Rate My Professor Gino Hrkac

Professor Gino Hrkac holds a Personal Chair in Applied theoretical and computational Solid-State Physics in the College of Engineering, Mathematics and Physical Sciences at the University of Exeter. He earned his Dipl.Ing. and Dr. techn. degrees from the Vienna University of Technology, completing his PhD in the Department of Solid State Physics. From January 2006 to December 2011, he worked at the University of Sheffield in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering. In August 2012, he joined the University of Exeter as Associate Professor in Functional Materials, advancing to his current personal chair in December 2016. His career includes a Royal Society University Research Fellowship awarded in 2009 while at Sheffield, supporting research on fundamentals of spin-torque induced magnetisation dynamics.

Professor Hrkac's research focuses on computational physics, magnetic materials and magnetism, micromagnetics, atomistic simulations, solid state physics, and related areas including superconductivity, thin films, and nanotechnology. He leads efforts in the Nano Engineering Science and Technology (NEST) group and contributes to projects on memory and computing materials and devices. Key publications include 'Twins – A weak link in the magnetic hardening of ThMn12-type permanent magnets' (2021), 'First principles and atomistic calculation of the magnetic anisotropy of Y2Fe14B' (2021), 'Optically and Microwave-Induced Magnetization Precession in [Co/Pt]/NiFe Exchange Springs' (2020), 'Atomistic simulations of α-Fe/Nd2Fe14B magnetic core/shell nanocomposites with enhanced energy product for high temperature permanent magnet applications' (2020), and 'Magnetic vortex oscillators' (2015). With 133 publications and over 3,900 citations, his work has significant impact, including collaborations with Toyota Motor Corporation on rare-earth-free magnetic materials for electric vehicles, contributing to reduced carbon emissions. He delivered the Wohlfarth Lecture in 2018 on atomistic to micromagnetic modelling for permanent magnets and magnetic hybrid materials. Professor Hrkac supervises PhD students and participates in EPSRC-funded projects.