I have been active in applied superconductivity and fusion through various roles over the last decade, gradually moving from the experimental and microscopic physics of superconducting materials for fusion, through to the large-scale R&D (design and analysis, manufacturing and testing) of fusion magnet technologies:

Before joining SPC-SG, I worked at the UK Atomic Energy Authority, developing superconducting Remountable Magnet Joint (RMJ) technologies and test facilities for the UK's Spherical Tokamak for Energy Production (STEP) project. Superconducting RMJ's were first conceptualised nearly half a century ago, but they have yet to be demonstrated in a fusion device. Key successes included a granted patent on RMJ technology, the development of the organisation's first superconducting technology lab ("ELSA"), and joint designs for the STEP power plant conceptual design (presented in the Royal Society papers in 2024 https://royalsocietypublishing.org/rsta/issue/382/2280).

Before that, I did a PhD in applied superconductivity at Durham University. My work there was focused more on the materials/condensed matter physics aspects of superconductivity for fusion, and included some detailed high field, high current, cryogenic measurements on superconducting tapes and strands, that required the development of novel cryogenic apparatus. The purpose was to try to determine the current carrying capacities (critical currents) of state-of-the-art LTS and HTS under 1D and 2D strain,  develop conceptual models to explain the current flow behaviour at criticality, and determine what microstructural properties could be changed to improve the performance of the materials.