Professor Reinhard Maurer MRSC

When I was seven, I watched the movie Back to the Future for the first time. From that point onwards, I wanted to be a scientist. I didn’t quite know what it meant to be a scientist, but I knew it meant passionately working on interesting and unusual problems. Later came my interest in computers and then my passion for chemistry in school. Now, I happily inhabit the strange space that sits in between all those things.

I am excited about recent progress in experimentation. The time and space resolution of experiments is improving at a rapid pace with new facilities coming online (fourth generation synchrotrons, free electron laser facilities, ultrafast spectroscopy, atomic resolution TEM). This motivates the development of new theory and simulation capabilities to understand the motion of electrons and atoms at the scale of femtoseconds and nanometers.

Being able to play a supporting role in the academic and career progression of others continues to be a highlight of the job. I studied chemistry because my main interest was research. At the time, I would not have thought how rewarding the teamwork and mentorship aspect of academic research can be.

Most modern scientific challenges cannot be tackled by a single person who is an expert in a single field. By working together, we can have more impact. Discussing and solving hard problems with others is the best part of science.

I am a big fan of transition metal elements. They make ions in solution, minerals, magnets, catalysts, wires and electrodes. Depending on their oxidation state and bonding partners, they can engage in metallic, ionic and covalent chemical bonds. I have spent most of my time studying chemistry at coinage metal surfaces (Cu, Ag, Au).