Teaching background

I am a sessional lecturer in physics method (i.e. teaching how to teach physics) for pre-service teachers at the Australian Catholic University, and teach physics at a local selective high school. In 2019 I was a member of the writing team which produced the NESA year 12 module guide for physics. In 2020 I produced resources for teachers and students on the HSC Hub as well as being a member of the small team of writers for the NESA year 11 module guide for physics (to be published in 2021).

I obtained my Diploma of Education from Macquarie University in 2008, and have been preparing students for the Physics Olympiad as well as teaching HSC physics since 2009.

Past students have achieved state ranks in HSC physics (in 2018 and 2019) and have represented Australia at the Asian and International Physics Olympiads (2011, 2016, 2019, with a number of students attending the selection camp in January 2020, and one student in 2021).

I teach with genuine enthusiasm (and enjoyment!). My goal is to present physics as a unified, coherent whole, with an emphasis on building real understanding and strong connections to students’ everyday experience of the world through extensive practical activities and meaningful problem solving.

Academic background

I have a PhD and a 1st class honours degree in physics from the University of New South Wales. I have previously worked in physics research in Australia (at UNSW and the University of Wollongong), as well as in the U.S. (at the University of Santa Cruz, California) and Europe (at the University of Geneva), with my last academic position being a Marie Curie Incoming International Fellowship in 2006.

I continue to work academically as time permits (which is not that often with a four year old as well as two older sons!).

A short publication list (full list at google scholar)

Recent papers

“A century-old question: Does a Crookes paddle wheel cathode ray tube demonstrate that electrons carry momentum?“, T.E. Humphrey & Vaishnavi Calisa, The Physics Teacher, Vol 52, page 142 (2014).

Selected papers

Tammy as a post-doc at the International Thermoelectrics Conference at Clemson University in 2005.

“Exp erimental Tunneling Ratchets” H. Linke, T.E. Humphrey, A. Löfgren, A.O. Sushkov, R. Newbury, R.P. Taylor and P. Omling, Science, 286, 2314-2317 (Dec. 1999).

“Reversible thermoelectric nanomaterials” T.E. Humphrey and H. Linke, Phys. Rev. Lett. 94 096601 (2005).

“A Reversible Quantum Brownian Heat Engine for electrons” T.E. Humphrey, R. Newbury, R.P. Taylor and H. Linke, Phys. Rev. Lett. 89, 116801 (2002).

PhD. thesis

“Mesoscopic Quantum Ratchets and the Thermodynamics of Energy Selective Electron Heat Engines” T.E. Humphrey, PhD, UNSW (1999).

Older papers

2006

“Concept study for a high efficiency nanowire based thermoelectric” M. F. O’Dwyer, T. E. Humphrey and H. Linke, Nanotechnology, Volume 17, Number 11 (2006).

“Symmetry of magnetoconductance fluctuations of quantum dots in the nonlinear response regime” A. Löfgren, C.A. Marlow, T. E. Humphrey, I. Shorubalko, R.P. Taylor, P. Omling, R. Newbury, P.E. Lindelof and H. Linke, Phys. Rev. B, 73 235321 (2006).

2005

“Electronic Efficiency in nanostructured thermionic and thermoelectric devices” M. F. O’Dwyer, R. A. Lewis, C. Zhang, T. E. Humphrey, Phys. Rev. B, 72 205330 (2005).

“Reversible thermoelectric nanomaterials” T.E. Humphrey and H. Linke, Phys. Rev. Lett. 94 096601 (2005).

“Solid State thermoelectrics and thermionics in the ballistic transport regime” T.E. Humphrey, M. F. O’Dwyer, C. Zhang and R. Lewis, J. Appl. Phys. 98 026108 (2005).

“Power Optimisation of Thermionic Devices” T.E. Humphrey and H. Linke, J. Phys. D. 38 2051 (2005).

“Particle Conservation in the Hot Carrier Solar Cell” P. Würfel, A. Brown, T.E. Humphrey, M.A. Green, Prog. Photo. 13 277 (2005).

“Quantum, cyclic and particle exchange heat engines” T.E. Humphrey and H. Linke, presented at “Frontiers of Quantum and Mesoscopic Physics”, Prague 2004. Physica E, 29 390 (2005).

2004

“Inhomogeneous doping in thermoelectric nanomaterials” T.E. Humphrey and H. Linke, Plenary presentation at the “International Thermoelectrics Conference”, Adelaide 2004.

2002