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Kay Niemax

Emeritus Professor of Physics, Technical University of Dortmund, Wilhelm-Ostwald-Fellow of the Federal Institute for Materials Research and Testing, Berlin, Germany.

Most exciting current project
Studying ionization of highly excited Rydberg-atoms in thermal vapors, and – together with colleagues at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory – the interaction of metallic nanoparticles with molecules in the gas phase.

Luckiest break
My career change from fundamental atomic and molecular spectroscopy to analytical spectroscopy after 15 years in research.

Milestones in spectroscopy
The spectroscopic detection of a new class of molecules – the giant Rydberg molecules – and spectroscopic imaging of nanoparticles by surface plasmon resonance spectroscopy.

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Part of the Power List 2017

The Magnificent Tens

The Magnificent Tens
After 2016’s celebration of women in analytical science, we return to the Top 100 for 2017.
But there’s a twist. This summer, we asked you to nominate scientists in ten categories – from the stars of separation science, to omics explorers, to the mentors training the next generation.

Go to The Power List 2017