Graham Turnbull

Professor of Physics

Graham Turnbull’s research combines optical materials and nanophotonics for a range of smart lighting applications that span optical wireless communications, biotechnology, and trace chemical sensing. He has made world-leading contributions to the development of organic semiconductor lasers including the recent advance of an electrically-driven organic laser based on the world’s brightest OLEDs. His group has developed trace chemical sensors for environmental monitoring and for land mine detection, and LED-based lighting for growing algae. Underpinning the device physics and applications are studies of light-matter interactions in organic materials and scalable processing including nanoimprint lithography.

In 2024 Graham Turnbull co-established the Photonics and Quantum Accelerator (PQA), a £5M EPSRC-funded project that brings together Scottish universities, local councils and industry bodies to advance the growth of the photonics sector in Scotland’s Central Belt.