Having recently graduated from her BEng in Electronic Engineering with Nanotechnology at University of Surrey, Eva Bestelink joined the Advanced Technology Institute in 2018, under the supervision of Dr Radu Sporea, in order to pursue a PhD in unconventional contact-controlled thin-film transistor (TFT) architectures, particularly source-gated transistors (SGTs) and the newly-invented multimodal transistor (MMT). Eva’s main interest in research is the exploitation of contact effects to optimise performance and/or create novel functionality. As contact-controlled device operation is material agnostic, Eva works with several of Dr Sporea’s collaborators for device fabrication in a variety of technologies, including silicon, amorphous oxides and organics. Use of TCAD simulations in her research complement fabrication, as insight into underlying operating mechanisms, as well as device optimisation can be explored.
Eva’s background in neuroscience provides inspiration for device architecture and operation, which may offer advantages for emerging neuromorphic computing paradigms. Her prior business experience serves to guide her research to ensure solutions that are not only beneficial, but also feasible for large scale manufacturing.