Inside the Fundamental Materials Properties Institute

Since her first experience of a big city—she grew up in Montana—Macauley has been interested in energy research, thinking there must be a better, cleaner means of transport. However, her academic career didn’t start with energy research. Instead, she studied chemical engineering at Montana State University: “I felt it would open up more diverse career opportunities than a degree in another engineering discipline.”

But during her studies, she was drawn to energy research. “I realized that many problems in energy research are related to material science,” says Macauley. She chose to pursue a program in energy engineering during her year abroad in Västerås, Sweden. She then applied successfully for a PhD program in material science at the University of California, Santa Barbara—one of the best programs in this field. There, she researched high temperature ceramics used in jet engines—an entirely new field for her. “Getting into a new area was challenging. It was definitely a steep learning curve, but I like to be flexible and adaptable. I think it’s a much needed quality these days.”

After obtaining her PhD, she jumped at the opportunity to live in Europe again. She moved to Germany to join the material science department at FAU: From previous projects she knew Dr. Peter Felfer, Chair of General Material Properties, and Dr. Kyle G. Webber, Chair of Glass and Ceramics at FAU who both told her about the great opportunities FAU offers young researchers. “I wanted to move abroad and expand my research experience to new areas,” she explains. “FAU was a great choice for me because it has excellent research facilities and I get to work with experts in their respective fields,” she adds.

At FAU, she has access to the most advanced technology for analyzing the chemical composition and structure of materials. She also has the opportunity to cooperate with a variety of research groups across disciplines. “Among other collaborative partners, we work closely with the Helmholtz Institute Erlangen-Nuremberg. As a result, there are always interesting challenges to solve through research,” says Macauley.

In the near future, she wants to focus on developing more collaborations and to continue working on application-focused research. For example, she co-organized an atom probe workshop that offered young and experienced researchers a thorough introduction to the physical fundamentals of atomic probe tomography, sample preparation and data reconstruction and interpretation. In addition, there were parallel practical sessions that allowed the participants to produce their own samples, to carry out measurements and to reconstruct their data. Furthermore, the seminar opened up a good opportunity for young scientists to get into contact with experienced colleagues of the atom probe community, thus furthering the international exchange.