Lightness of being
by
Elizabeth Archer
Two
years and half a world away, UniSA chemistry graduate David Snoswell is
hoping to make his mark on the future of photographic display.
Now at the Chemistry Department of the University of Bristol and involved in an exciting two-year project, jointly funded by a government research grant and photographic giant Kodak, Dr Snoswell credits his time at the Ian Wark Research Institute as crucial to his success.
“My PhD has certainly opened up a lot of work opportunities which I’m glad I pursued,” he said.
Dr Snoswell’s research group is highly regarded in the field of colloid science. Its head, Professor Brian Vincent, has authored more than 240 scientific publications.
The group’s new project, worth more than £400,000, centres on colloidal photonic crystals that can create colour from white light. Kodak hopes it will be able to deliver a next-generation display device, one that costs less, shows brighter colours, uses less power and delivers longer battery life.
“It’s very early days yet, but this is the aim, and the initial experiments are promising.”
This work follows on from a previous project, also sponsored by Kodak, that focused on producing porous media by heteroaggregation of colloidal particles. As part of this, Dr Snoswell was involved in a poster presentation in London, had his findings published, and travelled to Rochester, USA, to the company’s headquarters where he presented his findings, and filed a patent.
He’s also been supervising a masters student, something he said was a most rewarding experience, and has delivered presentations at the 79th American Chemical Society conference in Potsdam, USA, and the 19th European Colloid and Interface Society conference in Geilo, Norway.
Dr Snoswell says he’s thoroughly enjoying living in Bristol. He and his family have built strong links to the community, and have been able to take memorable holidays to London, Paris, Geneva and Venice. In August they welcomed a second child.