A local news outlet recently interviewed Virgīnija Vītola, a researcher at the Institute of Solid State Physics, University of Latvia (ISSP UL), whose professional journey and contribution to science serves as an inspiration for women in STEM fields.
Virginia shared her story of going from a humanities-oriented school to a deep passion for physics, as well as her achievements in optical materials research. Her PhD thesis is dedicated to the study of the mechanisms of sustained luminescence in strontium aluminate materials.
Alongside her research, she is actively involved in popularising science – she runs the School for Young Physicists, which gathers around 250 students each month, and teaches physics at the RTU School of Engineering. For this, she was awarded the Arturs Balklavs Prize from the Latvian Academy of Sciences in 2023.
ISSP UL is delighted that our researchers can both work passionately on innovation and be a shining (or in Virgīnija’s case – luminescent) example of how science is not only a job, but a calling.
