Sir John Bernard Pethica, (born 1953) is

Science Foundation Ireland Science Foundation Ireland (SFI; ga, Fondúireacht Eolaíochta Éireann) is the statutory body in Republic of Ireland, Ireland with responsibility for funding oriented basic and applied research in the areas of science, technology, engineering ...

(S.F.I.) professor of material science at

Trinity College, Dublin , name_Latin = Collegium Sanctae et Individuae Trinitatis Reginae Elizabethae juxta Dublin , motto = ''Perpetuis futuris temporibus duraturam'' (Latin) , motto_lang = la , motto_English = It will last i ...

, Chief Scientific Advisor at the UK's National Physical Laboratory, and a visiting professor at

Oxford University Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

. Pethica is most noted for his work on the development of

nanoindentation Nanoindentation, also called instrumented indentation testing, is a variety of indentation hardness tests applied to small volumes. Indentation is perhaps the most commonly applied means of testing the mechanical properties of materials. The nanoi ...

and atom resolution

atomic force microscopy Atomic force microscopy (AFM) or scanning force microscopy (SFM) is a very-high-resolution type of scanning probe microscopy (SPM), with demonstrated resolution on the order of fractions of a nanometer, more than 1000 times better than the opt ...

Education

John Pethica was a pupil at

St Ambrose College St Ambrose College is a Christian Brothers' Roman Catholic boys' grammar school in Hale Barns, Altrincham, Greater Manchester, England. It was founded in 1946 by Dr Joseph Robertson. In 2012 the school became an academy, and was completely re-b ...

Trafford Trafford is a metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England, with an estimated population of 235,493 in 2017. It covers Retrieved on 13 December 2007. and includes the area of Old Trafford and the towns of Altrincham, Stretford, Ur ...

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The ...

. He received a PhD from IT Sligo in the late 1970s.

Career

In 2001, Pethica was one of the first ten people awarded an S.F.I. principal investigator award. Following the award, he transferred his activities from

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 ...

. In February 2005, it was announced that Pethica will be the director of the Naughton Institute which will house CRANN, a new purpose built

nanotechnology Nanotechnology, also shortened to nanotech, is the use of matter on an atomic, molecular, and supramolecular scale for industrial purposes. The earliest, widespread description of nanotechnology referred to the particular technological goal ...

centre in Trinity College Dublin. In October 2007, Pethica was made the Chief Scientific Advisor at the UK's National Physical Laboratory, the UK’s National Measurement Institute.

Honours and awards

In 1999, Pethica was elected a

Fellow of the Royal Society Fellowship of the Royal Society (FRS, ForMemRS and HonFRS) is an award granted by the judges of the Royal Society of London to individuals who have made a "substantial contribution to the improvement of natural knowledge, including mathemati ...

(FRS). He has also served as Vice-President and Physical Secretary of the Royal Society. He was elected a

Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering Fellowship of the Royal Academy of Engineering (FREng) is an award and fellowship for engineers who are recognised by the Royal Academy of Engineering as being the best and brightest engineers, inventors and technologists in the UK and from aroun ...

(FREng) in 2013. He was elected an

honorary fellow Honorary titles (professor, reader, lecturer) in academia may be conferred on persons in recognition of contributions by a non-employee or by an employee beyond regular duties. This practice primarily exists in the UK and Germany, as well as in ...

St Cross College, Oxford St Cross College is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1965, St Cross is an all-graduate college with gothic and traditional-style buildings on a central site in St Giles', just south of Pusey Street. It ...

in 2014. Pethica was the 2001 recipient of the

Hughes Medal The Hughes Medal is awarded by the Royal Society of London "in recognition of an original discovery in the physical sciences, particularly electricity and magnetism or their applications". Named after David E. Hughes, the medal is awarded wit ...

of the Royal Society of London, and the 2002 recipient of the Holweck Prize from the

Institute of Physics The Institute of Physics (IOP) is a UK-based learned society and professional body that works to advance physics education, research and application. It was founded in 1874 and has a worldwide membership of over 20,000. The IOP is the Physic ...

. Pethica was

knighted A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood finds origins in the G ...

in the

2014 Birthday Honours The 2014 Birthday Honours were appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. The Birthday Honours are awarded as part of ...

for services to science.

Personal life

Pethica is an accomplished musician - playing violin and other instruments - with a particular interest in

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

and

British folk music Throughout the history of the British Isles, the United Kingdom has been a major music producer, drawing inspiration from Church Music. Traditional folk music, using instruments of England, Scotland, Northern Ireland, and Wales. Each of the ...

.For example, recording with The Cambridge Crofters in the 1970s http://www.discogs.com/viewimages?release=3116333

References

External links

Homepage of John Pethica at OxfordHomepage of John Pethica at CRANN

Chief Scientific Advisor : National Physical Laboratory
Living people 1953 births British materials scientists Academics of Trinity College Dublin Fellows of the Royal Society Alumni of Trinity Hall, Cambridge Knights Bachelor People educated at St. Ambrose College {{UK-physicist-stub