Brian Dolan

Theoretical Physics professor, Maynooth University

orcid.org/0000-0003-0138-5662
• I am currently working on the physics of black hole thermodynamics. Black holes are fascinating objects for a variety of reasons: not only are they important in astrophysics as the final stage of stellar evolution for massive stars and as the powerhouses of active galactic nuclei but also their very existence poses deep questions in physics at a fundamental level regarding information and entropy in thermodynamics. It is the latter that is the current focus of my research.
  
  In more general terms my research area is field theory: relativistic quantum field theory in elementary particle physics; classical field theory in general relativity; non-relativistic quantum field theory in condensed matter systems (specifically the quantum Hall effect). I am also interested in extensions of field theory applications to new physics, such as non-commutative geometry and quantum gravity.
• Former PhD students: David Dunbar, Sean Murray, Thomas Kaltenbrunner, Martin Vachovski.
• Current PhD students: Aonghus Hunter McCabe
• Publications:
• Complete list of publications.
• List of publications and citations from Google scholar.
• List of High energy physics publications with citation summary from the INSPIRE High Energy Physics Literature database.
• Publications available to download from the physics and mathematics e-print archive at the Los Alamos National Laboratory.
• I currently teach the following modules:
• 4th Year Honours (MP464): Solid State Physics
• 4th Year Honours (MP467): Astrophysics and Cosmology
• 4th Year Honours (MP469): Differential Equations and Complex Analysis
• 4th Year Honours (MP474): General Relativity.
• Here are some notes for some other modules I have taught in previous years:
• 4th Year Honours (MP465): Electromagnetism
• 4th Year Honours (MP466): Particle Physics
• 4th Year Honours (MP202): Mechanics
• Video presentations:
• Video of seminar on black-hole thermodynamics, given at the Perimeter Institute, Waterloo, Canada in 23rd August 2012.
• Video of lectures on Einstein/Cartan formulation of General Relativity and Differential forms (2 hours), given at the Perimeter Institute, Waterloo, Canada in June 2009.
• Video of public presentation on symmetry in physics: Nature Through the Looking Glass (5 min) given at the Science Gallery, Trinity College, Dublin in March 2010.
An updated version of "Nature Through the Looking Glass" was given at the first NUI Maynooth Ignite event on 15th December 2011.
• Department of Mathematical Physics home page.
• NUI Maynooth home page.