Four Questions with Mildred Dresselhaus

Esteemed physicist, MIT Institute Professor and ‘Queen of Carbon’ Mildred Dresselhaus shared the story of her nearly 60-year career and the distinguished mentors who helped shape it during a public lecture in September.

What piqued your scientific interest in nanomaterials?

The electronic properties of carbon materials are so different from those of other electronic materials. Carbon is the lightest atom in column 4 of the periodic table, is earth abundant and is the basis for many common inorganic materials in nature. Carbon is also the basis of organic materials and all living creatures. When I started my independent career in 1960, relatively little was known about the electronic properties of this material and why carbon materials were so very different. Almost nobody else was interested in studying this material [then], and it is very comfortable to work in a field where the competition is low.

Your thesis adviser at the University of Chicago discouraged your pursuit of physics. What kept you going?
When my nominal thesis adviser told me in 1955 that women had no place in physics, I told him that I was not expecting to have others show interest in my work. My academic success gave me hopes of finding some sort of job after graduation. The Ph.D. thesis at the University of Chicago under the Enrico Fermi system was done independently and published in an appropriate journal with the graduate student as the sole author. My goal as a student was to graduate with a Ph.D. from the University of Chicago.

What advice would you give women entering scientific fields today?
I remain a passionate supporter of women in physics particularly because even now, 60 years after I graduated from the University of Chicago, women constitute only 20 percent of the physics community, and the proportion of women in top positions remains very low. Regarding advice for women, and men also, follow your passion and utilize your talents. It is not necessary to be aggressive or confrontational,although some women would claim this is necessary. My answer to this claim is that such tactics sometimes help, but patience with people is also fine. I don't mind being given a hard time occasionally, even if undeserved.

You have had a long and successful career, and you’ve said you have no plans to stop. What keeps you motivated in your work?
I am still excited about science. I still have a few students and postdocs with whom I work on a daily basis, and I look forward to coming to the lab every day to see them and work with them. This is very good for both science and for personal health. [I am very much interested] in the research I am doing and am stimulated by the many people I meet in my field and in related fields. I am equally stimulated by the many things I learn from and with my colleagues.