Patrick is an ARC Industry Fellow and Associate Professor in Nuclear Materials at the UNSW Sydney, with a PhD in computational materials engineering from Imperial College London (2015).

His research focuses on understanding the degradation mechanisms of materials used in energy applications, especially those exposed to extreme environments like fusion and fission energy. He achieves this using atomic-scale simulations, often coupled with advanced in-situ characterization techniques.

In recent years, he has helped development materials for fusion energy, nuclear structural materials, hydrogen-tolerant materials and nuclear fuels. He has now started a project that will deliver the first fusion device entirely designed, built and operated by students.