My research explores different ways of making colourful materials from sustainable building blocks. I am fascinated by the chiral colloidal self-assembly of cellulose nanocrystals and how it can be used to create large-scale films with unique optical properties.
I did my undergraduate studies in Natural Sciences (Physics and Physical Chemistry) at University College London and the California Institute of Technology, and came to Cambridge as part of the NanoDTC MRes+PhD programme.
Publications
Revealing the Structural Coloration of Self-Assembled Chitin Nanocrystal Films
– Advanced Materials
(2022)
e2203300
(DOI: 10.1002/adma.202203300)
Polysaccharide metabolism regulates structural colour in bacterial colonies
– Journal of the Royal Society, Interface
(2022)
19,
20220181
(DOI: 10.1098/rsif.2022.0181)
Chiral self-assembly of cellulose nanocrystals is driven by crystallite bundles.
– Nature Communications
(2022)
13,
2657
(DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-30226-6)
Hyperspectral imaging of photonic cellulose nanocrystal films: Structure of local defects and implications for self-assembly pathways
– ACS nano
(2020)
14,
15361
(DOI: 10.1021/acsnano.0c05785)
Bio-inspired optics: general discussion.
– Faraday discussions
(2020)
223,
183
(DOI: 10.1039/D0FD90014A)
The role of composition: natural materials vs. synthetic composites: general discussion
– Faraday discussions
(2020)
223,
295
(DOI: 10.1039/d0fd90017f)
The role of structure: order vs. disorder in bio-photonic systems: general discussion.
– Faraday Discussions
(2020)
223,
233
(DOI: 10.1039/d0fd90015j)