His current interests include the optical properties of single quantum dots, surface plasmon spectroscopy of single metal particles, nanocrystal based electronics, nanomechanics and solar energy conversion. To date he has published some 350 scientific papers averaging around 140 citations per publication. The Nanoscience Laboratory at the University of Melbourne focuses on the chemistry and physics of nanoscale materials, particularly optical properties. The Laboratory has 4 postdoctoral researchers and 12 PhD students and group members come from numerous countries including Germany, China, India, Korea and Iran. Current funding comes from the Australian Research Council (ARC), Alexander von Humboldt Foundation in Germany and the Department of Industry, Innovation & Science (DIISR). The NSL collaborates with a number of Australian and international centres including the Technical University and the Frei University (Berlin), CSIRO, University of Colorado in Boulder, Colorado and Bayreuth University, Germany as well as CIGIT and SCNU in China .