On the 5^th October Tom Clarke, Year 14 Banbridge Academy, attended an evening hosted by the Nuffield STEM programme, to celebrate the achievements of the students who undertook a 2-week Research placement during the summer.

Tom’s research title was:

‘Synthesis and Characterisation of Gold and Silver Nanoparticle Colloids and their Applications’

Tom described the experience as an exciting opportunity to “be immersed in real scientific research with real applications in our world.” When his teacher Mrs Li mentioned the programme to him, he “quickly applied and was matched with Queen’s University, Belfast and their school of chemistry and chemical engineering to join a team at the forefront of researching nanoparticles, a very relevant field of physical and inorganic chemistry, with many modern applications.” During the month of August, he worked in Queen’s for two weeks, over the course of which he compiled practical research and literature work in a report and poster. He then had the privilege of presenting his findings in the long gallery, Stormont, in front of other world-leading scientists.  Tom is very thankful to Nuffield Research Placements for the fantastic opportunity that has most certainly influenced his decisions for the future.