Karin Hinzer - 2016-17 SPIE Women in Optics Planner
Associate Professor of Electrical Engineering with Cross-Appointment to the Physics Department; Canada Research Chair in Photonic Nanostructures and Integrated Devices; SUNLAB Founder and Director, University of Ottawa, Canada
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Country of Birth: Canada Website: SUNLAB |
My father and my future husband inspired me to work in science/ engineering.
I spend most of my time supervising and working with my students on research projects with the goal of making more efficient, lowercost solar cells and solar systems. On some of these projects, we work closely with the private sector toward the development of new products from new ideas and original concepts. Teaching graduate and undergraduate level courses in electrical engineering is another rewarding aspect of my job. I travel to conferences a few times a year to meet other researchers in the field of photonics, spurring new collaborations to develop ever more efficient solar systems and to figure out how to integrate them in today’s electricity grid.
My biggest challenge is that there are not enough hours in the day. I try to remember that there is always the next day.
Keep persisting at what you like and new opportunities will become available.
Keep an open mind, don’t be afraid of the unknown, enjoy the process, and don’t give up!
There are no failures, just learning opportunities.