Tina Weigel is a Young Crystallographer since she attended the 1st LabMeeting @ STOE in 2015 where she won a Presentation Award, which is why there is already a “Meet the people” about her. In the meantime, a lot has happened: she gained experience in sample preparation, in beamtime work, and in networking at conferences. Since the 1st Joint Polish-German Crystallographic Meeting 2020 in Wrocław/Poland, she is now Co-Chair of the Young Crystallographers and she is one of the organizers of the 2nd Joint meeting of the Young Crystal Growers and Young Crystallographers 2020 in Freiberg. So it is high time to report on her again.
Which is the most interesting part of your work?
I am doing my PhD in the working group “Resonant X-ray methods and crystal modelling” at the Institute of Experimental Physics at the TU Bergakademie Freiberg. For the main part of the experiments for my PhD, I have to go to a synchrotron radiation facility, like the DESY in Hamburg or the ESRF in Grenoble. The experiments on synchrotron facilities are the most interesting part of my work. I am still impressed by the huge machines and goniometers and I am interested in the investigation of new equipment or methods for synchrotrons.
What can we expect from you as the Co-Chair of the Young Crystallographers?
I would like to tie in with the work of my predecessors. This means to introduce the working group “Young Crystallographers” to students, professors, or all kind of young and old scientists and expand the cooperation with the Young Crystal Growers. I am already working on the second point by helping to organise the 2nd Joint Meeting of the Young Crystallographers and Young Crystal Growers in Freiberg. I would also like to try to attract students from the field of Bio-crystallography and integrate them into activities of the Young Crystallographers. In the past the Bio-crystallographers were less present within the working group of the Young Crystallographers, which would be nice if it changed. So, if any Bio-crystallographers are reading this blog, I would be happy to see you on our conference in Freiberg this year ;)
You had many opportunities to work in research groups abroad. Where did you like it the most and why?
This is hard to say. All places that I visited were great and I had an interesting and instructive time there. Staying for half a year in Tel Aviv, Israel, was for me a very special experience. I worked on a very religious university and learned so a lot of the Jewish religions, culture, and tradition but also about the history and conflicts of this area. And to live in a city by the sea and go surfing after work has also so its merits ;)