René has been working as applications specialist for EBSD and later also EDS at the EDAX European support office in Tilburg, The Netherlands since 2001. His focus is on instrument demonstrations, conference and workshop presentations, and after-sales customer support. This includes (on-site) training courses, assistance with analytical problems, and scientific collaborations. Although focused on Europe, his work has brought him to customers and conferences all over the world. This international travel is a great bonus for his hobby geocaching, where he tries logging at least one cache in every city visited.

As he has always been fascinated by the physical world around him, René has chosen to study geology at Utrecht University with specialization in materials science from a geological perspective.  René’s first introduction to electron microscopy and microanalysis came during his undergraduate thesis on deformation and pressure indicators in natural fault rocks from New Zealand, which involved a significant amount of SEM and TEM work.  Later during his PhD thesis on nanometer-scale melt structures in upper mantle rocks, he also learned about high resolution TEM imaging and EDS analysis.  Around this time, he also started using EBSD on a system without any automation.

Rene’s background in geology gives him a slightly different view on materials research, which has proven invaluable over the years at EDAX. In geology, one must often look at a material without any prior knowledge on how it was formed. Applying this view to man-made materials can be a great help in explaining unexpected test results or materials failures that customers need to understand.