AMN11 conference - Annual Report 2025

31 May, 2026

The 11th International Conference on Advanced Materials and Nanotechnology (AMN11), held 9 - 13 February 2025 in Ōtautahi Christchurch, was a strong success and received excellent feedback from participants. The biennial international conference (the largest in the Southern Hemisphere in the year it is run) welcomed 459 attendees, including five plenary speakers and 18 keynote speakers. More than 200 delegates travelled from overseas, with the largest contingents coming from Australia, South Korea, Germany, Taiwan and the United Kingdom, underscoring the event's global reach and reputation.

A highlight of the programme was the Tech Tasters session, held on the Tuesday evening, which showcased five innovative start-ups. Speakers included Dr Barry Prince (Fabrum), Fin McIntyre (Dual Axis Spin "Curve" coating), Dr Megan Danczyk (Aspiring Materials), Dr Debbie Munro (Munro Medical) and Alaina Pitt (OpenStar Technologies). The session was made possible through the generous support of primary sponsor InFact Limited. With over 100 registered attendees, the event created a vibrant atmosphere for networking and discussion, successfully connecting graduates with employers, fostering collaboration opportunities and engaging potential investors.

Another highlight was the extensive AMN11 outreach programme we ran in partnership with Tūhura Otago Museum. Led by Dr Marijn Kouwenhoven and based at Tūranga, Christchurch Central Library, the programme engaged the community through a weekend Pop-up Nano and Materials Science station (80 visitors), 'People Like Me' workshops for secondary students (60 participants) and a panel celebrating women and gender minorities in STEM (40+ attendees). It also featured a public lecture (supported by the University of Canterbury and ChristchurchNZ) by Nobel Laureate Professor Moungi Bawendi (MIT), attended by over 400 people, exploring the origins, development and applications of quantum dots over nearly four decades.

The conference attracted broader public interest as well, with RNZ featuring an interview with plenary speaker Professor Roisin Owens (University of Cambridge) on her research into the gut-brain axis. In parallel, Principal Investigator Professor Simon Brown convened a high-profile symposium on unconventional computing.