Dora A. González, a PhD student who is under Prof. Emilio Palomares’ supervision, has successfully defended her PhD thesis entitled “Synthetic Approaches for the Development of Organic Molecules and their Application” publicly on Thursday, May 16th.
The members of the evaluation committee were Prof. Lluis Francesc Marsal Garví (URV), Prof. Annamaria Petrozza (Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Italy) and Dr. Sofía Masi (Instituto de Materiales Avanzados, Spain).
Dr. González was born in Mexico and studied a bachelor and master degrees in chemistry at the Centro Universitario de Ciencias Exactas e Ingenierías (CUCEI). Her favorite hobby is any type of sport. Dora received financial support from the MINECO predoctoral fellowship (BES-2017-082439)
Why did you become a scientist?
When I was a child, I wanted to understand nature, and then I found that many things can be explained through chemistry and physics. That is why I am here, to help science to go further.
What do you want to achieve as a scientist?
I believe that all scientists would like to contribute in many different ways to a better world. But I would like to preserve and improve the knowledge with the new generations.
What is your thesis about?
My thesis focuses on the design and synthesis of new molecules as hole-transporting materials and their application in perovskite solar cells.
What triggered your interest for the subject of your thesis?
Mainly the improvement of energy generation and the reduction of pollution from current sources. Solar energy is the most abundant source in the world and we need to take more advantage of it.
What applications can your thesis have in the future?
The results of this thesis give important aspects for the future design of new molecules and the fabrication of efficient and stable solar cells.
The thing that I like most about my thesis is….
I like that it covers the whole process, from the creation of the new material (molecules) to its application in solar cells.
What will you miss the most from ICIQ?
My colleagues, without them the ICIQ would not be the same.
What advice do you have for someone who’s starting their PhD now?
It’s hard to decide among all the things I would say to them. But I think I would tell them to put the scientific method into practice.
From your experience at ICIQ, what do you think we can improve?
The truth is that I am very happy with the ICIQ. I think that I personally lacked to know or to take more advantage of all the benefits that we have.
Have you ever been emotional over an experiment/simulation? Why?
Yes, all the time. If the experiments went well you were super happy, if not, you felt a bit of everything. It’s part of the rollercoaster of doing a PhD. But all in all (every effort adds up), in the end you’re happy, otherwise it’s not the end.
Who/What has been your biggest influence/motivation?
My family inspired and encouraged me to continue my research.
Chemistry/Science is fun because…
Let’s imagine every day we have a new toy and we want to know how it works, play with it and share it with other people.
What is your favourite molecule?
Carbazole, as I have worked with her so much that she is like a friend who knows each other better.
If you were a piece of lab equipment, what would you be?
This question has always seemed a bit strange to me. I think it’s because I find it hard to identify with something. Anyway! I would choose the glovebox, I always imagine it works like a person.
