Bio
My name is Stavros X. Drakopoulos and I am an Associate Research Scholar in the Priestley Lab and the Princeton Materials Institute.
I grew up in a suburb of Athens, Greece, and earned my B.Sc. in Materials Science from the University of Patras in 2016. During my undergraduate studies, I spent three months at the Budapest University of Technology and Economics in Hungary, working in the lab of Professor József Karger-Kocsis. Upon returning to Patras, I continued this research for two additional semesters under the supervision of Professor Georgios C. Psarras. My work focused on thermoplastic starch composites modified with micro-fibrillated cellulose and latex particles, with an emphasis on their dielectric properties—marking my first exposure to Broadband Dielectric Spectroscopy.
In September 2016, I moved to England to pursue my Ph.D. in Materials Engineering at Loughborough University, which I completed in 2019. My doctoral research, co-supervised by Reader Sara Ronca and Senior Lecturer Ignacio Martin-Fabiani, explored the unique physical properties of disentangled ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (dis-UHMWPE). From 2020 to 2023, I continued my research in the UK as a Postdoctoral Researcher. Initially, I worked on electrode manufacturing for Li-ion batteries in the Energy Materials Group led by Professor Emma Kendrick at the University of Birmingham, and later on polymer physics—including conjugated polymers, polyelectrolytes, and polymer-grafted nanoparticles—at the University of Bath under the guidance of Professor Kamal Asadi.
In 2023, I moved to the US to join the Priestley Lab, led by Professor Rodney D. Priestley, at Princeton Materials Institute. Initially appointed as a Postdoctoral Researcher, I was soon promoted to Associate Research Scholar. At Princeton, I am expanding on polymer physics, mainly on relaxation and charge transport dynamics in various systems including co-polymers and polymer nanocomposites. I maintain active collaborations with various groups within Princeton University, including the groups of Professor Richard A. Register, Professor Erin E. Stache, and most recently, Professor Lilia S. Xie.
Education & Training
Associate Research Scholar (2023 – present)
Princeton University, Princeton Materials Institute
Advisor: Rodney D. Priestley
Research Topic: Relaxation and Charge Transport Dynamics of Various Polymer-based Systems.
Postdoctoral Research Associate (2021 – 2023)
University of Bath, Department of Physics
Advisor: Kamal Asadi
Research Topic: Dielectric Spectroscopy of Conjugated Polymers, Polyelectrolytes, and Polymer-Grafted Nanoparticles.
The Faraday Institution Research Fellow (2020 – 2021)
University of Birmingham, School of Metallurgy and Materials
Advisor: Emma Kendrick
Research Topic: Electrode Manufacturing for Li-ion Batteries.
Ph.D. in Materials Engineering (2016 – 2019)
Loughborough University, Department of Materials
Supervisors: Sara Ronca, Ignacio Martin-Fabiani
Doctoral Thesis: Disentangled ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene and its nanocomposites: relaxation dynamics, entanglement formation and anisotropic properties due to orientation.
B.Sc. in Materials Science (2011 – 2016)
University of Patras, Department of Materials Science
Supervisor: Georgios C. Psarras
Thesis: Chemical composition, thermomechanical behavior and electrical response of biocomposite thermoplastic starch matrix materials, reinforced with latex and cellulose particles.
Created by Yiming Ma