Professor Joanne Etheridge FAA has been awarded the Australian Institute of Physics (AIP) Walter Boas Medal for Excellence in Research for her development of new methods to ‘see’ the structure of materials at the level of atoms.
It’s the first time a Monash University researcher has won the award in its’ 40-year history.
Her research improves the capability of electron microscopes, allowing scientists and engineers to observe and analyse structural features in materials that were previously unseen. Understanding the structure of a material is critical for understanding its properties.
These methods open up possibilities for material and device design in fields as diverse as energy storage and production, computing, drug delivery, sustainable energy, communications and lighting.
Professor Etheridge, who is the Scientific Director of the Monash Centre of Electron Microscopy (MCEM) and the Georgina Sweet Australian Laureate Professor in the School of Physics and Astronomy, said she couldn’t have achieved the result without the support of the Monash scientific community.
“This award is a testament to the many talented researchers and students I have had the privilege to work with,” she said.
“It could not have happened without the exceptional research environment at Monash University, in particular the expert capability at the Monash Centre for Electron Microscopy and more broadly in the School of Physics and Astronomy and Department of Materials Science and Engineering.”
Interim Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Senior Vice-President, Professor Mike Ryan, said, “Congratulations Professor Etheridge on this award. It’s a real testament to her incredible contribution to electron microscopy which has a wider-ranging impact across many scientific applications.”
Professor Etheridge’s work utilises electron microscopy and diffraction which is a technique that uses beams of electrons to probe matter to determine its structure and composition.
These methods are used to examine the structure-property relationships in distinctive materials.
The research is conducted at the MCEM, a Monash University Research Platform and a leading international research centre in electron microscopy.
Monash is home to an extensive network of 22 world leading research platforms and research infrastructure facilities that provide technical support and scientific expertise to our research community and industry.
The MCEM combines state-of-the-art instrumentation with specialist expertise in electron microscopy to enable scientists and engineers to solve major scientific challenges.
