Young Tall Poppy Award
By Lea Kivivali
Monday, January 1, 2007
Dr Paul Stoddart, of the Centre for Atom Optics and Ultrafast Spectroscopy, recently had his research in Applied Optics and Nanotechnology recognised by a Young Tall Poppy Award. Sponsored by state governments and the private sector, the awards are run by the Australian Institute of Policy & Science and recognise the achievements of Australia's outstanding young researchers in the sciences.
Paul enjoys the challenges of working on a variety of scientific problems, ranging from building devices just a few hundred atoms across, to measuring the shape of ‚invisible structures. Some of Paul's work has been inspired by the microscopic structures on cicada wings. He has studied the anti-reflective properties of their surface, using them as a template to develop a laser spectroscopy platform for sensitive chemical detection.
"At present, my main focus is on the development of an optical fibre probe for the continuous monitoring of blood glucose levels for diabetics and the detection of contaminants in water."
"The sensing process requires the fabrication of thousands of tiny metal structures on the tip of an optical fibre a challenging task on an area the size of a pin point
This is just one aspect of his research in which he aims to apply cutting edge optical technologies to challenging problems in medicine and industry. He has also helped to develop an on-line system for measuring the shape of car windscreens and a sensor that can simultaneously monitor the temperature at thousands of points along a power line.
Paul is looking forward to being an ambassador for science as part of the Tall Poppies Reaching Kids program and showing students how scientists need to be creative in taking inspiration from apparently unrelated fields to solve real-world problems.
"I am very interested in the interface between science and society, particularly at a time when my discipline, Physicsis struggling to attract the best young minds.
"The Tall Poppy Awards demonstrate the value of scientists and researchers as role models and are geared towards promoting science as a career."
Under this outreach program Dr Stoddart will be making visits to schools and educational organisations to talk to students about his life as a scientist, discuss his day-to-day work and the benefits of science and research in today's world.