Benjamin Hourahine

Dr Benjamin Hourahine is a Senior Lecturer in Physics at the University of Strathclyde, affiliated with the Computational Nonlinear and Quantum Optics (CNQO) group. He holds roles as Director of Student Support for the Physics Department and is its National Student Survey (NSS) champion. His research focuses on theoretical solid-state physics, quantum chemistry, and computational materials science, with expertise in semi-empirical quantum mechanical modeling and large-scale parallel computing systems.

He co-develops the DFTB+ software package, a commercially licensed tool used in materials science and quantum chemistry. His work integrates advanced microscopy techniques (e.g., electron channelling contrast imaging) with computational modeling to investigate semiconductor defects at the nanoscale. Recent projects include enhancing ECCI resolution for defect analysis and developing machine learning-enhanced quantum chemistry methods.

Hourahine has secured significant grants, including leadership of the £1.5M EPSRC-funded 'Deep-Learning-Enhanced Quantum Chemistry' project (2019–2021) and the current DTP 2024 program. He actively collaborates with industry partners like BIOVIA and presents at international conferences on electron microscopy and materials science.

• Awards: MInstP (2007)
• Teaching: Final-year computational physics courses and advanced solid-state physics
• Key Software: DFTB+, TIER 0-ready parallel codes