Prof Del Atkinson is currently Head of Condensed Matter Physics at Durham University, UK. He was appointed the inaugural Sir Gareth Roberts Professor of Applied Physics at Durham University in April 2017 and he is a Fellow of the UK Institute of Physics.

Prof Atkinson’s research experience in academia and industry extends over three decades and involves work on magnetic materials, thin-film semiconductors for flexible electronics and nanocomposite pressure-sensitive inks for sensing applications. His primary work is in magnetism where the focus is on understanding the relationship between physical structure and the magnetic material properties of nanoscale magnetic structures - this currently includes work on flexible spintronics, spin-orbit torques, microwave properties and damping in magnetic materials.

In 2017 Professor Atkinson won the Award for Excellence in Doctoral Supervision at Durham University and is particularly proud of his supervision of research students, having guided more than 18 student to successful PhD completion.