Gillian Reid is a British chemist who is Professor of Inorganic Chemistry and former Head of the Department of Chemistry at the

University of Southampton , mottoeng = The Heights Yield to Endeavour , type = Public research university , established = 1862 – Hartley Institution1902 – Hartley University College1913 – Southampton University Coll ...

. Her research considers

coordination chemistry A coordination complex consists of a central atom or ion, which is usually metallic and is called the ''coordination centre'', and a surrounding array of bound molecules or ions, that are in turn known as ''ligands'' or complexing agents. Many ...

, inorganic semiconductors and metal fluoride scaffolds. In 2020 she was appointed the President-elect of the

Royal Society of Chemistry The Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) is a learned society (professional association) in the United Kingdom with the goal of "advancing the chemistry, chemical sciences". It was formed in 1980 from the amalgamation of the Chemical Society, the Ro ...

, becoming President in 2022.

Early life and education

Reid became interested in chemistry whilst at high school. She eventually studied

chemistry Chemistry is the science, scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a natural science that covers the Chemical element, elements that make up matter to the chemical compound, compounds made of atoms, molecules and ions ...

at the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...

, where she earned her bachelor's degree in 1986. She remained there for her doctoral research, where she studied macrocyclic complexes. After earning her degree in 1989, Reid moved to the

for a postdoctoral research position.

Research and career

In 1991 Reid joined the University of Southampton as a lecturer. She was promoted to Professor in 2006. Under her leadership, Southampton joined the Knowledge Centre for Materials Chemistry. Reid leads molecular assembly and structure at the University of Southampton. Her research considers inorganic

, with a particular focus on the design of macrocyclic ligands that involve

chalcogen The chalcogens (ore forming) ( ) are the chemical elements in group 16 of the periodic table. This group is also known as the oxygen family. Group 16 consists of the elements oxygen (O), sulfur (S), selenium (Se), tellurium (Te), and the radioact ...

donor atoms. She makes use of non-aqueous electrodeposition to grow inorganic semiconductor alloys. Electrodeposition allows for bottom-up growth without the need for an

ultra-high vacuum Ultra-high vacuum (UHV) is the vacuum regime characterised by pressures lower than about . UHV conditions are created by pumping the gas out of a UHV chamber. At these low pressures the mean free path of a gas molecule is greater than approximately ...

environment. Reid has created molecular reagents that allow the synthesis of compounds for use in

non-volatile memory Non-volatile memory (NVM) or non-volatile storage is a type of computer memory that can retain stored information even after power is removed. In contrast, volatile memory needs constant power in order to retain data. Non-volatile memory typic ...

thermoelectric generator A thermoelectric generator (TEG), also called a Seebeck generator, is a solid state device that converts heat flux (temperature differences) directly into electrical energy through a phenomenon called the ''Seebeck effect'' (a form of thermoele ...

s and

two-dimensional materials In materials science, the term single-layer materials or 2D materials refers to crystalline solids consisting of a single layer of atoms. These materials are promising for some applications but remain the focus of research. Single-layer materials ...

. The reagents were used to deposit a wide variety of thin films including highly pure germanium telluride, molybdenum disulphide and tungsten disulphide. In 2002, Reid co-founded the ''Southampton Science and Engineering Day'', which has since evolved into the Southampton Science and Engineering Festival. The event was founded to coincide with British Science Week, which occurs annually in March. In 2010 Reid was made the Head of the Department of Chemistry Outreach Programme. In 2015 she co-led the

Royal Society The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...

Summer Science exhibit ''Taking Technology Smaller'', which introduced the public to

electrochemistry Electrochemistry is the branch of physical chemistry concerned with the relationship between electrical potential difference, as a measurable and quantitative phenomenon, and identifiable chemical change, with the potential difference as an outco ...

as a means to build nanoscale electronic devices.

Awards and honours

* 2006 Vice Chancellor's Award for Teaching in Chemistry * 2007

Award for Achievement in the Promotion of Chemistry * 2011 Elected a member of the council of the Royal Society of Chemistry * 2012 Elected Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry * 2020 Appointed the President-elect of the Royal Society of Chemistry * 2022 Elected Fellow of the

Royal Society of Edinburgh The Royal Society of Edinburgh is Scotland's national academy of science and letters. It is a registered charity that operates on a wholly independent and non-partisan basis and provides public benefit throughout Scotland. It was established i ...

Selected publications

* * *

Personal life

Reid has two children.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Reid, Gillian Living people Year of birth missing (living people) British chemists Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh Fellows of the Royal Society of Chemistry