Dr Jess Wade, 29, is a Research Associate in the Department of Physics and Centre for Plastic Electronics at Imperial College, London
I?m responsible for…
Creating light-emitting diodes from organic molecules ? I work at the interface of chemistry, material science and physics. Under the right circumstances, organic molecules and polymers can act as semiconductors ? half way between an insulator and a conductor ? which we can use to make all different kinds of electronic devices, from solar panels to light emitting diodes and biological sensors.
My job at Imperial College is to choose which materials to use, find a way to dissolve them to create a semiconducting ink, and print them on to a substrate. Alongside research, I keep our lab in order, which means ordering parts and building different pieces of equipment. I have a few PhD and Masters students to supervise, and I get to do some undergraduate teaching, which I love. My typical day…
I wake up and cycle to work ? it is beautiful, straight through Hyde Park, and I get a great view of Buckingham Palace and the Shard. There is a massive cycle lane there now, which makes it much safer. I usually work for an hour or so before going for a swim at Imperial?s amazing sports club. The super brave scientists swim in the Serpentine, the river in the middle of Hyde Park. If swimming is not your thing, we also have a climbing wall!
I got my job…
After completing an art foundation course at Chelsea College of Art &...