Dr Boris Blankleider

Dr. Boris Blankleider is a theoretical physicist with research interests in the areas of nuclear, elementary particle, condensed matter, and computational physics. However, the main thrust of his research is devoted to the precise description of few-particle systems using quantum field theory (typically involving quarks, mesons, and baryons) with an emphasis on resolving outstanding theoretical problems in their description. Some of the more noteworthy successes of his research have been the solution of the overcounting problem in the relativistic description of coupled "3-body"-"2-body" systems, the solution of the renormalisation problem in the non-relativistic description of the πNN system, the solution of the gauge-invariance problem in the coupling of photons to strongly interacting few-body systems, and most recently, the first formulation of equations describing a tetraquark, that incorporates quark-antiquark annihilation.

Boris obtained his Honours degree in mathematics at the University of Melbourne and then his PhD in theoretical nuclear physics from Flinders University. This led to research positions with theory groups at TRIUMF (Vancouver, Canada), Indiana University (Bloomington IN, USA), the Paul Scherrer Institute (Villigen, Switzerland), and the University of Basel (Switzerland) where Boris also taught physics and supervised research students. While at the Paul Scherrer Institute, Boris greatly extended the scope of his research by pioneering the use of lattice gas methods for modeling mass transport with chemical reactions, as a contribution to the Institute's research program applying to the Swiss radioactive waste reposatories.

Returning to Flinders University in 1993, Boris’s research experience has been instrumental in shaping his approach to teaching a wide spectrum of university physics topics, both at the undergraduate and graduate levels. He is particularly passionate about the important role that interactivity plays in the learning process, a passion that has led him to pioneer the development of interactive documents for the teaching of physics.