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Professor of Materials Science, Department of Materials Science and Metallurgy, University of Cambridge
Professor Rachel Oliver is Director of the Cambridge Centre for Gallium Nitride. The focus of her research is understanding how the small scale structure of nitride materials affects the performance and properties of devices. She uses expertise in microscopy and materials growth to develop new nanoscale nitride structures which will provide new functionality to the devices of the future. The devices which interest her include light emitting diodes for energy efficient lighting, and power electronics for low loss power conversion and transmission. By engineering the nanoscale structure of the relevant materials, she aims to make devices which not only waste less energy but are also cheaper and have improved function, to hasten consumer uptake of energy efficient technologies.
Rachel is also a founder and Chief Scientific Officer of Porotech, a University spinout company exploiting her group’s research on porous nitrides, and hence developing novel microLED displays. Porotech won the Business Start-Up Award from the Institute of Physics (IoP) in 2022. Due to both her academic expertise and her experience of early-stage commercialization, Rachel has been extensively involved in the development of the UK Semiconductor Strategy. In addition to a wide range of consultations with civil servants, she contributed to reports on this topic by both the Royal Academy of Engineering and the IoP, chairing key discussions in the latter case. She was also a UK delegate on the 2023 Semiconductor Sector Visit to Washington DC organised by the Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office and the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology
Rachel was Equality and Diversity Champion for the School of Physical Sciences at Cambridge from 2020 - 2023, and is a founder member of The Inclusion Group for Equity in Research in STEMM (TIGERS), a national campaign group focused on improving diversity and inclusivity in the scientific research community. She led a successful campaign for an inquiry by the House of Commons Select Committee on Science and Technology into the impact of funding policy on equality and diversity in science and related fields. She has also driven policy changes at the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining concerning prevention of harassment in engineering. Her campaigning work is underpinned by her belief that positive societal impact from scientific research is most effectively achieved when the research community embodies genuine diversity.
