Emilia Olsson

Dr. Emilia Olsson serves as Group Leader of the Materials Theory and Modelling group at the Advanced Research Center for Nanolithography (ARCNL) and as Assistant Professor of Condensed Matter Physics at the University of Amsterdam's Institute for Theoretical Physics. Her work bridges theoretical physics and materials engineering, focusing on atomic-scale computational design for next-generation semiconductor technologies, particularly EUV lithography.

Olsson's academic journey:

• PhD from University College London (2017), supervised by Prof. Nora H de Leeuw, focusing on materials design for solid oxide fuel cells.
• Research Fellow in Battery Materials Modelling at the University of Surrey.
• Visiting Researcher at Imperial College London (with Prof. Maria-Magdalena Titirici) and Queen Mary University of London (with Prof. Alan Drew) as part of a UK Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund project on sodium-ion batteries.

Her research expertise lies in computational materials science, utilizing density functional theory and molecular dynamics to model bulk, surface, thin-film, and interface systems. She investigates how disorder, defects, and non-epitaxial interfaces affect material properties, and integrates multi-scale modelling and machine learning to advance materials discovery for industrial applications.

Her scientific recognition includes:

• NWO Wise Fellowship (2022-present)

Olsson leads the Materials Theory and Modelling group at ARCNL, which collaborates extensively with other ARCNL departments (Contact Dynamics, Materials and Surface Science for EUVL, Light-Matter Interactions, High-harmonic Generation and EUV Science, and EUV Plasma Processes), Leiden University, AMOLF, Maastricht University, and international partners including Imperial College London, University of Surrey, Queen Mary University of London, and University of Wollongong. The group's work is instrumental in identifying novel candidate materials and breakdown mechanisms for EUV lithography.

She has secured research funding through the NWO Wise Fellowship and previously contributed to a UK Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund project. As a group leader and assistant professor, she mentors students and researchers in computational materials design.