Winner: 2023 Centenary Prize
Professor Christopher Barner-Kowollik
Queensland University of Technology
View ProfileFor the development and photophysical understanding of precision macromolecular photochemistry, and for excellence in communication.
Professor Christopher Barner-Kowollik is fascinated by light and its interactions with matter. Light enables the key biochemical process that sustains us all: photosynthesis. In the lab, using light to trigger chemical reactions has mostly been based on broadly emitting light sources that emit many colours of light (i.e. wavelengths) at the same time. This has made the triggering process very undefined: like hitting an object with a sledgehammer to shape it. Christopher and his team have transformed photochemistry using defined monochromatic wavelengths to induce chemical transformations. This ‘action plot analysis’ allows us, for the first time, to understand photochemical processes with never-before-seen precision. This precision enables chemists to design reaction systems, including those in the realm of polymer chemistry, that respond selectively to specific wavelengths. It’s now possible, for example, to generate different material properties from a specific 3D printing resin by simply changing the colour of light it is irradiated with. The team hope that their action plot analysis technique will be used by photochemists all over the world as the tuneable laser systems that underpin it have become very economical and simple to operate.
Biography
A macromolecular photochemist and PhD graduate from Göttingen University, Christopher Barner-Kowollik joined the University of New South Wales in early 2000 rising to co-lead its Centre for Advanced Macromolecular Design. In 2008, he accepted a professorial chair at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology where he established and led a German Research Council funded Centre of Excellence. In 2017, he established Queensland University of Technology’s soft matter materials laboratory, one of the world's leading photochemical laboratories. He leads and supports highly collaborative large teams and has over 280 alumni and alumnae. He has authored over 750 peer reviewed publications, which have been cited nearly 44,000 times. Christopher's research achievements have been recognised by a wide array of national and international awards including: the Helmholtz Association’s coveted Erwin Schrödinger Award; the United Kingdom Macro Medal; the Belgian Polymer Medal; the European Polymer Federation Prize; the Australian Academy of Science’s David Craig Medal; the Royal Australian Chemical Institute; the Royal Society of New South Wales; and a professorial laureate fellowship from the Australian Research Council.
Q&A with Professor Christopher Barner-Kowollik
How did you first become interested in chemistry?
Initially, I was very firmly set on studying history at university, which has remained one of my favourite interests beside chemistry. In fact, in my early years of high school I was quite hopeless at chemistry and I was fully intent on getting rid of it as a subject as fast as I could. However, during a high school stay of a year in the United States, I had a brilliant and inspiring chemistry teacher, Ms. Schweitzer, and I was hooked. As so many people have observed – everything is interesting, it all just depends on the teacher.
Tell us about somebody who has inspired or mentored you in your career.
The people that have inspired and continue to inspire me every day are my group members, the undergraduate research students, the Masters and PhD students as well as the postdoctoral researchers and, of course, my subgroup leaders. Working with them every day is not only continued inspiration but also a privilege and reward. Of a previous generation of chemists, my PhD advisor Professor Michael Buback not only introduced me to physical polymer chemistry, but also how to deliver high quality science, while my postdoctoral mentor, Professor Tom Davis, encouraged me to follow my ideas, no matter how out-of-the-box they were, and taught me how to give group members the intellectual space they need to flourish. Later in my career, my current boss, Professor Margaret Sheil, Vice-Chancellor of Queensland University of Technology (QUT), mass spectrometry legend, has taught me how to lead research on an institutional level in addition to leading my own research team.
What motivates you?
The thrill of the new, the unknown and finding out about nature, not only in chemistry, my field, but also more broadly in the world. The world is a beautiful place and art and science – the two main drivers of human civilisation – continue to amaze me every day. As already noted, my research team motivates me every day; it is such a pleasure and privilege to see young people mature into confident scientists. Perhaps most importantly my partner Sally and our children Ellie, Lars and Mika, are a continuous source of inspiration with their curiosity about the world and the amazing discussions we have.
What advice would you give to a young person considering a career in chemistry?
Chemistry is the central science, the science that is at the core of our well-being and it will always be relevant. The best advice I could give is to be passionate about what you do and do not be discouraged by setbacks and disappointment. Believe in your dreams whatever they are and, perhaps most importantly, surround yourself with kind, generous and good people.
Can you tell us about a scientific development on the horizon that you are excited about?
While I would love to give an example from my own field of chemistry, I am most excited about the field of astrophysics and space exploration. Nobel Prize Laureate Brian Schmidt's work has really inspired me as it asks the big questions about the universe. The fact that our universe is expanding at an ever-increasing rate, the hunt for dark matter and dark energy are extremely fascinating and I am following the developments as best I can from a lay perspective.
Why is chemistry important?
Chemistry is the central science, at the basis of life, evolution and modern society underpinned by materials and medicines. Quite simply put, nature wants us dead by 50. The fact that we live to nearly 80 years now (on average) is essentially a result of chemistry. It is fascinating to think that our thoughts and emotions are just a result of complex chemical reaction systems, too. Many people do not realise this, but anybody who even had one glass of wine in their life can evidence that chemistry is at the core of all feelings. In my view, this is perhaps one of the most simple ways to explain the impact of chemistry to a non-scientist.
What has been a challenge for you (either personally or in your career)?
Personally, the most significant challenge was, and continues to be, balancing my love of science and having a balanced life at the same time. What I find, on a systems level, the most challenging aspect of my career, and perhaps this resonates with other chemists as well, are the increasing requirements of governments and their funding bodies to deliver tangible outcomes from fundamental research in short time frames. This is perhaps the most critical danger that contemporary science faces and current governments around the world are actively destroying humanity's ability to solve grant challenges over time spans of 20 to 30 years or even more. I have no answer for how to overcome the political short-sightedness we are facing, but it feels like a very personal current challenge.
What does good research culture look like/mean to you?
A good research culture is one where there are no intellectual hierarchies. The value of an idea is no function of who has the idea: it doesn't matter if it's the undergraduate summer scholar, PhD student, postdoc or professor. A laboratory leader that recognises this will head a thriving and vibrant intellectual environment.
What is your favourite element?
For some very strange reason, it is antimony (Sb). I don't know exactly why, but in my undergraduate chemistry course at the University of Constance, Germany, it was one I had to prepare via a reduction and remember being very fascinated by its matt shiny smooth appearance. Its ancient Greek translation means 'not alone' as it always comes in the company of other elements and this, I find, is quite comforting.