Professor Mike Whelan

We were deeply saddened to learn of the death of Professor Mike Whelan FRS on 30 November 2024, at the age of 93.

Professor Whelan was almost one of the original members of this department - he joined us in 1966. He began his academic career as a PostDoc with Professor Sir Peter Hirsch FRS in Cambridge, working on X-ray diffraction. After moving to Oxford he developed an interest in electron microscopy . He pioneered the use of transmission electron microscopy to study defects in crystals. He also developed the theories of image contrast, which are essential for interpreting electron micrographs.