Dr Dominik Kubicki

Supervisor Details

Contact Details

School of Chemistry, University of Birmingham

Scientific Background

Research Interests

I am a chemist interested in how understanding matter at the atomic level can help us make better materials, and better ways of manufacturing them. My group combines materials synthesis with solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), a technique that reveals how atoms are arranged and how they move. Our research spans next-generation solar-cell materials, porous materials and glasses, new NMR methods, and mechanochemistry: using mechanical force to drive chemical reactions, including turning difficult-to-recycle plastics into useful chemicals. We always try to connect fundamental discoveries with challenges in energy, sustainability and technology.

We are now taking an exciting step into biology, working with an outstanding team of colleagues through ARIA’s Universal Fabricators programme to explore how proteins can help build the materials of the future. Biology assembles remarkably sophisticated structures, and we want to understand how to harness that capability for manufacturing. This brings together protein science, chemistry, physics and materials characterisation, and creates opportunities for students to contribute their own expertise while learning something entirely new. If you enjoy asking questions that cross subject boundaries, and want to see how biological discoveries could change the way we make things, you would find plenty to explore with us.

Scientific Inspiration

Marie Skłodowska Curie. I admire her extraordinary perseverance and the care and hard work behind her discoveries, as well as the fact that she was both a great chemist and a great physicist. Her example reminds me that important scientific questions often extend beyond the boundaries of any one discipline. I find that process of learning from people who see a problem differently one of the most rewarding parts of research.

Research Groups

I lead Kubicki Lab in the University of Birmingham’s School of Chemistry. Our research connects us with colleagues across the University and a wider international community:

In biosciences and medicine: our growing biological research brings together colleagues across the School of Biosciences and the College of Medicine and Health,.

In chemistry and physics: I am part of Birmingham’s ultra-low-temperature NMR initiative, working with Dr Mingee Chung's Resonance Lab to develop NMR research at millikelvin temperatures, close to absolute zero.

Magnetic Birmingham: I co-lead Magnetic Birmingham, which brings together researchers across disciplines to share expertise, facilities and ideas around magnetism.

Royal Society of Chemistry: I serve as Secretary of the RSC Solid-State Chemistry Group and help organise activities such as its annual meeting, with opportunities for postgraduate students and early-career researchers to present their work.

Biology for future manufacturing: our work with ARIA's Universal Fabricators programme connects us with a wider community exploring how proteins can enable new approaches to making materials.

For a PhD student, these connections mean opportunities to learn from different disciplines, develop collaborations and become part of a scientific community that extends well beyond their immediate project.

Supervision Style

In three words or phrases: Supportive; collaborative; ambitious and hands-on (because I love being in the lab too!)

Provision of Training

You will learn through a combination of direct guidance from me and Prof. Tim Knowles at Birmingham Biosciences, practical training with experienced group members and specialist input from our collaborators, with support tailored to your starting point. As your confidence grows, I will encourage you to take increasing ownership of experiments and ideas, while helping you develop the skills to interpret results critically and communicate your research. I oversee my department's technical skills training so there will be plenty of opportunities for you to learn new skills.

Progression Monitoring and Management

We will regularly discuss your results, what they mean and which questions to prioritise next. We will be agreeing clear and realistic next steps together. I have high expectations for the quality and rigour of our science, which I apply to myself and everyone around me - to make us all better researchers. But research rarely follows a straight line: when something doesn't work, we will troubleshoot, learn from it and adapt the plan! :)

Communication

My communication style is informal, direct and collaborative: we use Slack alongside informal meetings and conversations to share results, ask questions and work through problems together. I will always encourage you to speak up early when you are unsure or stuck, and to tell me about circumstances affecting your progress so that we can discuss what support or adjustments would help. We all have different working and communications styles and that's what makes research great. We work hard, but respect each other's boundaries - work/life balance is important because we want our discoveries to be sustainable, and not burn ourselves to the ground in the process of making them!

Meetings

PhD Students can expect scheduled meetings with me at least once per week. These meetings will be face-to-face. I am usually contactable for an instant response on every working day.

Work Patterns

The timing of work in my lab is completely flexible, and (other than attending pre-arranged meetings) I expect students to manage their own time.

Notice Period for Feedback

I need at least 3 days' notice to provide feedback on written work of up to 5,000 words.

MIBTP Project Details

Primary supervisor for:

Engineering Biological Interfaces: Building and Exploiting Planar Membrane and Protein Assemblies

See the PhD Opportunities section to see if this project is currently open for applications via MIBTP.

Please Note: The main page lists projects via BBSRC Research Theme(s) quoted and then relevant Topic(s).

Engineering Biological Interfaces: Building and Exploiting Planar Membrane and Protein Assemblies

Secondary Supervisor(s): Professor Tim Knowles

University of Registration: University of Birmingham

BBSRC Research Themes:

Understanding the Rules of Life (Structural Biology)

Project Outline

Biological membranes provide highly organised interfaces on which many essential cellular processes occur. However, their complexity makes these processes difficult to study and exploit. This project will develop advanced planar biological interfaces that recreate key features of natural membranes while providing precise control over their composition, organisation and function.

Research in the Knowles laboratory has established methods for constructing surface-supported lipid bilayers and more complex architectures, including double-bilayer systems that mimic the Gram-negative bacterial envelope. These provide platforms into which membrane proteins can be incorporated, allowing processes such as lipid transport, protein assembly and antibiotic interactions to be studied in controlled environments.

A complementary direction will exploit proteins that self-assemble at biological interfaces. S-layer proteins naturally form ordered two-dimensional lattices with defined nanoscale pores. Projects could investigate their assembly on planar lipid membranes and other surfaces, determine how protein engineering or surface properties control lattice formation, and explore their use as templates for biomineralisation to create hybrid protein-inorganic materials.

The precise direction will be tailored to the student’s interests, spanning membrane biophysics, protein engineering and bio-inspired materials.

Students will use approaches including membrane biochemistry, QCM-D, neutron reflectometry and cryo-EM to provide quantitative insight into assembly, structure and function.

Ultimately, we aim to understand and harness biological self-assembly to create new functional interfaces bridging biology and materials science.