Forbes 30 Under 30 success for Merton alumna

Merton alumna Jutta Toscano (2014) has been included in this year's Forbes 30 under 30 Europe list for Science and Healthcare.

Jutta is working on developing new techniques in the field of ultra-cold chemistry:

"I am developing methods to 'tame' radical beams. Radicals are highly-reactive atoms or molecules, and because they are so reactive they are challenging to isolate. As a result of this, the details of many chemical reactions involving radicals are poorly understood. Equipped with a pure beam of radicals, we can pioneer a range of important measurements – from examining the effect of radical deposition on surfaces (with implications for the silicon-based industry) to understanding atmospherically-important reactions.

"During my DPhil, I designed and built a novel instrument - a magnetic guide - that lets us generate a pure beam of radicals. This magnetic guide operates by only transmitting the selected radicals, removing all other species from the beam. We select the radicals based on their velocity and quantum state, giving us an unprecedented level of control over the properties of these important reactants."

Jutta's success in having her work recognised in this way follow that of Jan Domanski (2013), Sven Kirkerup (2014), and Zuzanna Brzosko (2009), all named on last year's list, and Meg He (2005), who appeared on the list in 2016.