Name: Lizzie

Description of my research: I am an energy material researcher and I am currently working on new materials for rechargeable Lithium-ion batteries. You might have come across these batteries in smart phones, tablets and laptops.

Favourite thing about my job: I love the variety my job offers. I can be working in the lab one minute, doing analysis in the office the next, and then supporting the undergraduate student teaching. I get to meet a lot of people!

Coolest thing I’ve ever done: Kayak in Old Greenwich, USA in September sunshine where the Manhattan skyline was visible on the horizon.

My earliest memory of science: The one that comes to mind was in Year 7 we used a pringle can to see how light travels. On an internet search, you can find it as the Pringle tube pinhole camera experiment.

Favourite scientist from history: Brian Cox. I remember during my A levels watching his lecture titled ‘A night with the stars’ and being fascinated with all the demonstrations.

Birthday: November

Favourite food: Like Garfield, I love lasagne!

Favourite subject when I was at school: This question is really tricky for me to pick one subject alone! Sorry science, but it’s going to have to be art.

Hobbies: I’ve always loved art, but sadly at A level it had to remain as a hobby to pursue a science career but that hasn’t stopped me from painting. I am also a big reader and can get lost in a story for hours.

Interesting fact about me: I’m not the first and only member of my family to study Chemistry at the University of Birmingham. I currently get to work with my fab big sister Dr Laura Driscoll. Go Team Driscoll!

To learn more about batteries, check out our video on how Li-ion batteries operate!

Teachers: Lizzie has published a paper in J. Chem. Ed. about how to use Jenga to describe how batteries work check it out here https://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/acs.jchemed.0c00282 she also made videos explaining how to use them

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