Professor Donal Bradley CBE FRS

Donal Bradley is an applied physicist who has made seminal contributions to the understanding and utilisation of soluble-semiconductors. His fundamental work on the relationship between chemical and physical structure and electronic properties, together with application-oriented device research has contributed to numerous technology developments and opened new fields of study including conjugated polymer electroluminescence, liquid crystalline conjugated polymers, polariton physics in molecular microcavities, and conformationally-structured dielectric metamaterials.

Donal’s early research led to his co-invention of conjugated polymer light emitting diodes, a discovery that first highlighted the opportunity in high-quality displays and lighting for low-temperature-processed, large-area-compatible, soluble-semiconductors. Subsequent activity with these and related materials has supported their extension into solar energy generation, electronics, imaging and sensing, and photonics.

A co-founder of Cambridge Display Technology and Molecular Vision, Donal’s work has been recognised by awards including the EU Descartes Prize, the Royal Society Bakerian Lecture and the IOP and IET Faraday Medals. He was awarded a CBE in the 2010 New Year’s Honours for services to science.

Professional position

  • Head, Mathematical, Physical and Life Sciences Division, University of Oxford
  • Professor of Engineering Science and Physics, University of Oxford
  • Professorial Fellow, Jesus College, University of Oxford
  • Trustee and Chair of the Optoelectronics Committee, The Rank Prize Funds

Subject groups

  • Engineering and Materials Science

    Engineering, semiconductors, Materials science (incl materials engineering)

  • Astronomy and Physics

    Condensed matter incl softmatter, liquids, nano-materials, Lasers and optoelectronics, Semi-conductors

Awards

  • Bakerian Medal and Lecture

    On 'Plastic electronics: the science and application of molecular electronic materials and devices'.

Committees Participated Role
Sectional Committee 2: Astronomy and physics December 2008 - November 2011 Member
Summer Science Exhibition Committee January 2005 - December 2007 Member