Michael Coey

John Michael David Coey (born 24 February 1945), known as Michael Coey, is a Belfast-born experimental physicist working in the fields of magnetism and spintronics. After Tonbridge Mike Coey developed his interest in teaching in India before reading Physics at Jesus College, Cambridge, he subsequently gained a PhD from University of Manitoba, and Dip. d'Habilitation from University of Grenoble & ScD from Trinity College, Dublin.^[1]

Mike Coey has been a Professor of Physics at Trinity College, Dublin, for over 25 years, where he is currently Professor Emeritus Erasmus Smith's Professor of Natural and Experimental Philosophy (2007–2012), a chair that dates from 1724. Recognised as a distinguished European specialist in magnetic materials; internationally he continues to be a leader in the field of magnetism.

In 1994 Mike Coey founded Magnetic Solutions and went on to be the cofounder of CRANN Ireland's Nanoscience Research institute (2002) and conceived Dublin's unique Science Gallery (2006). He has published over 700 scientific articles on diverse aspects of magnetism, many of which have had significant impact on the scientific community. As Ireland's most highly cited scientist, with an h-index of 66^{[note 1]} Mike Coey continues to make an impact at both the cutting edge of his chosen areas of specialisation and to the wider scientific community. His recent textbook Magnetism and Magnetic Materials^[2] has met the need for a general, tangible text about modern magnetism.

Mike Coey is a member of the Royal Irish Academy (1987), a Fellow of the Royal Society (2003) and a Foreign Associate of the US National Academy of Sciences (2005). He is also a fellow of the Institute of Physics, the American Mineralogical Society and the American Physical Society. Mike's numerous awards include a Fulbright Fellowship, the Charles Cree Medal of the Institute of Physics (1997), the Gold Medal of the Royal Irish Academy (2005) the RDS INTEL Prize Lecture on Nanoscience (2012) in addition to being the recipient of the Humboldt (2013) & Gutenberg (2015) prizes.

Mike Coey has an honorary doctorate from the Institute National Polytechnique Grenoble and has been a Distinguished Lecturer, IEEE Magnetics Study (2006) and the Albert Einstein Professor of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (2010). He delivered a public lecture on the History of Magnetism in Paris in 2010. Currently Mike holds positions at National University Singapore and the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Physics of Solids. His belief in advancement through collaboration demonstrated through postings as a visiting scientist/professor that include: IBM Yorktown Heights (1979), Institute of Physics Peking (1980), McGill University (1982), University of Bordeaux (1984), CEN-Grenoble (1985), Johns Hopkins APL (1986), Universite de Paris IV (1992), University of California, San Diego (1997), Florida State University (1998), University of Paris XI (1998), Leman University Geneva (2001/3), University of Strasbourg (2006). Mike Coey pioneered co-operation between academic and industrial laboratories in the groundbreaking Concerted European Action on Magnets (1985–95). Throughout his career he has strongly identified himself with the European spirit and tradition of collaboration.

Personal life

Mike has been married to Wong May Coey for 40 years and has two sons, James and Dominic.

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