Professor Laura Herz has been elected Fellow of the Royal Society for her study of light-harvesting and energy-conversion pathways in emerging semiconducting materials.
Professor Herz has identified the fundamental mechanisms governing optoelectronic properties of metal-halide perovskites, which has underpinned and propelled their advancement in high performance solar cells. She has explored electronic delocalisation in pi-conjugated molecules, demonstrating for example rapid electronic delocalisation and energy transfer in biomimetic porphyrin nanorings. Her research has pushed boundaries across interdisciplinary themes including light-matter interactions, molecular self-assembly, biomimetic systems, nanoscience and renewable energy conversion. Her work has set the agenda for the fundamental understanding of the materials and systems that she has studied, and been central in guiding advancements in materials synthesis, chemical engineering and advancing technology for renewable energy conversion.
‘I am absolutely delighted to be elected a fellow of the Royal Society and look forward to working with them on their mission to promote excellence in science,’ Comments Professor Herz. ‘This honour would not have been possible without the ingenuity, curiosity and collaborative spirit of the many exceptional early-career researchers I have been privileged to mentor as part of my team.’
Professor Ian Shipsey, Head of the Department of Physics at Oxford comments: ‘This recognition is so thoroughly deserved. Not only is Laura an excellent physicist and a leader in her field, but she is also an exceptional role model and does so much to ensure excellence across the Department of Physics. She is a fantastic colleague and this is a wonderful accolade.’