Dr Sarah Guerin, a valued member of Bernal and Associate Professor, was recently featured in the University of Limerick's digital magazine, showcasing her remarkable accomplishments.
"You are not doing what will naturally come next, instead, you are asking yourself ‘what is the hard thing to do?"
SFI award winning researcher Dr Guerin championed the belief that 'people working together' can make meaningful change for the future.
On the wall of Dr Sarah Guerin's office in the Bernal Institute is a large poster detailing the very beginnings of her research with crystals.
“I keep this as a reminder of where I started,” Dr Guerin explains with a laugh. “Back when I was literally Googling ‘how to grow crystals’ and ‘what is an amino acid’ after coming out of an Applied Physics degree.”
Several years later, Dr Guerin is now the principal investigator (PI) in the Bernal Institute and of the Actuate Lab in UL’s Department of Physics, where biomolecular crystals are being developed and tested for use in real-world applications as portable power supplies.
Dr Guerin, who is also a member of SSPC, the SFI Research Centre based in Bernal & UL, has secured €2m of funding from Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) and the European Research Council (ERC) for the development of the organic piezoelectric device components.
Creative Collaboration
“The thing I love most about physics and research is the creativity and the imagination,” Dr Guerin says.
“Really it is about asking questions, that curiosity. How to solve a problem from a unique angle, in a systematic way with experimental design.”
This problem-solving rarely happens alone, she explains.
“One of the best things about the Bernal, but in UL in general, is the collaboration." When it comes to Bernal researchers Dr Guerin explains, "we know how to work together towards these big global challenges."
Congratulations, Dr Guerin, on your remarkable accomplishments, invaluable contributions, and groundbreaking research. We take immense pride in having such an outstanding role model who not only conducts impactful research but also advocates for change, fostering and embracing collaborations.