Amy Young
University of Oxford
Co-hort year: 2025
After nearly a decade working in accounts, exploring artistic endeavours, and raising a family, I sought to broaden my sense of purpose by pursuing a more intellectually challenging path. This led me to begin studying Physics with a foundation year at Sheffield Hallam University in 2021. During my studies, I became actively involved in the Physics Society, first as Treasurer and later as President. With support from the Institute of Physics (IOP), our committee successfully organised visits to major research facilities including the ISIS Neutron and Muon Source, Diamond Light Source, CERN, and ESA’s Earth Observation Centre in Frascati. These experiences strengthened my appreciation for large-scale experimental work and the interdisciplinary collaboration that drives modern research.
Drawn to experimental work, I sought further experience by shadowing PhD students and staff within Sheffield Hallam’s EBE RIKE (the Research Institute formerly known as MERI). This provided valuable exposure to sample preparation and experimental techniques across the HiPIMS and Glass, Ceramics & Polymers research groups. Working in the latter during consecutive summers confirmed my enthusiasm for exploring materials and understanding their behaviour. I graduated with a First-Class BSc (Hons) in Physics from Sheffield Hallam University in 2025.
My fascination with fusion energy was ignited in 2021 during a short group project exploring the SPARC reactor. Though most of my time since has been devoted to academic and professional development, fusion energy has remained an enduring interest where my motivation to contribute to its development has persisted. Driven by a desire to contribute meaningfully to society and a determination to solve complex problems, I am eager to deepen my understanding of plasma physics in the context of magnetic confinement and to explore fusion materials through collaborative research. Joining the CDT in Fusion Energy provided the ideal setting to pursue this ambition, enabling me to broaden my understanding of the fusion for energy and to recognise the cross-disciplinary interdependence between materials selection, plasma conditions, and reactor performance.
Building on this motivation, my doctoral research aims to address the discrepancy between experimentally measured and theoretically predicted permeation reduction factors (PRFs), which describe how effectively coatings inhibit isotope transport. This inconsistency is believed to stem from incomplete understanding of diffusion and trapping processes. The project seeks to resolve this knowledge gap by examining how hydrogen isotopes interact with the coating microstructure.
To investigate this, Atom Probe Tomography (APT) and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) will be utilised to spatially map hydrogen isotope diffusion pathways and trapping within ceramic barrier coatings and at interfaces. To ensure meaningful analysis, computational techniques will be used to statistically select representative sampling sites for APT, capturing both bulk coating characteristics and interface behaviour with minimal sampling bias. This will provide insight into coating performance for protecting metallic reactor components from hydrogen-induced embrittlement and enhancing tritium retention within breeder blankets. The results of hydrogen isotope permeation pathways and trapping will be used to inform UKAEA models of coating performance. These outcomes are critical for the efficient tritium self-sustaining operation of future reactors such as STEP and DEMO.
Complementary techniques will include Thermal Desorption Spectroscopy (TDS) to validate experimental APT results by providing a benchmark for hydrogen transport behaviour, Focused Ion Beam (FIB) micromachining to prepare APT specimens, Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry (SIMS) to analyse isotope distribution, gas soaking to introduce hydrogen isotopes into samples, and cryogenic sample preparation with vacuum transfer to preserve hydrogenic isotope content throughout sample handling. Together, these approaches will help bridge the knowledge gap in understanding hydrogen behaviour in fusion-relevant coatings and inform the design of more resilient materials for next-generation fusion systems.
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