Claire giving her Magic Materials & The Science of Invisibility talk
Exeter Physics PhD student educates the scientists of the future
Claire Woollacott, a theoretical physicist and researcher at the University of Exeter, has been busy inspiring students in local schools, through the Institute of Physics' Schools Lecture Tour, and is the first postgraduate student to take part in the initiative.
She has given a series of lectures at 20 secondary schools in the south west, covering Devon, Cornwall, Somerset and Dorset. The lectures, aimed at 11-18 year olds, were intended to encourage students to enjoy science and were titled Magic Materials & The Science of Invisibility.
The talks began with a brief look at important material properties, then students were shown some 'magic' materials that exist in nature, and discovered how some natural organisms are covered in amazing structures that give them extraordinary properties. For example, some butterflies' wings are covered in tiny tree-like nanostructures which are known to be responsible for the butterfly’s brilliant metallic blue iridescence, due to light interference effects. Students explored how their intricate structural properties are inspiring the production of man-made materials (metamaterials), to create new properties not seen in nature – invisibility to name just one!
Claire said “The talks were a great opportunity for students to see how science learned in the classroom is being applied in this exciting research field, and how, by using both our fundamental understanding of physics and a close examination of the natural world, the frontiers of our knowledge and capabilities are being expanded.”
They proved to be a big hit with students. Darcy in Year 10 at Mounts Bay Academy, Penzance, described it as “Inspirational” and Isaac in Year 11 said “It was truly inspiring and very interesting. It made me seriously consider a future career path in physics and finding new materials and technologies. I loved it.”
Claire particularly hopes she has inspired more females into the area; tying in with the University of Exeter’s Athena SWAN charter, which aims to support and encourage gender equality within STEMM disciplines.
Claire finished her Masters degree in physics three years ago and is now coming to the end of her doctorate degree. Her research is inspired by the wonder material that is graphene, combining it with metamaterial physics in order to investigate efficient propagation of radiation in modern opto-electronic devices.
Date: 10 October 2014
