Message from the Chairperson

On behalf of my colleagues in the Department of Physics and Electronics at Rhodes University as well as the Local Organising Committee, I am delighted to welcome delegates to the 2024 South African Institute of Physics conference (SAIP2024).

Rhodes University has a long and proud association with physics in South Africa. 
The Department of Physics at this university was established in 1905, a year after the founding of the university. 

2024 at Rhodes University is therefore not just any other year.
The university will be proudly celebrating its 120th anniversary. 

Rhodes University has a well-established reputation for high academic standards in teaching and research and is one of the top public universities in South Africa.
When its founders signed off the establishment of this institution in 1904, no mind – no matter how sharp - would have predicted a physics conference at ‘Rhodes’ in 2024.  SAIP2024 is unique and your presence will make it memorable.

The conference proper will be preceded by a Winter School on the Physics of defects in solids which will be held on 1 July 2024.  We encourage all those with an interest in the experimental, theoretical and computational aspects of the physics of defects in solids to attend.

The meeting will offer a platform for not only sharing the latest developments in physics but also networking by bringing together students, early career- and established researchers.  Outside the formalities, there are, without a doubt, old friends to catch up with and new ones to make.  I wish you a worthwhile and enjoyable meeting.

Makaiko Chithambo
Head: Department of Physics and Electronics
Chairperson, SAIP2024