Christina Raith
Christina came to us from Austria through the IAESTE exchange programme, and studied the magnetization and susceptibility of a
range of pyrochlores, of the type Bi(2-x)Fe
Her measurements revealed that all three compositions studied show spin glass behaviour below about 13 K. The spin glass freezing temperatures were also investigated and showed an increase with increasing iron concentration. All three compositions are highly frustrated systems and are therefore prone to show spin glass behaviour. This work formed a part of a larger study by Mariana Whitaker from the School of Chemistry on these materials and has now been published in the Journal of Solid State Chemistry.
Title: Structural and magnetic characterisation of the pyrochlores Bi2−xFex(FeSb)O7, (x=0.1, 0.2, 0.3), Nd1.8Fe0.2(FeSb)O7 and Pr2(FeSb)O7
Author(s): M. J. Whitaker, J. F. Marco, F. J. Berry, C. Raith, E. Blackburn, and C. Greaves
Source: Journal of Solid State Chemistry 198,
316 (2013)
Report on IAESTE placement at the University of Birmingham
Christina visiting Bath.
After looking at my CV and realizing that there was not much work experience to recommend myself to a future employer, I decided to apply for an IAESTE internship. The following weeks were full of filling out and submitting various forms but after 3 months I was awarded with being able to choose between a placement in Almaty, Kazakhstan and one in Birmingham, UK. After a more or less sleepless night I had come to a decision, so the next day when I announced my choice I received the chance to submit my application to the University of Birmingham.
The moment my application has been accepted I‘ve started preparing for my placement. I was told that I would be investigating the magnetic properties of some samples that show spin-glass behaviour. To be quite honest, I had never heard the term “spin-glass” before which did not help my nervous state of mind. After reading the book recommended to me by my future supervisor and looking up hopefully useful English terms I felt a bit more confident. I arrived in Birmingham on a foggy rainy day. But the weather did not damp my excitement and after meeting some very helpful and incredibly nice people upon my arrival I felt exhilarated and cheerful. I stayed at a student accommodation and got to share a flat with a French girl, who did an internship in Birmingham also.
On my first day of work I finally met my supervisor Dr. Elizabeth Blackburn in person, got a desk with a computer and received three samples plus a lot of papers and books on the subject. In the first week I was introduced to the latest work of my supervisor and learned how to use the MPMS SQUID magnetometer that I would need to conduct my measurements. My supervisor had to go to a conference the second week of my stay which was much less problematic than I thought at the beginning. She had shown me how to use the magnetometer and we had already discussed which measurements would be helpful. So basically she had given me all the tools that were necessary to do my work. I enjoyed working on my own, at my own speed and self-responsible without pressure. Whenever questions or problems arose I could write an email to my supervisor or turn to the other PhD students which proved incredibly helpful besides from really nice. After finishing all my measurements and analysing the data, I had to write a report. At first I dreaded the thought because English is not my mother tongue and apart from getting the physics right I also had to check the English constantly which of course prolonged the whole thing. But now I have to say that it was a good experience since eventually I will have to write a lot more reports in English in the future as it is the language of science. An additional bonus was of course that I was not graded for the outcome of my work which made it somehow much more enjoyable.
The people in the Condensed Matter Group were all extremely nice and I had the feeling to fit in quite well. Since my desk was in the PhD Study Room I met a lot of new people and even got the idea of maybe doing a PhD myself. I felt involved and included in the group activities among which I liked the weekly Cake Club best. I suspect the sudden craving for pie will overwhelm me in the following weeks each Friday at 3pm.
I spent most weekends in Birmingham because since I had never been there before, I had lots of things to do and see. I did a Heritage Walking Tour and visited Cadbury World with my French roommate and met up with other IAESTE trainees staying in Birmingham. One particularly nice weekend I spent in the beautiful city of Bath.
All in all I think this internship was one of the best ideas I ever had. Apart from showing me a possible future career in research and improving my English skills it made me feel independent and self-confident. I think this internship has helped form my personality in ways that I would not have expected. And additionally of course, it looks good on my CV.
Christina Raith