IN4SOC

ALUMNI CHAPTER: Gabriel Salas

Name: Gabriel Francisco Salas Balseca
 
Country: Ecuador
 
University: Université de Bordeaux
 
Linked In: http://www.linkedin.com/in/gabrielfsalas
 
Other info:  

Chemistry engineering. AMIR. Learning. Industry. Research and development. Teaching. Music and nature.
 
IN4SOC EXPERIENCE 

Title:

STUDY OF THE PHOTOCHROMIC PROPERTIES OF Mn-DOPED ZnO / MoO3 MIXTURES

Organization:

Université de Bordeaux

Short description:

ZnO optical properties are studied for the remaining interest on the possibility of their improving through different doping, as well as the intend of getting an accumulative or at least non interfered effect when mixing with MoO3, given the already probed promising characteristics of such mixtures. Inside the metal oxide semiconductors, having versatile applications including optoelectronic devices and photocatalyst, ZnO in particular has attracted growing attention due to its abundance, high thermodynamic stability and low cost; and a variety of this metal inside heterostructures have been created mainly for applications in optical and photovoltaic cells. The interest in optical properties including photochromic behavior, and luminescence of materials still being a fundamental argument for trying new compositions even inside well-known synthesis methods, as sol-gel process. Regarding inorganic materials in particular, having the advantages of good stability and cost efficiency, the presence of new dopant agents in well-studied photochromic matrices as zinc oxide could have an additional effect concerning the improvement of the photochromic efficiency and/or the coloring and bleaching kinetics.
Knowledge areas: 

Chemistry, Materials Science 
SDGS:

SDG#9: Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure, SDG#11: Sustainable Cities and Communities, SDG#13: Climate Action
Competences: 

Social competences: Constructive collaboration with others; Interpersonal relations; Understanding the rules of communication generally accepted in different societies and environments.

Among the civic competencies that have been developed in this internship, there was the promotion of personal and social well-being, along the staying in the laboratory, feeling this affection with the research team, supervisors, and collaborators. Appreciating and understanding accepted codes of conduct and manners in different societies was also present through the opportunity to share with people of other countries, verifying jointly the established normative of usage of spaces and equipment. The construction of different kind of interpersonal relations become fundamental in the advancement of a formal research in which typically there is the collaborative action of multidisciplinary teams
About the experience: 

This overall work was a very good experience for increasing the interest in Social Responsibility and Civic Competences. Though further studies should be performed to keep investigating in all the scientific topics, to capture main ideas, not just technically but at a social and civic level, constitute a valuable input for the future continuations of this kind of research. Evidently, some of the cited competences also could have been developed more deeply within a longer time internship, but this preparation constitutes a good base to rely on for the future practical work at academic and even replicated afterwards at an industrial level. For the potential improvements, this kind of initiatives could be replicated in other academic instances, having an opportunity of following the skills developed during various stages of the learning process.