Associate Professor Enrico Della Gaspera

Enrico is a materials chemist with a specific interest in nanotechnology. Before joining RMIT in 2016 he worked in leading institutions worldwide (University of Padova, UCLA, Stanford, CSIRO) where he acquired a cross-disciplinary experience in chemistry, materials engineering, nanotechnology and energy & sustainability.

He currently leads a research group composed of postdoctoral researchers, PhD students and undergraduate interns. The group’s research interests are mainly in the areas of chemical syntheses of nanoparticles and nanostructured surfaces for applications in optoelectronics, energy and photocatalysis.

In addition to his research activities, Enrico actively teaches chemistry and nanotechnology courses within the School of Science at RMIT.

He has won many competitive research fellowships and grants, and has also won both research and teaching awards throughout his career.

More details on Enrico’s research and expertise, including full publication list, available research projects and updates on the group's activities can be found on his group website, on his Twitter feed, and on Google Scholar.

Research activities and projects

• Metal oxide nanostructures for energy applications such as solar water splitting, solar cells and photodetectors.
• Doping of nano-semiconductors and fabrication of nanocrystal inks for optoelectronics and smart coatings.
• Ultrasonic spray deposition of nanostructured thin-film coatings.
• Wet chemical approaches for the synthesis of novel nanomaterials.

Teaching activities

Enrico teaches multiple undergraduate courses, including first year physical and inorganic chemistry, second year aquatic chemistry, and third year nanotechnology courses.

Professional activities

• Chartered member of the Royal Australian Chemical Institute (MRACI CChem)
• Treasurer and member of the Executives for the Victorian Branch of the RACI
• Member of several scientific associations including the Surface Coatings Association Australia (SCAA), the American Chemical Society (ACS), the Australian Nanotechnology Network (ANN), the Materials Research Society (MRS).
• Reviewer for several chemistry and nanotechnology journals including: Advanced Materials, Energy and Environmental Science, Advanced Functional Materials, JACS, Nano Letters, Angewandte Chemie, Chemistry of Materials, ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces.

• 2011: Ph.D, University of Padova, Italy
• 2007: M.S., University of Padova, Italy
• 2005: B.S., University of Padova, Italy

• 2022-present: Associate Professor, School of Science, RMIT University.
• 2019-2021: Senior Lecturer, School of Science, RMIT University.
• 2017-2021: ARC DECRA Senior Research Fellow, School of Science, RMIT University.
• 2016-2017: Vice Chancellor Fellow, School of Science, RMIT University.
• 2013-2015: Postdoctoral research fellow, Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), Melbourne.
• 2011-2012: Postdoctoral research fellow, Materials Science and Engineering. University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), USA.
• 2011: Visiting researcher, Materials Science and Engineering, Stanford University, USA.
• 2010: Visiting researcher, School of Chemistry and Bio21 Institute. University of Melbourne, Australia.
• 2009: Visiting researcher, Institute for Chemical Processing & Environmental Technology, Canada National Research Council (NRC), Ottawa, Canada.
• 2008-2011: Graduate student researcher, Materials Science and Engineering, University of Padova, Italy.