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Dr. Sven Askes is an Assistant Professor in the PhotoConversion Materials (PCM) section at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, where he leads an innovative research group at the intersection of nanophotonics, materials science, and heterogeneous catalysis.

At the heart of his vision is a drive to understand and manipulate energy flow at the nanoscale. Through a combination of advanced nanofabrication, ultrafast laser spectroscopy, and computational modeling, Dr. Askes is developing new materials and technologies that enable selective, energy-efficient, and programmable catalysis, with implications for green chemistry, clean energy production, and beyond.

One of Dr. Askes's central research lines, supported by a prestigious ERC Starting Grant, seeks to fundamentally transform how chemical reactors are heated. Rather than relying on conventional fossil-fuel-based methods, his team is developing pulsed photothermal catalysis: a revolutionary approach that uses bursts of light to generate heat precisely where it is needed: at the catalytic surface. By engineering plasmonic nanostructures - nanoscale metallic antennas that convert light into heat with exceptional efficiency -, Dr. Askes enables ultrafast, localized thermal pulses that align with the intrinsic timescales of catalytic reactions. This strategy offers unprecedented control over reaction dynamics, allowing researchers to steer rates and selectivity with a level of precision previously out of reach.

Dr. Askes is also a key contributor to Project PolyPulse, part of the National Growth Fund program CircularPlasticsNL, funded by the Dutch Research Council (NWO). This shared project, in collaboration with colleague Dr. Charusheela Ramanan and consortium partners Fabian Eisenreich (TU Eindhoven) and Nigel Visser (Veridis), focuses on using photothermal materials and light pulses to precisely control plastic pyrolysis reactions, aiming to revolutionize polymer recycling with short flashes of light. By illuminating the plastic with these light flashes on the timescales of decomposition reactions, the team aims to steer the product distribution to more favorable outcomes.

Dr. Askes's broader scientific vision for the next decade is to make meaningful contributions to the understanding of how we can leverage material, nanostructure, time dynamics, nanoscale energy flow, and heterogeneous interfacial processes for light-energy conversion technologies. Simulatenously, his mission is to apply this knowledge in the development of useful nanophotonic, material science, and sustainable photochemical technologies.

Sven Askes - Photoconversion Materials section - Department of Physics and Astronomy

Dr. Askes earned his PhD in Chemistry cum laude from Leiden University (2016), where he developed expertise in light-activated nanotechnologies for medical applications. He pursued postdoctoral research at Friedrich Schiller University Jena in Germany (2017) and at AMOLF in Amsterdam (2017-2019), focusing on plasmonic photocatalysis, self-directed photoelectrochemical synthesis of catalysts, and unconventional nanophotonic materials.

In 2019, he established his independent research program with the support of prestigious grants, including an NWO VENI and NWO-XS, and joined Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam in 2021. In 2023 he advanced to the rank of assistant professor and started teaching in the Mechanical Engineering bachelor program shared between the University of Twente and Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. In 2023 he was awarded an ERC Starting Grant (1.500 k€) and in 2024 a National Growth Fund (NGF) grant together with colleague Charusheela Ramanan (600 k€, 2024).

Dr. Askes's interdisciplinary approach, combining curiosity-driven research with practical applications, positions him as a leading figure in the development of innovative and sustainable technologies. His group combines photothermal catalysis experiments, Raman spectroscopy, finite-element modelling, and microkinetic analysis, through which a detailed understanding is obtained on how periodic illumination affects the energy efficiency and selectivity of catalysts.

As a researcher, Dr. Askes brings together deep curiosity, technical ingenuity, and a collaborative spirit. His interdisciplinary approach and commitment to sustainability make his research not only innovative, but also deeply relevant to the societal challenges of today and tomorrow. Throughout his career, Dr. Askes has published extensively in leading scientific journals such as Angewandte Chemie, Advanced Materials, ACS Catalysis, and Journal of the American Chemical Society (JACS). His contributions have been recognized with several awards and honors, including the HRSMC Dick Stufkens Prize for best PhD thesis in 2019.

He is an active mentor, educator, and scientific organizer of scientific events, notably serving as the main organizer of the 2024 Lorentz Workshop on Dynamic and Stimulated Catalysis and in the program committee of NWO CHAINS in 2024 and 2025.

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