Even though my father had no high-level education, he was very inventive and was not afraid of challenges. He awoke my interest in observing the world around me, encouraging me to think about fundamental questions. Both my parents were very hard working, so I learned early on what it takes to achieve your goals.
In my current job, I lead a group consisting of PhD students, postdocs, and technicians. Our focus is designing and fabricating innovative X-ray lenses. Our goal is to achieve close to perfect X-ray lenses that can focus high-energy X-rays to a few nanometers.
I changed my science field a few times, and I think it is important to remain flexible and open to new opportunities. After working as a beamline scientist at the synchrotron radiation facility at the National Synchrotron Light Source (NSLS), and being employed by the University of Chicago in the United States, I switched to the development of multilayer coatings for extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography at Lawrence Livermore National Lab. Based on analysis methods I developed, I was selected to join a team to search for organic matter in cometary dust brought back to Earth by NASA’s Stardust mission, and this was a very exciting project. I am most proud of my innovative multilayer mirror that was the enabling instrumentation for the first demonstration of single-shot coherent X-ray diffraction imaging with an X-ray Free Electron Laser (XFEL).
Growing up, my biggest challenge was to stop worrying about what others might think about me because I had different interests than most of the girls and women in my social circle. It was empowering to finally meet women with similar experiences who I could talk to, and to realize I was not alone.
Life without challenges would be boring for me. They bring frustration, but it is all forgotten when you finally come to a solution or discover or invent something new.
Saša Bajt
Group Leader, Center for Free-Electron Laser Science (CFEL), Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron (DESY)
Born in Slovenia / Resides in Germany
Educational Background: Diploma in Physics, University of Ljubljana, Slovenia; PhD in Natural Sciences, Ruprecht-Karls Universität, Heidelberg, Germany
