Imperial students gain research experience through the Royce Interns scheme

The Henry Royce Institute has sponsored students to explore cutting-edge science this summer.

The Henry Royce Institute offers an annual Undergraduate Internship Scheme, which allows students to join real-life research teams at their university.

Researchers collaborate with student interns to design research projects, guide them in laboratory work, and include students in their research groups.

The scheme is open to applications from academic researchers in materials science across all UK Higher Education Institutes. Imperial College London has a strong partnership with the Henry Royce Institute through the Royce at Imperial hub, based at White City Campus. 

Alvina Mishra

Alvina Mishra is an undergraduate student in the Department of Materials. She completed a summer placement with Dr Tamas Zagyva in the Department of Materials.

Alvina's project explored the similarities between the behaviour of ball-milled and irradiated neutron shielding materials, which sit between the plasma and the superconducting magnets in a spherical tokamak - a type of nuclear fusion reactor.

Her work explored how defects in ball-milled tungsten carbide recover after various heat treatments, helping her conclude the material's performance under different conditions. 

Throughout this project, Alvina independently applied various characterisation techniques. She spent time in the X-ray diffraction (XRD) laboratory preparing samples and analyzing XRD patterns. She also learned to use and master new software, particularly HighScore Plus. 

This project allowed me to gain skills and knowledge in material characterisation. I also presented my work at a research conference, which taught me how to create and deliver scientific presentations. Alvina Mishra

Alvina comments: "After participating in the Royal Society of Chemistry’s Nuclear Science programme, I enjoyed learning about nuclear fusion reactors and the effects of irradiation and creep on materials within them. This project offered an exciting opportunity to contribute to and explore this topic in a hands-on way.

I was able to gain skills and knowledge in material characterisation. I also presented my work at a research conference, which taught me how to create and deliver scientific presentations. The experience of seeing a research project through from concept to completion is invaluable in my studies and future projects."

Matthew Dai

Matthew Dai is an undergraduate student in the Department of Materials. He completed a summer placement with Yifeng Wang, a Research Postgraduate student in the Department of Materials. Matthew's work was based in the Department of Chemistry. 

Matthew’s summer project focused on testing whether electrodeposited nickel can be alloyed with iron to create a bimetallic catalyst. Combining nickel with iron could create a low-cost metal catalyst for water-splitting, which could be useful for generating hydrogen.

Matthew was inspired to conduct research in this area after attending a Faculty of Natural Science symposium last September by Dr Andreas Kafizas. After the talk, Matthew contacted Dr Kafizas, and they organised a Royce summer placement in collaboration with another project in the Faculty of Natural Sciences.

It was a great moment when everything you learnt in lectures came to life, and you could use it to solve real-world problems. Matthew Dai

Matthew comments: "I have gained a deeper appreciation of research and the fluidity of the different branches of the natural sciences. In the real world, one phenomenon can be investigated by several research groups that take different approaches to one problem in different departments.

It was a great moment when everything you learned in lectures came to life, and you could use it to solve real-world problems. This placement will provide a strong foundation for my final year and project."

Athena Hughes

Athena Hughes is an undergraduate student in the Department of Chemistry. She completed a summer placement with Dr Ryan Bower in the Department of Materials.

Her project explored materials that can change how they interact with light in a non-linear way, specifically Indium Tin Oxide (ITO). This material has promising optical properties that could be improved even with weak light, making it useful for developing advanced technologies like quantum photonic circuits. These circuits use light to carry and process information, and the ability to work with low-power light makes the material very efficient.

Athena fabricated ITO thin films using a technique called Pulsed Laser Deposition and analysed the films to assess how well they can convert optical signals into electrical ones.

Athena comments: "I chose to study this area of Materials Chemistry and Engineering because it has multiple industrial applications, from sensing and imaging to quantum computing. It was fascinating to understand how my research could address a wide range of problems that we currently face with quantum technology.

I enjoyed everything about my UROP project, most of all being in the lab. I also enjoyed taking charge of the project and deciding on its direction based on the data that was being collected."

Wiktor Szopa 

Wiktor Szopa is an undergraduate in the Department of Materials. He completed a placement with Dr Daan Arroo in the Department of Materials. 

Wiktor's project focused on masers. A maser is similar to a laser, but instead of amplifying light, it amplifies microwaves. Wiktor's project focused on developing a feedback system for a maser that automatically adjusts the size of a copper cavity to keep the device in sync.

Wiktor wanted to investigate masers because they have the potential to revolutionise multiple industries, such as communications and satellite technology, medical imaging and diagnostics, quantum computing and more. The placement provided experience and skills in CAD design, programming (C++, Python), and different communication protocols with lab equipment, teaching Wiktor how to combine theoretical knowledge with practical applications.

He comments, "The most rewarding aspect was when several weeks of hardware and software development resulted in the system working successfully.

This placement provided valuable insight into working in a research environment and sparked my interest in quantum technologies."

Jahanara Siddika

Jahanara Siddika is an undergraduate student in the Department of Materials. She completed a placement with Dr Jessica Wade in the Department of Materials. 

Jahanara decided to learn more about nanomaterials during her summer project after studying this topic as an elective module in her third year. 

Her project focused on improving the optoelectronic properties of oligothiophene, a chiral molecule. Optoelectronic properties refer to how materials interact with light (optical) and electricity (electronic). These properties control how well a material can absorb, emit, or control light and convert light into electricity or vice versa.

Jahanara also supported Dr Wade with planning and organising public engagement events for the 2025 International Year of Quantum Science and Technology. In addition to this, she supported three grant applications to fund the public engagement programme on behalf of the Centre for Quantum Engineering, Science and Technology (QuEST).

She comments: "I enjoyed joining Dr Wade's research group over the summer and attending group meetings, where we discussed various research topics and experiments. The placement also helped me to learn new techniques in the laboratory.

I was inspired by supporting outreach events and learning from industry speakers about their own career journeys."