photo Dionisios Margetis

Assistant Professor

Department of Mathematics &
Institute for Physical Science and Technology &
Maryland NanoCenter
University of Maryland
College Park, Maryland 20742, USA

Office: 4416 Mathematics Bldg. (Bldg. No: 084)
Phone : (++1-)301-405-5455
FAX : (++1-)301-314-0827
E- address : d i o   at   m a t h   d0t   umd    d0t   e d u

Research interests

 Applied Analysis; Aspects of Materials Science;
Modeling: Condensed Matter & Atomic Physics; Mathematical Physics.

My research is motivated by physical experiments and primarily explores the connection of
continuum laws (e.g. PDEs) to discrete or microscopic models in classical and quantum mechanics.

Topics of my current, active interest include (with links to my publications):

  • Aspects of mathematical biology:
    Interplay of geometry and chemical signaling in dynamics of biomembranes;
    homogenization of microscopic models for lipid bilayers

  • Aspects of epitaxial growth and relaxation:
    Morphological evolution of crystal surfaces below the roughening temperature

  • Decoherence in quantum computing via scattering theory

  • Bose-Einstein condensation of atoms in traps (external potentials):
    Derivation from atomic Hamiltonian of (nonlocal) continuum laws beyond
    the nonlinear Schrödinger (Gross-Pitaevskii) equation

  • Electromagnetic wave theory and applications

  • Growth phenomena via a prototypical advection-diffusion problem

  • Atomistic study of behavior of materials under extreme pressure

    Students

    Graduate students:
  • University of Maryland, College Park, Mathematics:
    -- John Quah, Appl. Math. & Scientific Computation (AMSC) program:
    PhD expected in 06/2009:
    Analytic and numerical aspects of anisotropies in 2D crystal surface morphological evolution.
    -- Amy Finkbiner, AMSC program:
    PhD earned in 12/2007; thesis in PDF:
    Analysis of discrete models for step instabilities (bunching).
    Co-supervised (for work on networks) by Prof. J. Yorke (Mathematics, Physics, IPST).

  • M.I.T., Department of Mathematics:
    -- Pak-Wing Fok, Applied Mathematics:
    PhD earned in 06/2006; thesis in PDF.
    Currently, a von Karman instructor in Comp. & Appl. Math., CalTech.
    Co-supervised in Ph.D. work by Prof. R. R. Rosales.

    Other students, co-advised informally at M.I.T.:
    -- Nikos Savva (PhD earned in 09/2007 - now postdoc in Imperial College, London)
    -- Jaehyuk Choi (PhD earned in 06/2005 - currently with Goldman Sachs, New York City)


    Synergistic activities in the University of Maryland, College Park