Poonam Yadav awarded with a Humboldt scholarship
The materials scientist designs advanced battery materials for sustainable applications at the Max-Planck-Institut für Eisenforschung
The Alexander von Humboldt Foundation awarded Dr. Poonam Yadav with a Humboldt scholarship for her excellent scientific work on the advancement of battery materials. Yadav joined MPIE to work in the “Atom Probe Tomography” group led by Prof. Baptiste Gault. The scholarship allows for a two-years stay at a research institute of her choice: “I am really happy to continue my work improving battery materials here at the institute. MPIE is a world-leading research institute particularly in atom probe tomography – my preferred analysis tool. This is a great opportunity to advance my research further”, says Yadav.
Energy storage systems like batteries are the backbone of a sustainable energy infrastructure and crucial for widespread electrification. To fulfill their purpose in a sustainable economy, the batteries’ storage, energy density, cycle life and cost need to be further improved: “We do research on alkali-ion batteries, especially to increase their cyclability. Crucial for the cyclability are among others the chemical composition and structural stability of electrode materials. To accomplish such an understanding, we study the charge transfer and diffusion mechanism along with interfaces in alkali-ion batteries using characterization tools such as high-resolution transmission-electron microscopy and atom probe tomography”, Yadav explains. Yadav specialized in nanotechnology at the University of Rajasthan (India) and completed her PhD at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (Australia). Before joining MPIE, she worked on developing batteries for e-mobility and materials for battery charge storage.
The Humboldt Foundation supports academic cooperation between outstanding scientists from abroad and in Germany. It grants these research fellowships to researchers who have excellent qualifications and their own research profile. As the awardee is free to choose any host institution in Germany, the prize counts as a great honour for both the awardee and the host institution.
