Episode 8: Crystal clear: The chemistry of materials with Dr Anna Regoutz (University College London)

You might know more about solid state chemistry than you think! Whilst you’re cooking with your favourite pots and pans, scrolling on your phone or driving to work, chemical reactions are occurring between all of your essential everyday items. We speak with Dr Anna Regoutz, lecturer at University College London, to understand more about the unique properties and chemical bonds of the materials around us, and how chemistry can contribute to making these materials more sustainable.

Timestamps

Intro [00:00]

Meet the Hosts [01:52]

Materials Background [03:13]

Meet the Guests [05:07]

Interview [08:08]

The Breakdown [29:54]

Expert Test [31:17]

Conclusion [36:01]

Guest

Dr Anna Regoutz

Dr Anna Regoutz is a Lecturer in Materials Chemistry in the Department of Chemistry at University College London (UCL) and a Visiting Scientist at Diamond Light Source. Anna was awarded a D.Phil. in Inorganic Chemistry from the University of Oxford in 2014 and spent her post-doctoral years at the University of Southampton and Imperial College. She became a Research Fellow at the latter before joining UCL in 2019.

Anna’s research focuses on bulk, thin film, and nanomaterials for application in devices, including power electronics, photovoltaics, and biosensors. A significant focus of her work is the development of X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy methods for bulk materials, surfaces, and interfaces. This includes using and developing both laboratory- and synchrotron-based spectroscopic methods to study, in particular, the electronic structure of device-relevant bulk materials and material heterostructures.

Anna received the Royal Society of Chemistry’s Joseph Black Award in 2020 and the element Praseodymium in the Periodic Table of Chemists by IUPAC in 2019. She has been featured in the Merck Next Great Impossible Campaign and the Leading Light series of Diamond Light Source. She is a Specialty Chief Editor in the Chemistry section of Frontiers for Young Minds, an open-access scientific journal written by scientists and reviewed by children.

Credits

Producer: Shazia Ur-Rehman (CTVC)

Content Producer: Stevie Strowman (CTVC)

Guest: Dr Anna Regoutz

Hosts: Mariama Ifode-Blease and Samuel Dada

Guest student: Nitola Islam

Writer: Alastair Collinson (CTVC)

Researchers: William Terry-Wright, Bairavee R T Ravindran

Sound mixer: Pat Pretorius (CTVC)

Cover Art: Sam Osbourne

Learn more

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