Audrius Alkauskas, working at the University of Basel in the group of Professor Alexis Baratoff and Professor Christoph Bruder

1.What is the topic of your PhD thesis?
So far the official name of my thesis is not clear. It will most probably be called "Theoretical modelling of atoms and molecules on noble metals surfaces", but the name is rather general, I admit. In practice, I perform DFT (Density Functional Theory) calculations with well-tested codes (CPMD and ABINIT) and do some C-programming myself. I am especially happy about collaborating with experimentalists, which makes my work very interesting..

2. Do you already have results?
Yes, some. I had to learn a lot, and finally in this year I hope to produce something of higher quality. So far I finished one technical paper about effective core potentials, gained some experience in DFT by performing calculations of a simple adsorbate-substrate system, and now I will finally switch to the modelling organic-inorganic interfaces.

3. Is there a potential application of your research?
I model real systems, and, I am happy if I can explain the experimental findings. Predicting things that can be useful is a business of the best theoreticians, not newcomers like myself. But perhaps in the future...

4. Why are you interested in nanoscale science?
"Every generation has its own disease" - one German rock band used to sing. This is true - nanoscience is the kind of science that did not exist 30 years ago. It's something where one can apply existing theories to new phenomena. This is the disease – in the positive sense - of my generation of physicists, as well as my own.

5. What are your plans for the future?
Actually, I want to become an expert in nanoscale material science. I want to learn density functional theory and molecular mechanics better, and apply their results to the modeling of thermodynamics of different systems, be it a nanostructured catalyst of some important organic reaction, complex material with an unusual phase transition or a molecular machine on the solid surface. As my working place, after finishing my PhD (that's my hope) and after several years as a post-doc in some Scandinavian country (that's my wish), I want to return to Vilnius University, Lithuania, and establish a group of computational material science (that's my dream).

6. What are your interests outside research?
Singing, playing guitar, writing short essays and reading books. Also, communicating with other people, but that's not an interest, that's a need.