter physics starting from the early days of colloid physics and now encompassing a wide range of areas in soft and hard condensed matter.

Here is a fading memory’s attempt to remember it all!

1. The MC simulation of the equilibrium properties of concentrated charged stabilizer suspensions
2. The MC simulation of the equilibrium properties of highly charged stabilized suspensions dilute suspensions and its relationship to Dynamic Light Scattering (DLS) experiments
3. Grand canonical Ensemble MC of electrolyte solutions and the electrical double layer
4. MC studies of the structure of dense liquid and fluid films in thin channels including capillary condensation, mainly Grand Canonical Ensemble MC.
5. Oscillating forces due to dense liquid and fluid films  in thin channels (GCEMD and approximate theories
6. The interpretation of Polymer light scattering
7. The development of the new Hybrid Reverse Monte Carlo Method (HRMC)
8. The interpretation of SAXS and SANS from porous solids, by fractal methods and by the development of the Hybrid Reverse Monte Carlo Method (HRMC)
9.  Nucleation and the characterisation of ordered structures
10. Soliton staircases, strain in confined 2D colloidal crystals
11. The structure and interaction of iron surfaces and their adhesion
12. Biopolymers
13. Industrial coatings and Bluescope Steel
14. Polymer simulations
15. Non-equilibrium Molecular Dynamics (NEMD)
16. The development of NEMD codes for simulating shear and elongational flow
17. The simulation and theory of slip boundaries for fluids in channels
18. The simulation of colloidal dispersions by MD and NEMD using a two component approach
19. The calculation of van der Waals interactions
20. The development and use of the Quantum Monte Carlo (QMC) method.
21. Graphene
22. Silecene
23. The simulation of deposition and growth on surfaces
24. The simulation of Au nano-crystals and nano-rods. IGA and solution simulations