The awards have been won by Shurui Miao from the University of Oxford, Jennifer Johnstone-Hack from the University of Sheffield and William Sharratt from the University of Liverpool.
ISIS created the Springboard Awards in 2024 to support and encourage early-career researchers to use neutrons and muons in their research. The first three winners were chosen following a competitive process. Their awards will last three years and will provide recipients with funding to present ISIS research at conferences, a case study highlighting their research and the chance to spend an extended period at ISIS, amongst other benefits.
Meet the award winners
Shurui Miao works with ionic liquids, a novel class of solvent which may enable more sustainable chemical processes. Neutrons can probe molecular-level arrangements and sub-diffusive dynamics within these materials, shedding new light on their functional behaviour and design rules. “The Springboard Award provides an excellent opportunity to collaborate with scientists at ISIS, to make new connections and to learn new neutron techniques," Shurui explains. “This award will greatly boost my ability as an early career researcher to secure future funding and demonstrate independence."
Jennifer Johnstone-Hack investigates electrochemical devices using complementary neutron and X-ray methods – for example, she has studied degradation mechanisms in fuel cells. Her current work involves applying X-ray and neutron imaging to improve component performance in polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) water electrolysers - devices that split water to produce hydrogen as a clean energy source. “Collaboration is the best way to do high-quality science, and I feel that the award is an ideal platform to encourage neutron users to work together to solve challenges relating to electrochemical devices, as well as to improve communication and collaboration between researchers," says Jennifer.
William Sharratt uses neutrons to study how polymers and surfactants (soaps) assemble in liquids in order to develop new materials. He has used small-angle neutron scattering to investigate polymer blends with potential applications in separation membranes, and surfactant molecules with a variety of industrial uses. His future research will investigate polymeric hydrogels to develop new materials that mimic biological tissues for medical applications. “This award will support me in establishing an independent research programme using neutron scattering to investigate hydrogels," William explains. “It will also help to support the technical development of sample environment equipment to open up new types of neutron scattering measurements for myself and other researchers in this area."
ISIS is excited to have appointed its first cohort of Springboard Award winners and is looking forward to working with them over the next three years.
There will be a second call for Springboard Award applications in late 2025. Details of the 2024 process and benefits of a Springboard Award can be found on the ISIS website.
