
Professor Nigel Wilding
BSc (Edin.), PhD(Edin.)
Current positions
Professor
School of Physics
Contact
Press and media
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Research interests
Much of my research involves applying state-of-the-art simulation methods to explore the fascinating physics that occurs in soft matter such as self-assembly, unusual phase behaviour, and non-equilibrium dynamics. A focus is the development and application of novel simulation algorithms that allow phenomena to be revealed that are inaccessible to conventional techniques. An appealing aspects of soft matter physics is that simple models often correspond quite closely to real systems, and this allows us to collaborate meaningfully with experimentalists. Beyond soft matter I am interested in computational and theoretical solutions to a wide range of problems in statistical and chemical physics such as the physical origins of hydrophobic phenomena and wetting transitions in active matter. For more information, see my personal pages.
Projects and supervisions
Thesis supervisions
Publications
Recent publications
22/04/2026Free energy differences and coexistence of clathrate structures II and H via lattice-switch Monte Carlo
Journal of Chemical Theory and Computation
Why critical drying, not hydrogen bonding, governs hydrophobic attraction between extended solutes
JCIS Open
Coarsening in bent-core liquid crystals
Soft Matter
Critical surface phase behavior governs hydrophobic attraction between extended solutes
The Journal of Chemical Physics
Origin of the inverse temperature dependence of hydrophobic attraction
Physical Review Research
