Nicholas Charles Handy (17 June 1941 – 2 October 2012) was a British theoretical chemist. He retired as Professor of quantum chemistry at the University of Cambridge in September 2004.

Education and early life

Handy was born in Wiltshire, England and educated at Clayesmore School. He studied the Mathematical Tripos at the University of Cambridge and completed his PhD on theoretical chemistry supervised by Samuel Francis Boys.

Research

Handy wrote 320 scientific papers published in physical and theoretical chemistry journals. Handy developed several methods in quantum chemistry and theoretical spectroscopy. His contributions have helped greatly to the understanding of:

Awards and honours

Handy was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society (FRS) in 1990. He was awarded the Leverhulme Medal in 2002 and was a member of the International Academy of Quantum Molecular Science.

Death

On 2 October 2012 Nicholas died after a brief battle with pancreatic cancer.