Dr Padraic Morrissey is the Pilot Line Technology Manager in the Photonics group at Tyndall National Institute. Today he shares the path that led him to his current role and the people and culture that supported his rise to success.
Pilot Line Technology Manager,
Photonic Packaging and Systems Integration Group,
Tyndall.
What is your current role?
I am Pilot Line Technology Manager for the Photonic Packaging and Systems Integration Group at Tyndall where I’m responsible for the coordination of our Pilot Line activities. This involves developing new technologies and partnerships that allow photonics packaging to be scaled to larger volumes. In addition to this, I lead several of our industry research activities and manage our US-Ireland academic collaborations.
What path led you here?
The path to my current position started during my Physics undergraduate degree in UCC, where in my final year I took a course in Photonics. This was an excellent introduction to optical technologies and sparked my interest in doing a postgraduate degree in the area. In 2009, I began a PhD in Integrated Photonics and completed my thesis in 2014. After a two-year post-doctoral position in Integrated Photonics, I moved to the Photonics Packaging group as a researcher. During this time, I led several of our EU-funded packaging projects in Biotech (eye imaging and cardiac-diagnostics) and gained extensive experience in optical and electrical packaging technologies. I now continue to manage our US research activities while developing our pilot line programmes.
Did you have a role model who influenced your career choice?
While progressing my career from undergraduate to where I am today, I worked with various individuals who continue to inspire and encourage me. During my PhD, I was fortunate to have an excellent supervisor in Prof. Frank Peters and in my current role, I am working with Prof. Peter O’Brien, a world leader in Photonics Packaging, who I’m grateful to have as a mentor in my research career.
How has working at Tyndall enabled you to fulfil your potential?
Tyndall has given me the opportunity to fulfil my potential as researcher as it has provided me opportunities to progress both personally and professionally. I started out in 2009 as a PhD student and since then have progressed from being a post-doctoral researcher into my current role as Pilot Line Technology Manager. Along that entire journey, working in Tyndall has allowed me to expand my knowledge into new areas, work with great people and continue to develop my career in Photonics. Tyndall provides a great platform for taking your career forward and this progression motivates me to fulfil my own potential.
What advice would you give your younger self?
I would say that during your research not everything is going to go according to the original plan or in the way you might expect, there will always be ups and downs. However, this is the beauty of research so try to be open to it. It can lead you in various directions and new learning can come from these deviations. It’s important to embrace the challenges and put the work in to get where you want to go.
Current Vacancies
Interested in working with Padraic and his team?
Find out more about our current Postdoc vacancy here.