Whilst at the University of Bristol studying for an MSci in chemistry it became clear to me that my interests lay in physical chemistry. As part of my undergraduate degree, I carried out a final year project in the Bristol University Diamond Group with Professor Paul May. This was spent looking at diamond as a material for thermionic emission. Carrying out this project gave me an insight into the capabilities of diamond which resulted in a desire to study it further a learn more about the variety of possible applications.