Rate My Professor John Smith

Professor John F. Smith is Professor of Nuclear Physics at the University of the West of Scotland (UWS), where he leads the Nuclear Physics Research Centre within the School of Computing, Engineering & Physical Sciences. Appointed to the role of Professor in the Division of Physical Sciences since 2015, he also serves as Associate Dean for Research and Innovation and School Research Lead. Previously associated with the University of Liverpool's nuclear physics group, Professor Smith has built a distinguished career focused on experimental nuclear physics. Under his leadership, the UWS Nuclear Physics Research Centre, established nearly 30 years ago, specializes in the study of the structure and properties of exotic atomic nuclei using advanced gamma-ray and charged-particle spectroscopy techniques. The group's research encompasses key areas such as octupole correlations in nuclei, the nuclear dipole response, neutron-rich nuclei via binary grazing reactions, high-resolution beta-decay studies, measurement of nuclear state lifetimes, neutron-proton interactions, exotic proton-rich nuclei beyond Sn-100, nuclear astrophysics applications, and detector development. Notable facilities and instrumentation include the Advanced Gamma Tracking Spectrometer (AGATA) and research at the Scottish Centre for the Application of Plasma-based Accelerators (SCAPA).

The research group maintains strong international collaborations, leading experimental programs at prestigious overseas laboratories including JYFL in Finland, Argonne National Laboratory in the USA, ISOLDE at CERN, and TRIUMF in Vancouver. As members of the Scottish Universities Physics Alliance (SUPA), they have secured continuous funding from the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) and Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) for almost three decades, including a current STFC Consolidated Grant and Project Grant for AGATA. Professor Smith's contributions extend to organizing major events such as chairing the IOP Annual Nuclear Physics Conference in 2018 hosted at UWS. His work has advanced understanding in fundamental nuclear structure and emerging applied nuclear physics themes, influencing the field through leadership in multinational experiments and sustained grant support. Recent publications include spectroscopic studies of isotopes like Mo-97, Mo-99, and Mo-101, as well as investigations into alignment phenomena in Xe-111 and lifetime measurements in sd-shell nuclei.