After gaining his PhD in 1953, Professor Smallman spent five years at the Atomic Energy Research
Establishment at Harwell before returning to the University of Birmingham, where he became Professor
of Physical Metallurgy in 1964 and Feeney Professor and Head of the Department of Physical
Metallurgy and Science of Materials in 1969. He subsequently became Head of the amalgamated
Department of Metallurgy and Materials (1981), Dean of the Faculty of Science and Engineering, and
the first Dean of the newly created Engineering Faculty in 1985. For five years he wasVice-Principal
of the University (1987-92).
He has held visiting professorship appointments at the University of Stanford, Berkeley, Pennsylvania
(USA), New SouthWales (Australia), Hong Kong and Cape Town, and has received Honorary
Doctorates from the University of Novi Sad (Yugoslavia), University ofWales and Cranfield University.
His research work has been recognized by the award of the Sir George Beilby Gold Medal of the
Royal Institute of Chemistry and Institute of Metals (1969), the Rosenhain Medal of the Institute of
Metals for contributions to Physical Metallurgy (1972), the Platinum Medal, the premier medal of
the Institute of Materials (1989), and the Acta Materialia Gold Medal (2004).
Hewas elected a Fellowof the Royal Society (1986), a Fellowof the RoyalAcademy of Engineering
(1990), a Foreign Associate of the United States National Academy of Engineering (2005), and
appointed a Commander of the British Empire (CBE) in 1992. A former Council Member of the
Science and Engineering Research Council, he has been Vice-President of the Institute of Materials
and President of the Federated European Materials Societies. Since retirement he has been academic
consultant for a number of institutions both in the UK and overseas.
Professor Ngan obtained his PhD on electron microscopy of intermetallics in 1992 at the University
of Birmingham, under the supervision of Professor Ray Smallman and Professor Ian Jones. He then
carried out postdoctoral research at Oxford University on materials simulations under the supervision
of Professor David Pettifor. In 1993, he returned to the University of Hong Kong as a Lecturer in
Materials Science and Solid Mechanics, at the Department of Mechanical Engineering. In 2003,
he became Senior Lecturer and in 2006 Professor. His research interests include dislocation theory,
electron microscopy of materials and, more recently, nanomechanics. He has published over 120
refereed papers, mostly in international journals. He received a number of awards, including the
Williamson Prize (for being the top Engineering student in his undergraduate studies at the University
of Hong Kong), Thomas Turner Research Prize (for the quality of his PhD thesis at the University of
Birmingham), Outstanding Young Researcher Award at the University of Hong Kong, and in 2007
was awarded the Rosenhain Medal of the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining. He also held
visiting professorship appointments at Nanjing University and the Central Iron and Steel Research
Institute in Beijing, and in 2003, he was also awarded the Universitas 21 Fellowship to visit the
University of Auckland. He is active in conference organization and journal editorial work.
