About Me
I am a physicist and physical chemist, originally from the UK but now living in Vienna where I work for the International Atomic Energy Agency as Head of the Atomic and Molecular Data Unit. This Unit evaluates and distributes fundamental data on the collisional and spectroscopic properties of plasma and plasma-material interaction, with a particular focus on applications for nuclear fusion energy research.
I am the CTO of the Virtual Atomic and Molecular Data Consortium (VAMDC) and an Associate Editor of the journal Atomic Data and Nuclear Data Tables.
I am the author Learning Scientific Programming with Python, which was first published by Cambridge University Press (CUP) in 2016, with a second edition in 2020. My second book, Python for Chemists was published, also by CUP, in October 2023.
Contact
I can be contacted by email at christian@scipython.com. There is also a website associated with my progamming books: scipython.com.
Projects
Some other projects and companies I have been involved in:
| PyValem | A Python package for parsing, validating, manipulating and interpreting the chemical formulas, quantum states and labels of atoms, ions and small molecules. |
| HITRAN | A spectroscopic database which is widely-used to model radiative transmission in the atmosphere. |
| ExoMol | A database of high-temperature molecular line lists for exoplanet and cool star spectroscopy. |
| CollisionDB | A database of plasma collisional processes with a focus on magnetic-confinement fusion energy research. |
| QuantemolDB | A database of plasma chemistries for industrial plasma research and development. |
Recent Publications
- K. L. Chubb et al., "Data availability and requirements relevant for the Ariel space mission and other exoplanet atmosphere applications", RAS Techniques and Instruments, in preparation (2024).
- C. Hill, Python for Chemists, Cambridge University Press (2023).
- C. Hill et al., Atomic collisional data for neutral beam modeling in fusion plasmas, Nuclear Fusion 63, 125001 (2023).
- Dipti, I. Bray, D. V. Fursa, C. Hill, Yu. Ralchenko, "Recommended electron-impact excitation and ionization cross sections for Be II", Atomic Data and Nuclear Data Tables, submitted (2023).
- A. Owens, T. He, M. Hanicinec, C. Hill, S. Mohr, J. Tennyson, LiDB: Database of molecular radiative lifetimes for plasma processes, Plasma Sources Science and Technology 32, 085015 (2023).
- R. Anirudh et al., 2022 Review of Data-Driven Plasma Science, IEEE Transactions on Plasma Science 51, 1750-1838 (2023).
- I. Gordon et al. The HITRAN2020 molecular spectroscopic database, Journal of Quantitative Spectroscopy and Radiative Transfer 277, 107949 (2022).
- V. Laporta, R. Agnello, G. Fubiani, I. Furno, C. Hill, D. Reiter, F. Taccogna, Vibrational excitation and dissociation of deuterium molecule by electron impact, Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion 63, 085006 (2021).
- G. De Temmerman et al. Data on erosion and hydrogen fuel retention in Beryllium plasma-facing materials, Nuclear Materials and Energy 27, 100994 (2021).
- C. Hill, Learning Scientific Programming with Python, 2nd edition, Cambridge University Press (2020).
- J. Tennyson et al. The 2020 release of the ExoMol database: Molecular line lists for exoplanet and other hot atmospheres", Journal of Quantitative Spectroscopy and Radiative Transfer 255, 107228 (2020).
- D. Albert et al. A Decade with VAMDC: Results and Ambitions, Atoms 8, 76 (2020).
- F. Skinner, I. Gordon, C. Hill, R. Hargreaves, K. Lockhart, L. Rothman, Referencing Sources of Molecular Spectroscopic Data in the Era of Data Science: Application to the HITRAN and AMBDAS Databases, Atoms 8, 16 (2020).
Other Scientific and Academic Activities
Director and Lecturer
Joint IAEA-ICTP Workshop on Data for Modelling Atomic and Molecular Processes in Plasmas
Trieste, Italy, 18 – 22 March 2024
A training Workshop for early-stage career researchers in plasma physics to be held at the Abdus Salam International Centre for Theoretical Physics.
Co-Director of the Organizing Committee and Lecturer
1st International School on Atomic and Molecular Data Evaluation and Curation
Valladolid, Spain, 22 – 25 October 2023
A training Workshop for early-stage career researchers organized by the University of Valladolid in cooperation with the IAEA.
Chair of the Organizing Committee
21st International Conference on Atomic Processes in Plasmas
Vienna, Austria, 15 – 19 May 2023
Part of a biennial meeting series focusing on atomic processes that are involved in the study of various plasmas over a wide range of densities and temperatures (eV to a few keVs). This meeting was held at IAEA Headquarters with 127 participants.
Invited Speaker
75th Annual Gaseous Electronics Conference
Sendai, Japan, 3 – 7 October 2022
An annual meeting of the American Physical Society (APS) Division of Atomic, Molecular, and Optical Physics.
International Programme Committee Member and Panellist
12th International International Conference on Atomic and Molecular Data and Their Applications (ICAMDATA)
Mola di Bari, Italy, 25 – 29 September 2022
A continuing series of international conferences that promotes the use of atomic and molecular data in various fields of science and technology.
Invited Speaker
Flagship Workshop on Multiscale modelling of irradiation-driven processes for emerging technologies
Centre Européen de Calcul Atomique et Moléculaire (CECAM), Lausanne, Switzerland, 16 – 18 March 2022.
Invited Speaker
MolSSI Workshop on Rovibrational Molecular Spectroscopy
Molecular Sciences Software Institute (MolSSI), Blacksburg VA, USA, 14 – 15 November 2019.
Invited Speaker
Open Data Libraries Workshop
Manchester, UK, 27 October 2019
Part of the IEEE Nuclear Science Symposium (NSS) and Medical Imaging Conference (MIC).
Director and Lecturer
Joint IAEA-ICTP Workshop on Atomic and Molecular Spectroscopy in Plasmas
Trieste, Italy, 6 – 10 May 2019
A 5-day series of lectures and computing practical exercises to help early-career plasma physicists develop an understanding of the techniques used to model and simulate radiative processes in plasmas.
Organizing Committee Member and Invited Speaker
20th International Conference on Atomic Processes in Plasmas
National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), Gaithersburg MA, USA, 9 – 12 April 2019.
Organizing Committee Member and Invited Speaker
11th International International Conference on Atomic and Molecular Data and Their Applications (ICAMDATA)
Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, Cambridge MA, USA, 11 – 15 November 2018.
Director and Lecturer
Joint IAEA-ICTP Workshop on Fundamental Methods for Atomic, Molecular and Materials Properties in Plasma Environments
Trieste, Italy, 16 – 20 April 2018.