Research Collaborations
FLEET’s extensive network of 18 leading national and international research partners is key to fulfilling the Centre’s mission.
Read our Case Study
Despite the difficulties of time shift with respect to overseas members, eg in Europe, I have been happy with FLEET's clear and friendly communication as well as the willingness to schedule online meetings that are mutually convenient time wise. In spite of the recent travel restrictions, the choice of online platforms for the annual meeting, facilitated a good, ongoing exchange of information and ideas.
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Hosting scientific meetings (ICSCE10)
Supporting significant international and Australian science conferences
In January 2020 FLEET brought the 10th International Conference on Spontaneous Coherence in Excitonic Systems (ICSCE10) to Australia for the first time.
Continuing a 15-year history of meetings of the global scientific community interested in various quantum phenomena, ICSCE10 was hosted at the Arts Centre Melbourne amidst smoke storms resulting from one of the worst bushfire seasons in Australia’s history.
ICSCE10 brought together more than 100 researchers studying spontaneous coherence in various physical systems including excitons, exciton-polaritons, cold atomic, and other quantum systems. These are topics closely related to FLEET’s Research theme 2, exciton superfluids, and Research theme 3, light-transformed materials.
With almost 65% of conference attendees arriving from overseas, ICSCE10 enabled FLEET to strengthen our partnerships with existing international partners and develop links with new collaborators.
Co-chaired by FLEET theme 2 leader, Elena Ostrovskaya (ANU), and Timothy Liew, a FLEET collaborator from Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, ICSCE10's four-day program included 18 invited seminars, 50 oral presentations and 15 poster presentations.
International delegates were impressed with the iconic venue in Melbourne and the Indigenous-inspired conference dinner menu that showcased Australian native ingredients. Conference delegates also had fun with FLEET’s periodic table Top Trump card game with quite a few requesting additional packs to bring back home to their friends and families.
ICSCE10
Hosting FLEET research seminars
Maintaining cohesion with Centre-wide colloquia and webinars
FLEET turbocharged our existing Centre-wide seminar series in 2020, with 10 research seminars – a significant increase from only four seminars in 2019.
Very aware of the importance of Centre cohesion without interstate travel and with many universities in lockdown, FLEET threw extra resources into monthly Zoom seminars, often overlapping with expanded ‘journal club’ meetings involving multiple interstate visitors.
Two seminars were held ‘in-person’ at FLEET nodes before Covid-19 lockdowns, with the remaining using Zoom video conferencing.
This year’s seminar series focused on presentations from new Centre investigators. The series brought in external audiences by jointly holding the presentations with Centre partner organisations, including the MacDiarmid Institute (NZ) and ANSTO, and with other organisations such as the University of Newcastle School of Mathematical and Physical Sciences, Monash University School of Physics and Astronomy, and Materials Australia.
Unless confidential, unpublished information was shared, talks were recorded and shared via YouTube and social media for a wider audience.
The monthly seminars were scheduled in and around the new, fortnightly transpacific colloquia series and monthly Australian Institute of Physics (AIP) Australian Research Council (ARC) Centres talks.
