David Miall, Nationwide Oceanography Centre – EW BrightSparks

For the following in our collection on the most recent EW BrightSparks of 2025, we profile David Miall, an Electronics Engineer on the UK’s Nationwide Oceanography Centre (NOC). He’s additionally a former UKESF (UK Electronics Abilities Basis) scholar.

Achievements

David was nominated by his supervisor who informed us how necessary David has been as a part of the electronics and software program crew.

David joined the Nationwide Oceanography Centre (NOC) in September 2023, having graduated from the College of York with a 1st in Digital Engineering. And he has been strongly contributing to the event of our environmental sensing gadgets since then, we realized.

Shortly after becoming a member of, for instance, David joined the multi-institution MISSION undertaking. That is funded by the EPSRC (Engineering and Bodily Sciences Analysis Council) to supply a prototype greenhouse-gas sensor utilizing a mid-IR absorption spectrometer with a silicon-photonic sensing chip.

His supervisor writes:

“His involvement on this undertaking initially concerned designing a DSP-based modulating laser-driver for the tunable diode-laser; this required him to mix precision analogue strategies, moderate-speed digital design, and high-performance embedded software program to supply the modulated present waveforms for the laser, demodulator management indicators, and temperature management.”

“As he took extra possession of the work-package, he moved to main Digital Engineer on the undertaking and has offered and defined his work to nationally-recognised silicon-photonics consultants, has represented the place of the NOC on the general undertaking route at a number of nationwide conferences of the undertaking companions, and collaborates with the scientists in Southampton on a day-to-day foundation.”

We additionally heard David has been investigating encapsulation for the envisaged mixed optoelectronic sensing gadget. That’s, contemplating the mid-IR properties of various polymers in addition to how they need to behave beneath stress to offer safety to the gadget while nonetheless permitting sufficient mild transmission.

To correctly contribute, his nominator informed us, David needed to study the basics of silicon-photonics and optoelectronics, a difficult job at which he actually succeeded.

David has additionally been contributing to the TRIDENT undertaking, we learnt. This was co-designing, and creating the electronics for, a sediment sensor to measure sediment falling out of the water-column from simulated deep-sea mining. The goal is for researchers to achieve a greater understanding of the results of deep-sea mining on the surroundings on the ocean ground across the website.

So, the preliminary requirement was to have the ability to sense a layer of sediment up-to 10mm thick. And a normal optical-reflectance sort gadget was initially proposed by the lead researcher. It was discovered, nonetheless, that the sensitivity to thick layers was restricted, and it might be tough to achieve 10mm, so one other approach was required.

“David proposed {that electrical} impedance could possibly be used for thicker layers and so devised a novel sensing component permitting each optical and electrical measurements of the identical space utilizing patterned conductive glass.”

Extra just lately, he has been working with NOC scientists to optimise {the electrical} sensing component by experimental lab work. Mainly, optimising the manufacturing course of to depart the glass clearer and produce higher-quality electrodes (transferring from a chemical etch to a dry laser course of).

For this, David developed a prototype for a 3-wavelength reflectance measurement plate to sit down beneath the glass and provides precision measurements of the reflectance in 4 quarters of a sediment plate, permitting the project-lead to supply an illustration gadget and examine encapsulation strategies with glass.

Lastly, one other high quality highlighted by David’s nominator was his willingness to assist when issues come by the door.

One instance concerned a pair of digital camera techniques, which was designed by one other group and a marketing consultant to seize falling particles (marine snow) within the Labrador Sea. With just some weeks earlier than the ship was to sail, the techniques didn’t work. David mounted the preliminary downside and allowed the digital camera to set off then analysed the system’s power-consumption to double-check that it might meet the necessities. He discovered it to fall far quick.

“After totally checking his evaluation he offered, with help from a Senior colleague, the undertaking’s lead scientists with the outcomes and potential choices.”

He defined merely what could be achievable within the remaining time and the choice was taken to rebuild the gadget with the NOC’s commonplace electronics stack and some new business parts.

“With sturdy effort this produced gadgets which far exceeded the necessities in time to be deployed within the Labrador Sea.”

Group

By way of STEM and neighborhood outreach work, we additionally learnt that David is extremely concerned within the engineering and NOC neighborhood in quite a lot of methods. He has been actively taking part in STEM outreach {and professional} our bodies in addition to partaking neighborhood constructions on the NOC.

He’s, for instance, the Occasions Organiser for the IET Solent Native Community. Right here, he co-ordinates the working of talks and numerous different occasions for the membership in addition to Native Community outreach occasions. These embody the IET presence on the Isle of Wight science competition.

David can be a former UKESF scholar, by which he has been a mentor a number of instances. His mentee for the final yr was working for his sponsor firm, which is geographically near the NOC.

In addition to visiting the corporate, David organised a tour of the NOC for the mentee and colleagues to present them a very good view of the sensors and the autonomous underwater autos developed on the Oceanography Centre. And likewise give the mentee a glance right into a lesser-known space of electronics for analysis.

Additionally, final summer time, he represented the NOC on the Wellington Belief’s Future Maritime Engineers Day, his supervisor shared. This noticed him go to the previous HMS Wellington on the Thames to current the engineering work of the NOC. This concerned the sensors that David’s group develops specifically, but additionally the marine robotics work and analysis ships. He was presenting to teams of Sixth-form college students concerned with Marine Engineering.

Moreover, in 2024, David went to the Isle of Wight Science Pageant. He was representing the IET within the morning for the principle Science Pageant. This concerned interactive demonstrations of fruit and vegetable batteries and IR communications. After which, within the afternoon, he was representing the NOC for the careers a part of the occasion. This was discussing STEM careers for 5 minutes with totally different teams of yr 10 and 12 college students.

In 2025 he was once more going to the Isle of Wight to signify the NOC for each classes. For this, he labored with the NOC’s scientists and our outreach crew to design a brand new interactive stand to assist signify the complete spectrum of the organisation’s analysis and improvement exercise, in addition to the accessible profession choices.

And he additionally represented the NOC’s on the College of Southampton Engineering Day, in 2025, contributing to the MISSION analysis undertaking’s stand, we realized.

“For this he designed demonstrators of the environmental gasoline sensor (an absorption demonstration with LEDs, ‘gasoline cell’, and a fog-machine) and medical sensor the undertaking seems to be to supply in addition to presenting to the general public concerning the undertaking, partaking with a whole bunch of kids and adults about makes use of of Silicon Photonics.”

Lastly, for the newest NOC open day, he has co-ordinated the MISSION-project’s stand. This concerned making a marine-focused model of the stand which labored properly on the College Engineering day. For instance, serving to clarify how photonics and opto-electronic sensing might help monitor the marine surroundings to the 1900 attendees.

Congratulations to David Miall!