Research centres and groups

The ARC Centre of Excellence in Future Low-Energy Electronics Technologies (FLEET) received funding from 2017 to 2024. FLEET’s central mission was to enable a sustainable future for computing, by developing a new generation of electronics that operate at significantly less energy, utilising novel materials in which electricity can flow with minimal resistance and dissipation of heat, and devices in which that dissipationless electric current can be switched on and off at will.

FLEET utilised new, atomically-thin, electronic materials and new topological physics that allow transmittal and switching of electrical currents with minimal energy dissipation. The Centre made remarkable progress, placing Australia at the forefront of international electronics technology research through the development of scientific foundations and backing intellectual property for future lowenergy electronic systems.

Visit the FLEET website

The ARC Centre of Excellence for All-sky Astrophysics (CAASTRO) ran from 2011 to 2018 and UQ joined as a node in 2013, with Professor Tamara Davis as node leader and head of the “Dark Theme”.

CAASTRO’s key science questions were:

• When did the first galaxies form, and how have they then evolved?
• What is the high-energy physics that drives change in the Universe?
• What are the Dark Energy and Dark Matter that dominate the cosmos?

CAASTRO focused on the blossoming technology that allowed high resolution over wide fields for the first time, both in optical and radio wavelengths, and made Australia a world-leader in this area.

At UQ this Centre laid the foundation for SMP’s current participation in major international surveys such as the Dark Energy Survey, Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument, and the Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder.

Visit the CASSTRO website

The ARC Centre of Excellence for Environmental Decisions (CEED) was funded between 2011 and 2018. CEED was led by Professor Hugh Possingham (Laureate Fellow), and provided international research leadership in tackling the complex problems of environmental management and monitoring in an uncertain and changing world.

SMP contributed to developing new mathematical approaches and tools applied to ecological problems, helping deliver predictive models for fisheries and decision-making approaches to improve outcomes in conservation management, habitat restoration, spatial planning and threat adaptation under a changing climate.

SMP researchers have been on dozens of CEED publications, with a legacy of changing the way governments and researchers make environmental decisions and helping save species from extinction.

Visit the CEED website

The ARC Centre of Excellence for Mathematical and Statistical Frontiers (ACEMS) was a collaboration between 7 Australian universities and 5 industry partners from 2014 to 2021.

ACEMS bought together — for the first time — a critical mass of Australian researchers in applied mathematics, statistics, mathematical physics, and machine learning, and engaged in research programs that combine innovative methods for the analysis of data with theoretical, methodological and computational foundations, provided by advanced mathematical and statistical modelling.

UQ ACEMS focussed its attention on developing stochastic models for biological systems, machine learning, and developing advanced simulation methods.

Visit the ACEMS website