Research in complex systems

Complex systems are intricate networks of interacting components that give rise to emergent behaviours not predictable from the properties of individual parts – more colloquially, the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. They are characterised by several key features, such as nonlinearity, emergence, adaptation and self-organisation. The study of complex systems pervades much of the research carried out within the Faculty of Science.

Research groups and labs

  • Accelerator Physics

    Particle Accelerators are vital for science and society. Our research focuses on the design, optimisation, and operation of particle accelerators.

  • Agricultural and Resource Economics and Agribusiness (AREA)

    The Agricultural & Resource Economics and Agribusiness (AREA) group undertakes research into the benefits, costs and risks of change in agricultural production and marketing and in the resources used in these sectors.

  • Agricultural Data Science

    The Analytics, Modelling and Technology research group focuses on creating opportunities for innovation in big data to support the global efforts towards sustainable intensification of agriculture.

  • Applied Mathematics Group

    The Applied Mathematics Group has interests across the fields of colloid science, medicine, chemical engineering and materials processing.

  • Computational Chemistry and Statistical Mechanics

    Understanding complex emergent phenomena through computer simulations and statistical mechanics theory.

  • Giansiracusa Group – Magnetic Materials and Neutron Spectroscopy

    We develop lanthanoid-based materials with novel magnetic, electronic and quantum properties, combining ab initio calculations, advanced spectroscopy, and magnetometry.

  • Correlations and Topology in Condensed Matter

    As condensed matter theorists, we are interested in many exciting topics ranging from strongly correlated electron systems to unconventional superconductivity and topological states of matter but also quantum computing.

  • Cosmology and Astroparticle Physics

    Using a mixture of experiments, simulation and theory, researchers in the School of Physics are investigating topics from the nature of dark matter and dark energy to what happened during inflation, a burst of ultra-fast expansion in the early Universe.

  • Crop Agronomy Group

    The Crop Agronomy Group specialise in improving water limited productivity of dry-land cropping and mixed farming systems.

  • Farm Systems Analysis

    The Farm Systems Analysis group conducts research to improve the production and sustainability of agricultural systems.

  • FLARE Wildfire Research

    Quantifying risks to environmental and human assets from wildfires, using models incorporating theoretical and applied bushfire behaviour and management strategies to determine actions to reduce risks.

  • Goerigk Group – Theoretical and Computational Quantum Chemistry

    Our research revolves around the exciting field of quantum chemistry, including both the development of new quantum-chemical methods and applications to organic-, inorganic-, physico- and biochemical problems.

  • Hinde Lab: Cellular Biophysics

    The Laboratory for Cellular Biophysics develops optical microscopy methods based on fluorescence lifetime, anisotropy and correlation spectroscopy to spatiotemporally map the cell nucleus and uncover the role of nuclear architecture in genome function.

  • Maher Lab – Structural Bioinorganic Chemistry

    A research lab using a combination of bioinorganic chemistry, biochemistry, biophysics and structural biology to assemble a holistic view of how trace elements are used by biological systems.

  • Mathematical Ecology, Epidemiology and Biosecurity

    This group works on interdisciplinary research problems that focus on developing mathematical and statistical models to support real-world decision-making and policy across the biological sciences.

  • Mathematical Biology Group

    Mathematical, statistical and computational methods are crucial in many areas of modern biological research. Conversely technological advances in biology allow more data, often of a novel type or at a finer resolution, to be collected resulting in new challenges that are motivating research in mathematics, statistics and computational methods.

  • Operations Research Group

    Operations Research (OR) provides a scientific approach to decision making. It involves formulating mathematical models of these problems, and developing mathematical tools to obtain solutions.

  • Physical Bioscience

    Development of new technologies for bio-sensors, systems for remote-location oxygen delivery, diamond-based implant devices, and quantum imaging systems for bio-magnetic processes.

  • Rural Innovation Research Group

    The Rural Innovation Research Group (RIRG) is a social science group that researches and designs innovative pathways for facilitating change and enabling social-ecological resilience.

  • Symmetries, Topology and Entanglement in Quantum Systems

    This group uses symmetries and tools from quantum information theory to study topological and other exotic phases of matter as well as theoretical aspects of quantum computing, with an emphasis on strongly correlated systems and novel mathematical approaches to symmetries.

More research in the foundational sciences

We work in areas ranging from astronomy, mathematics, and chemistry to conceive, ask and then answer fundamental questions about the universe.

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Life, the Universe and everything in between – our discoveries build an understanding of the world around us and help make it a better place.

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