About Us

Nanomaterials are becoming increasingly more important due to their unique properties which are often very different to their larger, macroscopic, equivalent. Experimentally, studies on nanomaterials are extremely challenging due to the small size of the samples of interest. In the Barber group we specialize in measurements of force in order to more fully understand the physical properties of materials and variations at the nanoscale. The focus of this research is to look at the nano-mechanical response of materials as well as the measurement of interaction forces in order to characterize and understand surface behaviour. Major materials of interest in the group are composites consisting of two or more distinctive phases, often with the reinforcing phase being fibrous. The scope of this field encompasses synthetic composites to more complex hierarchical biological assemblies.

What we really try and do is have fun designing and executing difficult experiments that reveal something important, although what is important is often very subjective I collaborate with a wide range of scientists, engineers and medics on various problems, and am always open to new collaborations.

The group is small, as I haven’t been in my position too long, and (hopefully) very friendly. We also have world class facilities currently being installed to support our creativity in scientific research.

Asa H Barber