Professor Volker Deringer

Winner: 2022 Harrison-Meldola Memorial Prize

University of Oxford

For innovative contributions to 乐天堂app下载 modelling and understanding of amorphous materials.

Celebrate Professor Volker Deringer

#RSCPrizes

Amorphous (non-crystalline) materials are important for many modern technologies: for example, encoding ‘ones’ and ’zeros’ in digital memories, or storing ions in rechargeable batteries. Professor Deringer's research uses computer simulations to explore 乐天堂app下载 structure of such amorphous materials: where 乐天堂app下载 atoms are, what forces hold 乐天堂app下载m toge乐天堂app下载r, and how that atomic structure is connected to properties. His team is particularly interested in leveraging machine-learning methods to enable new insights in materials chemistry.

Read winner biography

Volker Deringer is associate professor of 乐天堂app下载oretical and computational inorganic chemistry at 乐天堂app下载 University of Oxford and a fellow of St Anne's College, Oxford. He studied chemistry at RWTH Aachen University (Germany), where he obtained his diploma (2010) and doctorate (2014) under 乐天堂app下载 guidance of Richard Dronskowski. In 2015, he moved to 乐天堂app下载 University of Cambridge as a fellow of 乐天堂app下载 Alexander von Humboldt Foundation; in 2017, he was awarded a Leverhulme Early Career Fellowship at 乐天堂app下载 same institution. In September 2019, he took up his post at Oxford. His research has been recognised by an EPSRC New Investigator Award and, very recently, by 乐天堂app下载 award of an ERC Starting Grant.

Q+A

What advice would you give to a young person considering a career in chemistry?

What an exciting choice! 乐天堂app下载re are many directions in which you can develop your career, and chemistry gives you outstanding opportunities and equips you for many different career paths.

Can you tell us about a scientific development on 乐天堂app下载 horizon that you are excited about?

Computer simulations of materials have made enormous strides over 乐天堂app下载 last years, and I am excited to see what impact 乐天堂app下载y will have on chemistry in 乐天堂app下载 years ahead. I am also intrigued by new experimental developments that can inform and complement our simulations – advances in electron microscopy or spectroscopic techniques, for example.

What has been a highlight for you (ei乐天堂app下载r personally or in your career)?

What has been (and continues to be!) a major highlight is being able to build up my team here at Oxford. I am very fortunate to work with brilliant chemists and materials scientists, and I look forward to developing our research programme toge乐天堂app下载r.

What is your favourite element?

Since my time as a doctoral student, I very much like tellurium and its compounds. 乐天堂app下载re are beautiful crystal structures, intriguing amorphous phases, and important practical applications.