Chemist Found the Industrial Research of Optics
PhD Ville Nissinen is working as a chemist at Nanocomp.
PhD Ville Nissinen is working as a chemist at Nanocomp, a global forerunner in micro- and nanophotonics design and manufacturing. His leap from a post-doctoral researcher at University of Eastern Finland to the development team of a high-tech company happened through PoDoCo program.
“I first heard about PoDoCo program through the internal communication of the University of Eastern Finland when I was working there as a post-doctoral researcher. I had been thinking about moving to industry from the academic world and PoDoCo program seemed like the perfect opportunity. I knew Nanocomp from a previous cooperation, a Business Finland funded project named ACE3D,” says Nissinen.
Nanocomp focuses on the manufacturing of micro- and nanophotonics products for consumer electronics, laser sensing and special lighting sectors.
At Nanocomp, Nissinen joined a team of PhDs (physics and chemistry) as well as engineers and laboratory technicians. His background is in materials chemistry, so he had to learn a great deal optics.
“I have also deepened my knowledge about optical materials and learned a lot about certain industrial processes. In addition, I have had the possibility to learn much about project management and communication with customers.”
Competitive advantage for the company
For Nissinen, PoDoCo program provided a path to smooth transition from academia to industry.
“Working in collaboration with Nanocomp introduced me to the world of industrial research and allowed me to widen my skillset and perspective. Most importantly, the PoDoCo project provided me a chance to prove my skills in the eyes of the collaborating company and, hence, to land a job in the industry.”
Nanocomp focuses on the manufacturing of micro- and nanophotonics products for consumer electronics, laser sensing and special lighting sectors. The aim of the PoDoCo project was to develop polymer coatings for large-area light guides, which are used, for example, in the lighting of electronic papers (e-papers). The research focused especially on the control of the color balance of light guides. The results are now applied directly to product development of Nanocomp.
“I recommend all high technology companies to consider participating in PoDoCo program. A research project planned and executed well holds the potential to improve company’s competitiveness in the long term and allows the company to get acquainted with a possible future employee. Overall, the risk for the company is very low,” says Nissinen.
