We are pleased to announce that Joanna Koprowska joined our research group on 15 October 2024. Joanna brings with her a strong interdisciplinary background, having just completed a double master’s degree at the University of Warsaw. In October 2024, she successfully defended her chemistry thesis and is currently finalising her second thesis in forensic chemistry.
Her academic path has provided both deep theoretical knowledge and extensive practical experience in surface‑enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS). Joanna worked on a hybrid plasmonic platform with well‑defined structural features to achieve high reproducibility and excellent Raman mapping resolution, enabling improved understanding of plasmonic–semiconductor and plasmonic–graphene interactions—systems gaining increasing relevance in the field.
She applied similar methods in her forensic chemistry thesis, investigating the emerging psychoactive compound etazene and non‑toxic, lead‑free gunshot residue to improve detection strategies for both.
Although spectroscopy is her primary specialisation, her scientific interests extend to methods that require engineering, hands‑on setup creation, and practical device development. Her forensic background also strengthened her curiosity about analytical tools designed for field use by non‑professionals.
These combined interests led her to join our NCN Sonata BIS project.
This project connects her scientific motivations: engineering an innovative analytical device, advancing chemical detection methods, and contributing to a socially impactful challenge—detecting commonly used date‑rape drugs. By venturing into electrochemistry, she aims to expand her skills while contributing a fresh perspective shaped by her spectroscopy and forensic background. Her main goal in the project will be miniaturisation of the ion-transfer voltammetry setup into a point-of-care format and development of an electronic tongue that could be portable and suitable for a yes/no detection of date rape drugs in real samples.
Welcome to Sensor Arrays, Joanna!