Collin Sones's Biography

Collin Sones, Principal Research Fellow/ Associate Professor, University of Southampton

Dr. Collin Sones is a Principal Research Fellow/Associate Professor in the Optoelectronics Research Centre at the University of Southampton. He has been working at the Optoelectronics Research Centre since 2003 and as a Senior Research Fellow since 2008, before which he was a Lecturer in Physics/Electronics in India for 7 years. He received his bachelor and master’s degrees in Physics-Electronics in 1989 and 1991 from the South Gujarat University, India. He has been working in the area of laser-materials interactions and laser-based micro-structuring/patterning techniques for applications in integrated and non-linear optical devices for the last 17 years. More recently, he has been working towards the development of laser-direct-write printing and patterning technologies, and his group has been responsible for some key achievements, particularly in the area of laser patterning of fluidic devices in porous materials such as paper. His current research is focused on laser fabrication of low-cost, point-of-case medical diagnostic sensors targeted for use in resource-poor settings of lower and middle-income countries. His research activity in this field has been funded through successive grants from the EPSRC, UK, and these have helped his team explore the feasibility of laser-based printing and patterning methodologies for large-scale manufacture of affordable paper-based diagnostics targeted at tackling global challenges that include the endemic of Tuberculosis and Antimicrobial Resistance. He has authored 135 academic contributions that include journal papers and conference proceedings, 4 institutional reports, and 1 book chapter, and has >730 citations. He is also a named inventor on four recent patent filings, which are related to their work on laser patterning for low-cost healthcare diagnostic applications.