Hannes Houck is a Royal Society University Research Fellow in the Chemistry Department at the University of Warwick. He obtained a dual PhD degree in Chemistry from Ghent University (Belgium) and the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (Germany), specializing in externally regulating the reactivity of organic molecules in a macromolecular context. Following alternating research stays in Belgium, Germany and Australia, Hannes became fascinated about how light is capable of altering the chemical nature of larger molecules, thereby changing a material’s properties such as its strength and colour. After a 2-year postdoc at Ghent University, he was selected for the 1st cohort of the EUTOPIA-SIF programme and moved to the UK to start his independent research career developing light-switchable materials. His EUTOPIA fellowship was a springboard to winning a prestigious Royal Society grant (1.9 M£) to start his Photochemistry for Materials research group in October 2023. Hannes’ research at the University of Warwick combines organic photochemistry, organic synthesis and polymer science that allows for making materials with improved functionality and sustainability. His research team mainly focuses on developing photochemical strategies that can be used to introduce programmed (bio)degradation into existing polymer materials, while also creating new design strategies to make, break and reform chemical bonds to enable closed-loop recycling of end-of-life products. Having carried out several research stays abroad, Hannes strongly beliefs that international and interdisciplinary collaborations are essential to pursue impactful science and education, which he aims to promote during his YLA position.
