Hello! I work as a Principal Research Scientist modelling and predicting electromagnetic scattering phenomena. This has straddled the standard boundaries between electro-optical and radio-frequency teams, and included topics relating to radiative transfer, imaging, surface scatter, characterisation of materials, communication systems, synthetic aperture radar, and even nanophotonics/nanoplasmonics… and I like to get stuck in and wear many hats.
Developing connections between disciplines (physics, mathematics, electronic engineering, optical engineering) to solve problems, is what I enjoy, with a particular focus on digging within the ‘grey literature’.
I completed a PhD in novel optoelectronic waveguide design at the University of Southampton’s Optoelectronics Research Centre (ORC) and began working at the start-up company WaveOptics. After this, I spent some time working in natural language processing (NLP) before returning to academia and completing a Research Fellowship within the TEAM-A, the University of Exeter, and QinetiQ.
Earlier in my life, I obtained an MSc in RF Communication Systems Engineering at the University of Portsmouth and a BSc in Mathematics at the University of Southampton. However, I have worked in various disciplines in the past, including spending time in the Merchant Navy with P&O Nedlloyd and in the security industry in multiple roles.
I am also a Level 1 England Boxing coach at Winchester Boxing Club, as well as an accidental philosopher. An unusual combination!
Some topics I think about
- Imaging through atmospheric turbulence (e.g. correcting distorted images?)
- The optical response of nanophotonic and nanoplasmonic structures (e.g. Lycurgus Cup?)
- The characterisation (and modelling!) of optical scatter from material (e.g. skin in computer games?) surfaces
- The modelling of wind-blown sea surfaces and their optical scatter (e.g. detecting pollution from above?)
- The microwave characterisation (and modelling!) of dielectrics and their permittivity (e.g. non-destructive testing)
- The optical scatter in turbid media (quality of olive oil?)
- Skywave and ground wave propagation at HF
- Can the education of physics-related topics be improved by providing historical context and student interaction? I did some work with Rallis Papademetriou on this and we are writing two textbooks together – one on information theory, and another on analogue electronics
- I’ve recently published a (historical) review paper as part of the centenary of Bose statistics celebrations with Prof G Baskaran of Institute of Mathematical Sciences in Chennai, India
I also muse about
- What is the most efficient way to sort odd socks?
- Is my kids’ bad behaviour in some way synonymous to coupled non-linear oscillators?
- How might you model the varying ‘mood’ of someone (me!) on a daily basis
- What approach could be used to model the oscillations of my car and caravan when towing on a bumpy road?
- How are the forces distributed in the alloy wheel ‘spokes’ (and tyres!) of my family car in different scenarios? [I worked with an expert on this topic at one time!]
Popular science articles I’ve written
- Modelling ocean surfaces (PDF available)
- Simulating the effect of turbulence on optical imaging (PDF available)
My professional pages
- LinkedIn: Alexander May
- My business: Synchronous Science Ltd
- My personal email: alexmay@alexmay.net
Publications
- Please see my current list of (open lit.) publications on: Google Scholar‬‬