Michael D. Towler (also referred to as ''Mike Towler'', complete name ''Michael David Towler'') is a theoretical

physicist A physicist is a scientist who specializes in the field of physics, which encompasses the interactions of matter and energy at all length and time scales in the physical universe. Physicists generally are interested in the root or ultimate cau ...

associated with the

Cavendish Laboratory The Cavendish Laboratory is the Department of Physics at the University of Cambridge, and is part of the School of Physical Sciences. The laboratory was opened in 1874 on the New Museums Site as a laboratory for experimental physics and is named ...

of the

University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

and formerly research associate at

University College, London University College London (Trade name, branded as UCL) is a Public university, public research university in London, England. It is a Member institutions of the University of London, member institution of the Federal university, federal Uni ...

and College Lecturer at

Emmanuel College, Cambridge Emmanuel College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was founded in 1584 by Sir Walter Mildmay, Chancellor of the Exchequer to Elizabeth I. The site on which the college sits was once a priory for Dominican mo ...

. He created and owns the ''Towler Institute'' in Vallico di Sotto in

Tuscany Tuscany ( ; ) is a Regions of Italy, region in central Italy with an area of about and a population of 3,660,834 inhabitants as of 2025. The capital city is Florence. Tuscany is known for its landscapes, history, artistic legacy, and its in ...

, Italy.

Biography

Education, career and personal life

Towler obtained an undergraduate degree from

Bristol University The University of Bristol is a public research university in Bristol, England. It received its royal charter in 1909, although it can trace its roots to a Merchant Venturers' school founded in 1595 and University College, Bristol, which had ...

in 1991, as well as his Ph.D. in 1994. From 1994 to 1996, he was research fellow at the

University of Torino The University of Turin (Italian language, Italian: ''Università degli Studi di Torino'', UNITO) is a public university, public research university in the city of Turin, in the Piedmont (Italy), Piedmont region of Italy. It is one of the List ...

, Italy. From 1997 onwards, he has been closely associated with the

Theory of Condensed Matter group The Cavendish Laboratory is the Department of Physics at the University of Cambridge, and is part of the School of Physical Sciences. The laboratory was opened in 1874 on the New Museums Site as a laboratory for experimental physics and is named ...

(TCM) of Cambridge University's Cavendish Laboratory. Initially, until 2000, he was postdoctoral research associate, subsequently held a Lloyd's Fellowship, and from 2002 to 2010 he was Royal Society research fellow of the Cavendish Laboratory. Additionally, from 2002 to 2012 he was a College Lecturer at

.Curriculum Vitae, Michael David Towler
last updated: May 2015, retrieved: 30 August 2022) In October 2010, Towler became a postdoctoral research associate at the Department of Earth Sciences,

, although he retained a desk in TCM until 2015.List of Alumni, TCM Group
(retrieved 30 August 2022) He is married to bronze sculptor and philosopher Samantha Keil.Mike Towler
homepage at Theory of Condensed Matter group (TCM), Cavendish Laboratory

Work

Towler has been working on

electronic structure Quantum chemistry, also called molecular quantum mechanics, is a branch of physical chemistry focused on the application of quantum mechanics to chemical systems, particularly towards the quantum-mechanical calculation of electronic contributions ...

theory and its application to the simulation of physical systems, including

quantum Monte Carlo Quantum Monte Carlo encompasses a large family of computational methods whose common aim is the study of complex quantum systems. One of the major goals of these approaches is to provide a reliable solution (or an accurate approximation) of the ...

simulations,

density functional theory Density functional theory (DFT) is a computational quantum mechanical modelling method used in physics, chemistry and materials science to investigate the electronic structure (or nuclear structure) (principally the ground state) of many-body ...

and methods of

quantum chemistry Quantum chemistry, also called molecular quantum mechanics, is a branch of physical chemistry focused on the application of quantum mechanics to chemical systems, particularly towards the quantum-mechanical calculation of electronic contributions ...

. He has worked on foundational issues in density functional theory and in quantum mechanics, in particular concerning the

de Broglie–Bohm theory The de Broglie–Bohm theory is an interpretation of quantum mechanics which postulates that, in addition to the wavefunction, an actual configuration of particles exists, even when unobserved. The evolution over time of the configuration of all ...

and the

pilot wave In theoretical physics, the pilot wave theory, also known as Bohmian mechanics, was the first known example of a hidden-variable theory, presented by Louis de Broglie in 1927. Its more modern version, the de Broglie–Bohm theory, interprets quan ...

formulation. Towler developed the Cavendish Laboratory's de Broglie–Bohm simulation software LOUIS and is one of the principal authors of the Cambridge

code

CASINO A casino is a facility for gambling. Casinos are often built near or combined with hotels, resorts, restaurants, retail shops, cruise ships, and other tourist attractions. Some casinos also host live entertainment, such as stand-up comedy, conce ...

. Earlier, Towler had maintained a resources page for the electronic structure program for the

CRYSTAL A crystal or crystalline solid is a solid material whose constituents (such as atoms, molecules, or ions) are arranged in a highly ordered microscopic structure, forming a crystal lattice that extends in all directions. In addition, macros ...

software package.

Towler Institute

In 2005, Towler opened the ''Towler Institute'', a science institute, conference centre and events venue in a 16th-century monastery situated in the village Vallico di Sotto in

, Italy, which he owns. Since 2005, over 350 scientists have attended one or several of the 18 events held at the Towler Institute. The events include the annual conference series ''Quantum Monte Carlo in the Apuan Alps'' held annually in July since 2005 and, since August 2006, the annual ''Quantum Monte Carlo and the CASINO program'' summer schools. In 2010, together with

Antony Valentini Antony Valentini (born 28 January 1965) is a British-Italian theoretical physicist known for his work on the foundations of quantum physics.Lee Smolin: '' The Trouble With Physics: The Rise of String Theory, The Fall of a Science, and What Comes ...

, he organized a conference on the de Broglie-Bohm theory the ''Apuan Alps Centre for Physics'' in late August 2010, hosted at the Towler Institute and attended by many leading physicists.

Publications

, Towler is author of “almost 60 refereed publications with over 1200 citations and a

H-index The ''h''-index is an author-level metric that measures both the productivity and citation impact of the publications, initially used for an individual scientist or scholar. The ''h''-index correlates with success indicators such as winning t ...

of 19”.Mike Towler
, Cambridge University staff list

References

External links

Mike Towler
homepage at Theory of Condensed Matter group (TCM), Cavendish Laboratory
Mike Towler
at Cambridge University staff list

{{DEFAULTSORT:Towler, Michael D. Living people British physicists Year of birth missing (living people) British quantum physicists British theoretical physicists Academics of University College London