Paul O'Brien. 22 January 1954—16 October 2018

Abstract

Paul O'Brien, known affectionately as ‘POB’, was one of the most imaginative and creative materials chemists of his generation. He brought a deep understanding and knowledge of classical coordination chemistry to bear on routes to thin films and nanoparticles of technologically important materials, particularly metal chalcogenides. His development of molecular precursor chemistry as a method to produce very high quality materials safely, inexpensively and on a large scale laid the foundations for the successful technological exploitation of quantum dots. Paul had a compendious knowledge of science, particularly inorganic chemistry, and was passionate about the exploitation of science and engineering to improve society, both in the UK and around the world, most notably in Africa. He was a wonderful raconteur, and a great counsellor to his many friends, and a source of endless jokes (many of them bad). His greatest passion was science, yet somehow he also found time for other interests, including reading, hill-walking and camping, theatre and football. Paul was diagnosed with glioblastoma multiforme on his sixty-fourth birthday in January 2018, and this led to his retirement in July 2018 and his appointment as Emeritus Professor at the University of Manchester. He approached his illness with his usual scientific curiosity and optimism. He passed away peacefully with his beloved wife Kym by his side.