Estelle Mossou, Industrial Liaison Engineer for Structural Biology

The ESRF is a mind-blowing facility. If you like science, it is like being a kid in Legoland! I have been in close proximity to the ESRF for about 13 years. I worked as a scientist at neighbouring institute ILL for five years, after studying for my PhD there. Prior to that, I came to Grenoble for an internship during my Masters in physics. The first time I worked with an industrial partner, I was very impressed by their working dynamic.  Today I work as industrial liaison engineer in the Structural Biology group. I show industrial clients how the ESRF can benefit their R&D and guide them through the process, from accessing beamtime to data acquisition and, occasionally, data processing.

My experience at the ILL is a big advantage. ESRF and ILL are both international large-scale user facilities. They are complementary with many synergies. Our user community can overlap with some users using both techniques – X-rays and neutrons – for their research.

My job involves a lot of problem solving. I have to know all the aspects of accessing the ESRF and I have a broad and detailed knowledge of the beamlines. For structural biology, I interact with pharmaceutical companies that have integrated the use of the ESRF’s state-of-the-art Macromolecular Crystallography beamlines into their pipeline of drug discovery.

I love the entrepreneurial feel of working with the Business Development Office at the ESRF and with industrial clients. It is fast-paced, with high throughput. Expectations are different and results have to come fast. Our industrial clients are good at giving us detailed feedback on their experience and this dynamic pushes developments on the beamlines. I find it very fulfilling to interact with so many people and to play a small role in a multitude of projects.

Estelle Mossou has Belgian nationality. She was brought up in Gabon in Central Africa, where she obtained a scholarship to study at Bath University in the UK. She studied physics and first came to Grenoble for a placement at ILL during her Masters. She maintained the link France-UK for her PhD, studying between Keele University in Staffordshire and the ILL. She worked at the ILL as a scientist for 5 years. Estelle has been industrial liaison engineer at the ESRF since September 2023. After working for 5 years as a scientist at ILL, Estelle joined the ESRF in 2023 as Industrial Liaison Engineer for Structural Biology.