George Smith

Professor George Smith is an internationally-recognised pioneer in atom probe field-ion microscopy. His contributions to the fields of Microscopy, Metallurgy, and Materials Science have extended over 50 years, leading to paradigm-shifting developments in both our scientific understanding of materials and in microstructural characterisation at the atomic scale.

A Fellow of the Royal Society and numerous other UK and international scientific societies, Professor Smith is also the recipient of numerous prestigious international scientific and engineering awards.

George’s early research using field-ion microscopy provided fundamental understanding of atomic-scale structures, as well as the correlation of nano-scale microstructure with the behaviour of materials - both in terms of transformation behaviour and precipitation phenomena in metallic materials.  His extensive knowledge, expertise and his leadership in metallurgy/materials science and atom probe microanalysis resulted in the formation of prolific and extensive research programs studying phase transformations in alloys, segregation phenomena, irradiation damage, oxidation, semiconductors, metal matrix composites, and nanostructured materials.

Under Professor Smith’s guidance and direction, the Oxford Group made major advances in atom probe analysis – both in the technique and in data quantification/analysis – which impacted the assessment of complex microstructures.