Christoph Arns

Professor Christoph Arns is a full Professor at the University of New South Wales (UNSW) School of Engineering, specializing in Mineral and Energy Resources Engineering. He has been at UNSW since 2008 and has held the position of full Professor since 2014. Currently, he leads the Geoenergy and Geostorage discipline within the school. Prior to joining UNSW, he was a research fellow at the Australian National University from 2001-2008.

Professor Arns obtained his Dipl. Phys. from RWTH Aachen, Germany in 1996 and his PhD in Petroleum Engineering from UNSW Sydney in 2002. His academic background combines physics and petroleum engineering, creating a unique interdisciplinary perspective for his research.

His primary research focus is on Digital Rock Physics, where he has pioneered computational pore-scale physics based on tomographic images. He specializes in integrating 3D tomographic imaging technology with NMR techniques for petrophysical applications, with particular emphasis on heterogeneity analysis. His work spans multiple sub-disciplines including pore-scale modeling, digital core analysis, rock physics, reservoir characterization, and Minkowski functionals for structural analysis.

Professor Arns has developed the MPI-parallel software package 'morphy' for computational physics operating on segmented tomographic images, which includes sophisticated NMR response modeling, electrical property calculations, permeability estimation, elastic moduli determination, and morphological property analysis. His research has substantial industry relevance, as evidenced by his role as a founding member of Digital Core Pty Ltd, an ANU/UNSW spin-off that was sold to FEI for $76 million in 2014 and is now part of ThermoFisher.

He has received significant research support through three successive Australian Research Council (ARC) fellowships. His scholarly contributions are reflected in numerous publications spanning from 2000 to 2025, with recent work focusing on advanced computational methods, machine learning applications in rock physics, and detailed analysis of fluid-rock interactions at the pore scale.

Professor Arns maintains active leadership roles in multiple professional societies including Interpore (lifetime member, former council chair 2016-2019), Society of Core Analysts (Australasia Regional Director since 2016), Society of Petrophysicists & Well Log Analysts, Society of Exploration Geophysicists, and Society of Petroleum Engineers.