Professor Richard Tilley
Professor Richard Tilley is the Director of Electron Microscope Unit and a Professor in the School of Chemistryat UNSW, joining UNSW in 2015. His research is focused on the solution synthesis of nanoparticles for applications ranging from catalysis to biomedical imaging. He graduated with a Masters of Chemistry from Oxford University and did his PhD in the Department of Chemistry, University of Cambridge, UK, after which he was a Postdoctoral Fellow for two years at the Toshiba basic R&D Center, Japan. He spent 10 years in New Zealand in the School of Chemical and Physical Sciences at Victoria University of Wellington and became Deputy Head of School and an Associate Professor. He was also a Principle Investigator in the MacDiarmid Institute.
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- Engagement
- Teaching and Supervision
Australian Research Council Discovery Projects
2026 lead Investigator on DP260100153 Co-Catalysis for Energy Conversion Reactions
2025 lead Investigator on DP250100915 Unveiling Nanoparticle Homogeneity: One Particle at a Time
Investigator in the ARC Centre of Excellence for Carbon Science and Innovation
Research Interests
Our group is world-leading in the synthesis of the highest-performing nanoparticle catalysts and medical imaging agents, powering technologies from clean hydrogen production to early cancer detection. Our synthesis expertise lets us engineer complex nanoparticle catalysts with atomic-level precision, controlling exactly how atoms are arranged to unlock the next generation of clean energy catalysts. As Director of the Electron Microscope Unit, our lab gives you hands-on access to state-of-the-art electron microscopes, the best in Australia to see and characterise nanoparticles at true atomic resolution.